Perceptions Of The Library: A Key To Planning Effective Services

such as questions answered, books cataloged, and dollars spent. Now we are called upon to measure the impact of those services on our clients. Stakeholder demand for accountability, changing accreditation standards, and state and federal concerns over student outcomes have driven a real concern for measurement from the client’s perspective. This will become increasingly important as demands for accountability and competition from other sectors increase. “Assessment and evaluation are intended as means to demonstrate institutional effectiveness, foster institutional improvement, and demonstrate accountability.” Programs such as the New Measures Initiative, from the Association of Research Libraries, have been developed to strengthen the role of the library vis-à-vis learning and research. This program was created to respond to increasing demand for outcomes measurement and increasing pressure to maximize use of resources. It is designed to help investigate strategies for assessing the library\u27s value and exploring the library\u27s impact on learning, teaching, and research