Arizona State University (ASU) is known for both enormous size and scale, as well as excellence in research and innovation. These attributes are embodied in the ideal of the "New American University." ASU Library, as a partner in the New American University, has reorganized itself, completed a large-scale renovation of its main library…

As academic libraries focus on delivering new services in such areas as research data, digital preservation, and data curation, they have begun to explore alternative funding models and approaches to research. The Arizona State University (ASU) Library in Tempe works with the university's Office of Knowledge Enterprise Development to collaborate…

In light of the current political climate and the effortlessness of disseminating information across social media platforms, the national conversation on information literacy has been focused on combating "fake news." While the urgency of this issue is also a concern in tribal colleges and universities (TCU) classrooms, the librarians at…

Nearly all academic librarians agree that academic libraries have to change in order to respond successfully to the new realities of the higher education environment, rapidly developing information and telecommunications technologies, and the crisis in scholarly communications. But there is little agreement on what must change, how the changes…

This article describes the use of scenarios as a tool to assist a large distance learning library service in its strategic planning. Through a description of the scenario process from beginning to end, the authors detail the steps that the library director and the consultant took initially; their missteps; and the successful conclusion. This study…

The author, the new associate university librarian at Arizona State University (ASU) Library, discusses the "New Media Consortium Horizon Report: 2017 Higher Education Edition," an annual report that identifies and describes emerging technologies for learning and teaching. She highlights a major theme of the report--digital equity--and…

This article describes the process and role frontline access and public service staff play in needs assessment and evaluation of user services, specifically in understanding the voice of the customer. Information includes how the University of Arizona Libraries have incorporated daily data collection into the strategic planning process, resources…

The purpose of this research was to determine how information synthesis skills can be taught effectively, and to discover how the level of synthesis in student writing can be effectively measured. The intervention was an information synthesis lesson that broke down the synthesis process into sequenced tasks. Researchers created a rubric which they…

Academic library websites contain a vast amount of complex content and, all too often, there is a lack of established process for creating, updating, and deleting that content. There is no clear vision or purpose to the content, and numerous staff members are expected to maintain content with little guidance. Because of this, many library websites…

Since the adoption of faceted search in a small number of academic libraries in 2006, faceted library catalogs have gained popularity in many academic and public libraries. This dissertation seeks to understand whether faceted search improves the interactions between searchers and library catalogs and to understand ways that facets are used in…

Arizona State University is the largest public university in the United States with an enrollment of 70,440 in 2010. ASU's online offerings are also expanding rapidly with a target of 30,000 students by 2020. In one program, growth and transformation from hybrid to 100% online demanded scalability to handle large enrollments. Thus an instructional…

Embedded librarianship has emerged as one approach to meeting the ever-evolving information needs of our clients. The University of Arizona Health Sciences Library has endeavored to become more proactive by embedding librarians within each of the four colleges it serves. Although the process of establishing visibility, recognition, and developing…

This paper reports on a research project that examined the test scores of students who took part in an online information literacy course. Researchers analyzed the pre- and post-test scores of students who received different types of instruction including a traditional one-shot library session and an online course. Results show that students who…

In the summer of 2012, the University of Arizona Libraries implemented an online training program to effectively train Access Services staff and student employees at a large academic research library. This article discusses the program, which was built using a course management system (D2L) and various e-Learning software applications (Articulate…

An empirical study was conducted using methods borrowed from the psychology of religion (instead of corporate assessment techniques) to assess whether the academic library as place supports students' desire to feel connected to higher education's mission. The findings from an in-person survey of fifty-four students at three universities showed a…