The 2008 Library Assessment Conference: Building Effective, Sustainable, Practical Assessment took place from August 4-7, 2008, on the campus of the University of Washington in Seattle. Interest in library assessment continues to grow and we were immensely gratified to see an increase in the number of registrants from 220 at the 2006 Conference in Charlottesville to 380 in Seattle! Indeed, participants were a part of the largest library assessment conference ever held—coming from 43 US states and Puerto Rico, 6 Canadian provinces, and 4 continents outside North America.
The exhilarating program included four days of presentations, workshops, engaging speakers, poster sessions, and many opportunities for informal discussion. Of course, the conference would not have been possible without the contributions of our speakers, presenters and workshop leaders.
Among the conference highlights were an opening keynote session featuring three University Librarians who are known for their forward looking and challenging perspectives, a plenary session on evaluating quality, the conference reception set in the stunning Olympic Sculpture Park against the backdrop of Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains, and career recognition awards to three pioneers in library assessment.
We view participants’ commitment to library assessment as critical to the process of demonstrating the impact and connection of the library to the research, teaching, and learning process. One of our primary goals has been to nurture and grow a library assessment community that serves as a catalyst and supports libraries in evaluating and measuring their contributions to the broader organization. The published volume of proceedings is a testimony to the growth of that community and the diverse approaches used effectively in library assessment.
Get Copies from this Conference
Proceedings are available for purchase from ARL Publications for $150. Or download a PDF of the published 2008 proceedings (26 MB PDF). See below for selected PowerPoint presentations and other handouts available online.
Schedule
Monday, August 4
Welcome & Opening
Steve Hiller, Martha Kyrillidou, and Jim Self (Conference Co-Chairs)
Betsy Wilson (Dean of University Libraries, University of Washington)
Plenary Session I: The Most Important Challenge for Library Assessment
Using Evidence for Space Planning
Kathryn Crowe (University of North Carolina at Greensboro)
Michael A. Crumpton (University of North Carolina at Greensboro)
Voices of Authentic Assessment: Stakeholder Experiences Implementing Authentic Information Literacy Assessments
Leslie Bussert (University of Washington Bothell/Cascadia Community College)
Karen R. Diller (Washington State University Vancouver)
Sean Wm. Hawes (Washington State University Vancouver)
Sarah Leadley (University of Washington Bothell/Cascadia Community College)
Sue F. Phelps (Washington State University Vancouver)
Norm Pouliot (Cascadia Community College)
Integrating Assessment and Planning: A Path to Improved Library Effectiveness
Wanda Dole (University of Arkansas at Little Rock)
Maureen James (University of Arkansas at Little Rock)
Donna Rose (University of Arkansas at Little Rock)
John Barnett (University of Arkansas at Little Rock)
Suzanne Martin (University of Arkansas at Little Rock)
Creating Assessment Plans: Four Case Studies
Agnes Tatarka (University of Chicago)
Jennifer Rutner (Columbia University)
Xin Li (Cornell University)
Kay Chapa (University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas)
Plenary IV: Conference Perspectives: A Look Back and a View Forward
Panelists: Paul Beavers (Assessment Officer and the Director of Information Services Group, Wayne State University), Deborah Carver (Dean of Libraries and Professor, University of Oregon), Debra Gilchrist (Dean of Libraries and Institutional Effectiveness, Pierce College), and Peter Hernon (Professor, Simmons College)
Moderator: Crit Stuart (ARL)
Conference close and adjournment
Steve Hiller, Martha Kyrillidou, and Jim Self (Conference Co-Chairs)
Thursday, August 7
Morning Post-Conference Workshops
Beyond the Pie Chart: Techniques for Structuring and Visualizing Quantitative Information
Joseph Zucca (University of Pennsylvania)
Location: Peterson Room, Allen Library
Getting Started with Learning Outcomes Assessment PowerPoint
Megan Oakleaf (Syracuse University)
Location: Suzzallo-Allen Library Maps/Special Collections Classroom
Jumpstarting the Assessment of Library Learning SpacesHandouts
Crit Stuart (Association of Research Libraries)
C. Todd White (University of Rochester)
Location: Odegaard Undergraduate Library 220
Turning Data into Information Handout
Neal Kaske (National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration)
Location: Suzzallo Library 5th Floor Conference Room
Afternoon Post-Conference Workshops
Successfully Implementing the Balanced ScorecardHandouts
Jim Self and Donna Tolson (University of Virginia)
Location: Odegaard Undergraduate Library 220
Usability TestingHandouts
Jennifer Ward (University of Washington)
Location: Suzzallo-Allen Library Maps/Special Collections Classroom
