The Main Library Service Desk is a one-stop academic help center located between a newly renovated student-focused space called the Learning Commons and the library collections. Services began with the first day of classes, August 26, 2013, and assessment has been ongoing, in part due to the availability of data. Staffing levels, staffing hours,…

As access services emerges as a discrete discipline within the field of librarianship, opportunities for access services librarians to meet and discuss the issues facing today's libraries continue to grow. One annual meeting that has attracted less attention over the years is the Ivies + Access Services Symposium. Held at various member…

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…

In 2011 the University of Wollongong Library undertook a significant review of its Resource Sharing services. This was prompted by constraints in the systems supporting this service, changes to the Library's key suppliers, Infotrieve Australia and the British Library Document Supply Service, and the need to deliver effective library services…

Provides an overview of the current state of libraries and information services in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Topics include academic, national, public, special, and school libraries; factors dictating the need for information services, including socioeconomic changes; problems; and the need for library education for staffing. (LRW)

For-profit schools constitute the fastest-growing sector of higher education institutions in the United States. Yet accompanying the phenomenal growth of these proprietary colleges and universities has been considerable controversy over the role that the profit motive should play in higher education. The literature of higher education contains…

Describes the development of the ResIDe Electronic Library at the University of the West of England, Bristol. Analyzes potential of the system to increase economy, efficiency and effectiveness in library services and relates it to how the needs of sponsors and students can be met. (Author/LRW)

Peking University Library initiated position restructuring in response to the University's requirements and to increasing expectations of users. Goals were to reduce unwanted positions and enhance responsibilities of selection positions. The restructuring promised to improve library services and staff morale. Describes steps in the restructuring…

Relatively diminishing financial resources and increasing user expectations are combining to create a new emphasis for the traditional research library. This paper reports on the development of a pilot project at a large research library that explored the relationship between evaluation and assessment to determine how both the institution and the…

Discusses core beliefs held by traditional academic libraries, and how these beliefs represented something of value for the user and provided a common intellectual framework. Identifies disturbing trends in modern librarianship, and suggests libraries need to balance technological knowledge with a respect for traditional library practice, focusing…

Examines a new approach to measuring service quality--conducted at Yale University's libraries--one that produces findings useful for local planning and decision making. The goal is to probe the service attributes of greatest potential to both actual customers and service providers. The setting for this study was Yale University. (AEF)

This paper discusses the impact national initiatives have had on individual higher education libraries in the United Kingdom (UK). Written from the perspective of an institutional library manager, the paper examines the interface between local electronic library provision and national developments. Individual institutions have been active in…

The University of Washington (Seattle) developed an administrative process that integrates user needs assessment. The user-centered library is defined and assessment initiatives including policies, surveys, analysis of resource allocation, and professional development are discussed. (AEF)

To coordinate an academic-library marketing effort effectively, a comprehensive plan is essential. A traditional marketing plan consists of four activities: determining what to promote, defining target audiences, choosing type of outreach, and evaluating program. Suggestions for promotional activities, forms of publicity, and examples from the…

To give students a direct voice in library user policy and the library a point of contact with the student body, the Evans Libraries at Texas A&M University formed a Student Advisory Committee. The committee meetings provide a forum for student representatives, library administrators, and student liaisons to discuss concerns and proposed…