Challenges for Library Assessment Susan Gibbons Vice Provost Andrew H. & Janet Dayton Neilly Dean River Campus Libraries University of Rochester

Attraction of the Quantitative We love to count – Precision – Automated – Weighty What are we counting? What do the numbers actually tell us?

Reference Queries 97, 850 queries in ,950 queries in 2006 Its all because of the Internet, right?

Reference Queries 97, 850 queries in ,950 queries in 2006 Its all because of the Internet, right? – Computer queues

Show us what you carry with You all of the time.

Reference Queries 97, 850 queries in ,950 queries in 2006 Its all because of the Internet, right? – Computer queues – 41% of ARL library homepages dont have phone numbers

2-3 miles Out of dorm by 8:30am Peek study 11pm-1am Few formal meals Carrying everything Very structured & busy

Reference Queries 97, 850 queries in ,950 queries in 2006 Its all because of the Internet, right? – Computer queues – 41% of ARL library homepages dont have phone numbers – Reference hours are off student schedules

Bibliographic Tools Graduate students magic wand – Bibliographic tool EndNote RefWorks – Bibliographic tool Marketing campaign – Bibliographic tool Timing is everything

Uniqueness of User Communities CurriculumTraditional vs. On-Line Socio-economic statusClimate Tenure vs. AdjunctIT infrastructure Campus sizeResidential vs. Commuter

Assessment Every campus is different; therefore every librarys services, digital presence and facilities must be different; therefore, every library needs local assessment methods Remember: Accountability is local

Qualitative Assessment Growing toolkit Skill set is usually within reach Subject recruitment is not hard Opportunity for wide participation – Share experience leads to better and easier execution of change