[Baynet] Infopeople's "Needs Assessment: Asking Significant Questions" workshop

[Linda Rodenspiel]

Since some people who may be interested in 
attending might not receive this notice directly, 
we would appreciate it if you would print and 
post or route this announcement to staff and colleagues. Thanks!


Title:  Needs Assessment: Asking Significant Questions

Dates and locations:

Tuesday, July 10, Arcade Library (Sacramento)
Friday, July 27, Los Angeles Public Library
Thursday, August 9, San Francisco Public Library
Tuesday, August 28, San Diego County Library Headquarters

To register for this workshop:  Use the online registration form at
http://infopeople.org/workshop/331

Fee: Free - Thanks to a special grant from the 
California State Library, LSTA funding will 
completely support this workshop, so there is no charge to participants.


If you:

--Need to find out what your community really wants from the library
--Are getting ready to gather data for planning new services or facilities
--Want to be more responsive to your current users
--Would like help to define gaps in staff performance
--Are required to develop a needs statement for an LSTA grant application

Then this Needs Assessment workshop is for you!

At the conclusion of this workshop you will have 
the skills you need to choose, customize, and 
carry out needs assessment methods to fit whatever situations arise.


Workshop Description: In this all-day workshop 
you will explore proven techniques for 
discovering the needs of all types of people in 
your environment—users, potential users, members 
of governing bodies, volunteers, and staff. You 
will learn how to customize an overall 
information gathering process for your 
library—from defining the purpose to deciding how 
the results will be shared. Working in small 
groups, you will practice techniques for 
collecting and analyzing data. The instructor 
will provide sample tools and you will receive 
practical, useful tips that you can apply immediately in your library.

Pre-workshop assignment: Respond to the brief 
online course survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=439433858604

Preliminary Course Outline

Define Needs and Needs Assessment in General
--Basic human needs
--Needs typically met by libraries
--Discovering specific needs of people in your environment

Types of Needs Assessment Methods
--Informal (observation, perceptions, library/government data)
--Formal (interviews, focus groups, surveys)

Steps in an Overall Information Gathering Process
--Defining the purpose(s)
--Determining what resources are available
--Deciding who will conduct the process
--Deciding what kinds of information should be collected
--Deciding how information will be collected
--Deciding how information will be analyzed and interpreted
--Deciding how the results will be shared

Specific Considerations for Grant Applications
--What funding sources look for regarding needs assessment elements
--Common weaknesses in grant application needs statements
--Tips for meeting State Library expectations for good needs assessments

Instructor:  Gail McGovern.  Gail received her 
B.A. in religion and M.S. in Library Science from 
Syracuse University.  She moved to California in 
1973 as the project director for the Lake County 
Library Project. From 1974-1995, she administered 
grant programs, provided consulting services and 
conducted training programs for the Library 
Development Services Bureau of the California 
State Library.  Gail has been a full time 
independent consultant since 1996; her title is 
Planning and Training Wizard. Her recent projects 
include grantwriting for and coordination of 
three LSTA funded conferences for the 
clioinstitute: Imagine it, Explore it, Create it 
Conference, Get Real! Helping Libraries Survive 
and Thrive in Turbulent Times Conference and 
Better Together: Creating Partnerships for Community Learning Conference.

Who Should Attend: Anyone from the California 
library community who must respond to requests 
for needs assessment data or prepare need statements for grant applications.

Prerequisites: None.

Other Logistics:

*On-site check-in is from 8:30-9:00 AM;  instruction is from 9:00 AM-4:30 PM.

*Maps, directions, and parking information are 
available on the Infopeople Web site at 
http://infopeople.org/WS/workshop/Directions. 
Infopeople does not validate or pay for parking.

*Infopeople does not provide refreshments or 
lunch.  Since some training locations do not have 
in-house or convenient food service, Infopeople 
recommends that participants bring a sack lunch.

To view a complete list of Infopeople workshops 
and for general information about Infopeople 
training opportunities, go to the main Infopeople 
Workshops page at http://infopeople.org/WS/workshop

If you have questions about registration or 
scheduling of workshops, please contact Linda 
Rodenspiel, the Infopeople Project Assistant, at 
assist at infopeople.org or by phone at 650-578-9685.