Conference Presentations by Teresa Walker
Why the Shine Don't Sell: Student Success and the New Landscape of Resource Acquisition and Budget Building in Academic Libraries, Ex Libris Symposium, with Steven Escar Smith
With the increasing concerns about cost and value of higher education, academic institutions plac... more With the increasing concerns about cost and value of higher education, academic institutions place greater emphasis on learning outcomes, with a focus on increasing student retention and success. In this discussion,we will explore the challenges and the opportunities of the academic library demonstrating its role and measuring its contribution to student outcomes.
How Library Learning Spaces Contribute To Student Success: A LibValue Project, ARL Assessment Conference, 2014
LibValue Commons Study: ALA Midwinter 2014
The Heart of Campus: Libraries as Learning Spaces. With Rita H. Smith. Tennessee Library Association Annual Conference
LibValue: The Value of Commons Spaces. With Gayle Baker, Martha Kyrillidou, and Steven Smith. ARL Webcast, March 21, 2013.
LibValue: Undergraduate Student Success. With Rachel Fleming-May, Martha Kyrillidou and Regina Mays, ARL Webcast, February 14, 2013
LibValue: The University of Tennessee. With Regina Mays and Steven Smith. ARL Assessment Forum, ALA Midwinter, Seattle, Washington, January 25, 2013
How Libraries Contribute to Student Success: Findings from LibValue. With Rachel Fleming-May and Martha Kyrillidou. Coalition for Networked Information Project Briefing (CNI), Washington DC, December 11, 2012.
Aligning Assessment Efforts With Institutional Priorities. With Regina Mays. Qualitative and Quantitative Methods in Libraries (QQML) Annual Conference, Limerick, Ireland, May 23, 2012.
Papers by Teresa Walker
How Library Learning Spaces Contribute to Student Success
ARL Library Assessment Forum on the Lib-Value Project
Against the Grain, 2018
M any libraries, particularly academic libraries, find themselves in an almost constant cycle of ... more M any libraries, particularly academic libraries, find themselves in an almost constant cycle of renovation. Repurposing spaces to serve new functions and support new modes of teaching and learning have become mainstays of libraries' strategic planning processes. In a 2016 study of academic leaders' thoughts on strategic planning, 43% reported new library spaces, renovation, and building projects as major themes. 1 Often, these efforts support larger institutional goals focusing on student and faculty success. 2 Such efforts generally require months if not years of planning, gathering user input, and construction. Between renovations, however, other opportunities can arise to contribute to a campus community through inspiring and inventive spaces. Students may communicate space needs that are not expressly tied to academics. Emerging trends at both the discipline and university levels may demonstrate a growing need that libraries are uniquely equipped to address. Increases in demand for certain kinds of spaces may drive need. During the gaps between major space projects exist opportunities to create small spaces that can have a big, and in some cases, immediate impact. This article highlights a variety of projects at the University of Tennessee (UT) Libraries that have answered an expressed student need, met increasing demand, served as a campus test bed, or experimented with innovation. Several factors may contribute to a library's success in developing small spaces. For the UT Libraries, creating and maintaining an ongoing facilities grid contributes to our decision-making in determining readiness for smaller projects. The grid denotes major project stages, small-scale projects, and ongoing maintenance. The grid supports the ability to gauge available funds, personnel, competing initiatives, and even the availability of space, particularly if certain workspaces or services are displaced for other projects. The UT Libraries maintains a facilities grid with a stated vision of "providing inspiring and useful spaces for innovation, scholarship, and learning." Major project stages are divided into Vision It, Plan It, Fund It, and Do it, with project ideas and plans listed in each section. Small-scale projects are listed in their own sections and generally conform to a 1-2 year timeframe. Major infrastructure maintenance is listed, but on a variable timeframe set by the university. Having at-a-glance access to this information allows a more agile response to unexpected requests and emerging opportunities.
Reading, writing, and … running? Assessing active space in libraries
Performance Measurement and Metrics, 2018
Purpose The University of Tennessee Knoxville’s Libraries has set aside space and stocked it with... more Purpose The University of Tennessee Knoxville’s Libraries has set aside space and stocked it with treadmill desks, standing desks, cycling desks and balance chairs to encourage physical activity while using library space to promote active learning. The purpose of this paper is to assess the impact of this innovative space on library users through a study conducted by a research team using observations and short surveys to gather information about usage trends and user perceptions of this “active learning space.” Design/methodology/approach This study used both ethnographish observation and self-selected survey. Researcher observation notes were used to gather usage rates of the space and equipment in the space, and survey responses were coded for themes to identify user perceptions around the space. Findings The findings strongly suggest that users find mental and physical health value in the “active learning space” and many would find value in the expansion and improvement of the s...
How Library Learning Spaces Contribute To Student Success: A LibValue Project
Lib-Value: Undergraduate Student Success
Why the Shine Don't Sell: Student Success and the New Landscape of Resource Acquisition and Budget Building in Academic Libraries
With the increasing concerns about cost and value of higher education, academic institutions plac... more With the increasing concerns about cost and value of higher education, academic institutions place greater emphasis on learning outcomes, with a focus on increasing student retention and success. In this discussion,we will explore the challenges and the opportunities of the academic library demonstrating its role and measuring its contribution to student outcomes.
Aligning Assessment Efforts with Institutional Priorities: A Case Study from the University of Tennessee
ABSTRACT All libraries, In addition to addressing the needs of the communities they serve, all li... more ABSTRACT All libraries, In addition to addressing the needs of the communities they serve, all libraries, regardless of type, geographic location, or organizational structure, are accountable to an external entity. Faced with limited resources libraries have realized that their assessment efforts must be strategic and are looking for ways to identify measures and metrics of success that reflect the priorities of outside stakeholders such as funders and those who evaluate the effectiveness of the institution. One of the goals of the Lib(Value project is designing models for responsive assessment that academic librarians can adapt and utilize at their own institutions. While calculating return on financial investment is a major component of the Lib(Value mission, management team members are also tasked with investigating less tangible measures of the value of academic libraries’ contributions to their communities and society as a whole. To that end, a team of researchers at the University of Tennessee (Knoxville are developing a battery of quantitative and qualitative approaches to assessing the contributions academic libraries make through their staff, facilities, and resources, to student learning and overall success. Throughout the process we have scanned the environment in which we operate to identify key priorities of our key stakeholders, including the University’s administration and governing bodies and the Tennessee state government, which provides substantial funding to the University on an ongoing basis. Additionally, because institutional accreditation in the United States is managed not by the federal government but by a group of seven regional agencies, we have examined the standards of our specific agency. After collecting data from institutional planning documents, legislative action and other sources, including local news reports, we identified the following areas upon which to focus our efforts at demonstrating the Libraries’ contribution to student learning: • the work of teaching, including provision of support materials and facilities; • the successful recruitment and enrollment of new students, and • student success, including retention and minimizing years to graduation. The next step in our process was to examine various data sources to establish a baseline from which we could demonstrate progress. Sources of note included the following: • Library usage data • Student demographic data, including measures of success prior to enrollment • University retention and graduation rates • Data from in-house and national surveys of student satisfaction and engagement with the learning process In our presentation we will outline how and why we selected the specific measures and metrics we decided to utilize in our studies, and describe how the quantitative and qualitative data we collected demonstrates the UTK Libraries’ contributions to the University and its larger community. While the priorities we identified are somewhat unique to our institution, in presenting this case study we hope to provide attendees with a framework for designing assessment projects that are responsive to the areas of most concern to their constituents.
Experience assessment: designing an innovative curriculum for assessment and UX professionals
Performance Measurement and Metrics
Purpose While assessment and user experience (UX) have been identified as areas of growing focus ... more Purpose While assessment and user experience (UX) have been identified as areas of growing focus in all types of libraries, there is currently little infrastructure to prepare students for these roles (Applegate, 2016; Askew and Theodore-Shusta, 2013; Nitecki et al., 2015; Oakleaf, 2013; Passonneau and Erickson, 2014). As a step toward addressing this gap, a team from an American Library Association-accredited master’s program situated at a large public land-grant institution (LGU) worked with practitioner partners from academic libraries and information agencies to develop a new model for preparing information professionals with assessment and UX expertise. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach In fall of 2015, faculty members applied for funding from the US Institute for Museum and Library Services Laura Bush 21st Century Librarians program for a program to develop formalized assessment and UX training in Library and Information Science (LIS) education. The student cohort would have interests in two areas: academic libraries and specialized information agencies. The two groups would complete much of the same coursework, earn the ALA-accredited master’s degree and have the opportunity to engage in co-curricular activities focused on UX and assessment. However, each sub-group would also pursue a subject-specific curriculum. In April 2016, IMLS funded the program. Findings In addition to reviewing the literature related to best practices in curriculum development, the authors describe the process of designing the program, including the curriculum, co-curricular mentoring and practicum opportunities, and the tools developed to evaluate the program’s effectiveness. Research limitations/implications At a time in which the library practitioner and LIS educator communities are contemplating how best to prepare professionals with much-needed expertise in assessment and UX, UX-A represents an innovative approach in professional preparation. Although the UX-A program is grant-funded, several of the program components could be adapted and incorporated without such support. Originality/value This paper discusses the structure and history of the program, issues related to developing a new curricular program for LIS education, and the educational and professional development needs of the assessment and UX professional community. It includes an extensive review of literature related to LIS curriculum development, practica, and professional mentoring, as well as suggestions for implementing elements of the program in other settings.
Navigating the Tennessee River: The Commons Steering Committee Charts a Course
This is a podcast where Jillian Keally, Rita H. Smith, and Teresa B. Walker are interviewed about... more This is a podcast where Jillian Keally, Rita H. Smith, and Teresa B. Walker are interviewed about how they built The Commons at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
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Conference Presentations by Teresa Walker
Papers by Teresa Walker