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Evaluation: The Key to Maximizing the Success of Library Programs
An Infopeople Webinar
Start Time: Pacific - 12 Noon, Mountain - 1 PM, Central - 2 PM, Eastern - 3 PM
Presenters:
Rebecca Teasdale, Principal, Rebecca Teasdale & Associates
Linda Hofschire, Consultant
Lisa Dale, Collection Services Manager, Sacramento Public Library
Elizabeth Gray, Central Services Manager, Yolo County Library
Andrea Hilliard, Lead Librarian, Reference, Carlsbad City Library
Madelyn Horton, Reference Librarian, Carlsbad City Library
Every week, your library offers multiple programs to serve residents in your community. Your attendance numbers are high, and participants give you positive feedback about the programs. But how do you know if these programs are effective, whether they’re meeting the needs of your community, or how they could be improved?
Staff from six California public libraries recently participated in the first cohort of Embedding Evaluation in Libraries, a national, IMLS-funded project, and developed and implemented an evaluation of a library program over a nine-month period. In this webinar, the Embedding Evaluation project directors and participants from three of the cohort libraries will share best practices and examples to help you:
- Identify the most relevant questions to ask about the impact, quality, and relevance of your programs,
- Understand the advantages of using multiple data collection methods to capture a multidimensional portrait of library offerings, and
- Determine how to use evaluation results to take action.
Presenters will outline strategies for integrating evaluation into library operations and share free resources to help you get started evaluating library programs and services.
At the end of this one-hour webinar, participants will:
- Understand the value of (a) conducting a multidimensional evaluation that includes, but is not limited to, assessing outcomes, (b) using multiple data collection methods, and (c) using results to take action
- Have a framework for determining evaluation priorities
- Be aware of best practices, strategies, and free resources they can use to embed evaluation into their libraries.
This webinar will be of interest to: Library staff seeking strategies and resources for evaluating the effectiveness of their programs and determining how to prioritize programs for evaluation.