BERENIKA WEBSTER, PHDULS STRATEGIC ASSESSMENT UNIT

HTTP: / /WWW.LIBRARY.PITT.EDU/ASSESSMENTPITT ISCHOOL LECTURE

8 DECEMBER 2015

Library Assessment at ULS

Pitt’s Statement of Aspiration and Strategic Priorities

ULS strategic plan 14-17 reflects ambitions of the University…

Strategic Assessment Unit’s Mission is

… to coordinate data collection and analysis to support both strategic and operational priorities of the ULS and help ULS demonstrate value of its services to all its stakeholders.

Since September 2013…

Coordinator of Strategic Assessment hiredEstablishment of Strategic Assessment UnitDeveloped Unit plan for 2014-2016, approved

by Senior Staff and incorporated into FY15 and FY16 Strategic Actions

Acting UL

Coordinator of Strategic

Assessment

Assessment Librarian (currently

vacant)Data Analyst

Who do we serve?

Objective 1: Robust reporting

Objective 2: Provide robust information for evidence-based decision making

9Benchmarking

Spotting trends

Spotting trends

http://www.library.pitt.edu/other/files/pdf/assessment/MyDayAtHillmanSurveyResults.pdf

Spotting opportunities

Spotting opportunities

Spotting problems

Objective 3: demonstrate impact of ULS services

Traditional library metrics

Number of volumes

Number of serials sub

Reference requests

Gate counts

Circulation stats

Anything else that moves and is easy to count

New library metrics

Impact on student recruitment and retention

Impact on student learning outcomes

Contribution to research excellence

Impact on community

Return on investment

Recruitment and retention

Library space is one of 3 top factors in students’ choice of college

Student retention rates are linked to state funding of universities

Student learning outcomes: HEDS survey

SSoE undergrad project: positive correlation between frequency of use of library materials and GPA

Contribution to research process

https://innoscholcomm.silk.co/

Contribution to research process

New services (needs analysis) Data management Digital humanities Bibliometrics

Collections assessment Neurology collection

Planned liaison programme assessmentCase studies and testimonials

Objective 3: Improve Processes

http://www.library.pitt.edu/Assessment

New tools

New tools

Jack of all trades…

Researcher Select appropriate data collection mechanism

(satisfaction survey is not always appropriate) Design data collection Analyse data Communicate and interpret findings Make recommendations

Communicator Embedded into life of library Relationships with central administration (institutional

research, research office, registrar, etc.) Solid understanding of institutional mission and

ambitions

Community

ARL Assessment Group with its listservACRL assessment group ARL Assessment leadership workshopAnnual conference (ARL and Northumbria)Performance Measurements and Metrics

Association for Institutional Research (AIR) website and annual forum