WiLS is proud to applaud these graduates of the third cohort of the WiLS Data Classroom:
- Ashlee Kunkel, Director, Milton Public Library
- Beth Krebs-Smith, Director, Edgerton Public Library
- David Dowling, IT Engineer, Prairie Lakes Library System
- Emily Kornak, Director, Lake Geneva Public Library
- Joe Davies, Director, Burlington Public Library
- Justin Keberlein, Branch Manager, Kenosha Public Library
- Keith Gerlach, Facility and Technology Librarian, Lake Geneva Public Library
- Marcia Siehr, Head of Outreach, Programs, and Education, Kenosha Public Library
- Steve Thiry, Director, West Bend Library
- Sue Ann Kucher, Director, Reedsburg Public Library
These cohort members spent the last seven months engaged in library-centric data and research training. As part of the Data Classroom cohort, participants are able to tailor their experience by either participating in a more theoretical track or a more applied track. Participants taking the applied track engage in their own “real world” research project of their choosing and design. In this cohort, five participants traveled down the applied track, completing three different research projects. They recently completed their final showcase to highlight their work, and we were so impressed that we wanted to share it with all our members! Their projects are timely for many library workers; we hope hearing about their work will be as inspiring to you as it was to us.
Library Programming: Measuring and Communicating Impact
Ashlee and Beth collaborated on a library programming-focused project. Hailing from two different libraries, these directors came together to answer an evergreen question in the library world: in what ways does library programming impact other metrics at the library, and how can programming impact then be measured and communicated? They tracked the number of programs offered, the number of attendees at each program, and the hours that staff spent on programming. Paired with gate count data, they were able to create a number of metrics: the average number of program attendees, the number of visits generated per hour spent on programming, the percentage of library visits generated by programming, and FTEs dedicated to programming. Across both libraries, these metrics were very similar, indicating interesting preliminary results on ways to capture and report this data on programming impact and value.
Enhancing Staff Satisfaction
Emily and Keith worked together on a project that centered their library’s staff and their needs. Beginning with a staff survey, Emily and Keith gathered anonymous data from staff on their experiences in their positions. Using that data, they planned a staff in-service day that directly related to information they had gathered. Using a pre-/post-test model, they adapted the initial survey to be used as a follow-up survey to directly measure the impact of their in-service day. They found that it had a positive impact for staff with improvements on everything from staff indicating they were looking forward to coming to work more to staff reporting lower levels of work-related overwhelm.
High-Impact Outreach Partnerships
Marcia spearheaded a project focused on answering the question, “Which types of outreach partnerships generate the highest long-term circulation and visitor rates?” She developed a mixed-methods approach that took existing data gathered on outreach efforts and paired it with a survey on the library’s outreach services designed to gather information on outcomes and satisfaction. Her project showcased the value of the library’s outreach and Bookmobile services, including the benefits for community members and their (very high!) satisfaction with them.
Be on the lookout for future WiLS communications where we will take a deeper dive into each of this cohort’s projects and their findings!
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Are you looking for ways to increase your data skills and confidence? Are you unsure what to do with all that data you’ve collected at your library? Are you looking for strategies to create compelling data-informed stories about your library for different stakeholders? We are currently putting together our fourth cohort of Data Classroom, and we would love to have you! For more information, visit our website or reach out to Kim at kim@wils.org.
