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Explore assessment strategies to determine the value of library data, collect new data, and make informed decisions. Consider collaboration, aligning with university priorities, and maximizing the use of data and findings.
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Assessment @ Cornell Xin Li For ARL Assessment Forum January 11, 2008
At ALA 2007: Cornell and Assessment In Anne Kenney’s presentation: • http://www.arl.org/news/enews/enews_july07.shtml
Strategies: Think Value • What data do we have? • Are they still worth mining for current library activities? • What data do we need? • What’s the value to collect new data? • Will new data lead to decisions/actions? • Is the return worth the investment in collecting them? • If we don’t have the data, who else has? • Can we use others’ data, why and why not?
Strategies: Think Measures of Success • Align Library assessment with University priorities • University strategic planning and campaign • Renovation • Embrace competition as motivator for bench marking • ARL new measures initiative • Best colleges and universities (what do their libraries do?) • Recognize organizational climate as key success factor • Correlation of customer satisfaction with library services and the climate of the organization the library staff perceive
Strategies: Think Collaboration • Research and Assessment Unit • Library committees • Project Groups • Functional units and staff within • Offices of the University • Context-specific peers Avoid redundancy and maximize use of data and findings Align with larger goals and benefit from and support peers at the same time
2008 In the Works • Participate in Organizational Climate and Diversity Assessment • Conduct use and user studies to support library priorities • Drop low-value measures and automate annual statistics collection • Re-design Cornell Library Annual Statistics Report • Finish data mart pilot • Standardize measures to prepare for longitudinal study • Launch GoFigure! Noteworthy for CUL staff • Consider producing news briefs for University administrators, faculty and stakeholders • LibQual mining • NCES mining • And more…
Growing Pains • Staff training and retooling • Project management • Risk taking and acceptance of good enough data • Data management • Selling the value of assessment • Political ramifications • Data discomfort • Decentralized assessment landscape
Thank you! xin.li@cornell.edu