Author Archives: Nancy Turner

Creating Spaces for Community and Connection 

The crowds are back! For ALA’s annual conference, almost 16,000 registrants gathered at Chicago’s McCormick Place Convention Center. The return to fully in-person meetings, coupled with sessions on the new hybrid work environment, has me revisiting the question of how … Continue reading

Posted in conference reports, library spaces | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Creating Spaces for Community and Connection 

Improving on the Charles Library Welcome 

Walking into the vast atrium space of Charles Library is awe-inspiring. It can also be overwhelming, particularly to new students when the semester first starts.  While we have many ways of counter-acting that feeling – helpful security guards, Emily Schiller’s … Continue reading

Posted in library spaces, statistics, user experience | Tagged , | Comments Off on Improving on the Charles Library Welcome 

Assessment in Research Libraries: Unlocking the Secrets to Success*

If you’ve ever set foot in a research library, you know that it’s a magical place filled with books, articles, and information galore. But what makes a research library successful? How do they know what their patrons need and how … Continue reading

Posted in assessment methods | Tagged | 1 Comment

Access Services in the 21st Century: The Assessment Chapter

Back in November of 2020, Michael Krasulski (Philadelphia Community College) approached Justin Hill and me about contributing to a new edition of ACRL’s Twenty-First Century Access Services. The 2013 edition was in desperate need of a refresh – so much … Continue reading

Posted in access, service assessment, statistics | Tagged , | Leave a comment

The Numbers are Falling, the Numbers are Falling!

In the assessment world, we generally like to see numbers that trend upwards. Increases in gate count, use of study rooms, the number of programs and participants – all positive. But the reality is that numbers don’t always rise, and … Continue reading

Posted in statistics | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Considering the Conference Experience 

This last week I had the opportunity to experience two very special conferences in two ways – the Library Assessment Conference was held virtually from November 1 to November 3. As co-chair, I was deeply involved in the planning for … Continue reading

Posted in conference reports, user experience | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Continuously Improving User Experience at the One Stop

Staff at the Charles Library One Stop Assistance Desk serve as an essential gateway to library resources, services and spaces – for users entering the building, as well as connecting patrons to library services by telephone. While many users visit … Continue reading

Posted in access, process improvement, service assessment, user experience | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Working with Faculty to Meet Their Library Collection Needs  

Scholarship and teaching about the performing arts is continually changing. Temple Libraries’ new librarian for Music Performance, Becca Fulop, has worked hard to get to know her faculty – in particular their needs in library collections. She wanted to learn more … Continue reading

Posted in collections, surveys | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Assessing Library Services with a DEI Lens

The annual American Library Association conference returned (at last!) to an in-person format this year. It was great to meet up with colleagues, and miraculously, the heat and humidity of Washington DC were bearable, even at the end of June. … Continue reading

Posted in access, collections, conference reports, library spaces | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

The Continuous Process of Keeping Our Student Workers “Up to Speed”    

The One Stop Assistance Desk could not function without our student workers. Making sure they are supported in the highly visible and essential work they do, managing desk duties when we’re at home asleep, is critical. Stefan Del Cotto, the student … Continue reading

Posted in access, process improvement, service assessment | Tagged , , | Leave a comment