Agenda - Council Work Session - 01/22/2013

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Minnesota LSTA FFY2012—Goal 1A-1C Competitive Grant Application: Follow the exact form, contents and pagination provided by the State Library. Applicant: Anoka County Library 12. Project Outputs: Anoka County Library on the Go will systematically measure outputs of its services, both digital and physical. Statistics related to checkouts made, unique users of, holds placed, etc., will be automatically compiled by the technology hosting each capability, as well as by ACL's existing integrated library system (ILS). ACL hopes that these numbers will tota19,000 items dispensed through lockers, 15,000 items returned via book returns, and 750 e-reader, 1,440 tablet, and 4,200 digital material checkouts during the first year of service. In addition, the intent is to increase awareness of library services in the 218t century, raise the visibility of Anoka County Library for underserved individuals, and illustrate library responsiveness to 15,000 individuals exposed to the project. ACL librarians and staff will record the number of questions asked about Anoka County Library on the Go -related services and also record attendance at events and trainings: This will help gauge the popularity of the project, and where/when improvements in advertisement and communication should be made. Another important output measure will utilize the number of library cards issued through contacts at remote sites and/or through events and trainings. These outputs will aid us in determining if the related technology and opportunity to use it free of charge proves an attraction to individuals who have not previously utilized ACL or its services. 13. Project Outcomes: Read directions first. Key to all outcomes will be evaluation of whether or not the Anoka County Library on the Go services are: accessible, easy to understand and use, desired, impacting perceptions of ACL, and effectively challenging the digital divide. Since the project focuses primarily on self-service in remote locations, the majority of patron outcomes related to Anoka County Library on the Go must depend on electronic surveys. Toward that goal, ACL is working with vendors and exploring third - party means of distributing a point -of -service survey. Options include integrated surveys (presented on kiosk screens used to complete check-out transactions) and e-delivery surveys (which will be sent to patrons' mobile phones and/or e-mail addresses for completion). A sample patron survey is included as Attachment 3. The surveys will request information regarding patrons' use of ACL, use of digital technologies, ease of check-out, and behavior changes related to use of Anoka County Library on the Go services. The same survey will be offered as a link on the ACL homepage. Two Anoka County Library on the Go service locations, University Avenue Elementary and Mississippi Branch Library, offer the opportunity for richer outcome based evaluation. At University Avenue Elementary, ACL will work withteachers and classrooms to measure the impacts of its digital outreach efforts. Surveys will be issued at designated times throughout the year, tracking students' experiences using, exploring, and employing digital e-readers and eBooks. Feedback will also be sought from teachers and administrators. Mississippi Branch Library will offer ACL the opportunity to gather feedback from its users, as well —through observation of use (as it will be on -site), point -of -service surveys and casual in person follow-up. This information will give ACL the most immediate feedback while helping Mississippi Branch Library engage their users in new ways. Surveys will also be distributed to community partners and hosting agencies throughout the project. This information will be aimed at evaluating their experience of the project, if it is meeting their goals, and how it impacts their relationship with ACL. 14. Other Results: Although Anoka County Library on the Go is driven by the desire to provide barrier -free services to the County's underserved, ACL recognizes that there is much more to be learned in the piloting process. Perhaps paramount is the testing of remote services: Will they work for Anoka County residents? For ACL? For partners? The technology itself will teach us much. Depending on which purchases the Taskforce decides to make, ACL may -utilize -Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technologies for the first time. ACL, recognizing the frontier -defining nature of the pilots, anticipates that significant publicity is likely to result from Anoka County Library on the Go. This will bring attention to ACL, its partners, technology in libraries and the LSTA funds that made it possible. It is hoped that viable and sustainable partnerships will also be forged and strengthened thanks to the pilots. This will be measured via ongoing collaborations and new projects/alliances initiated. A-4