Information Services Assessment Council Meeting Minutes

October 10, 2006

Present: Glaser, Jill; McNamara, Darrell; Mercer, Holly; Myers, Bill (chair); Papesh, Ryan; Simons, Thelma; Stratton, John M; Swygart-Hobaugh, Mandy; Tumlinson, James K.

Absent: Umscheid, Sherry

This was the first meeting of the expanded Information Services Assessment Council (ISAC). After introductions, Myers opened the meeting with discussion of how the new members were selected. Current ISAC members, in consultation with the IS Cabinet, was aiming for representation across operation and function. For instance, James Tumlinson and Sherry Umscheid both have front-line user service as their primary responsibility, and it is also a major responsibility for Holly Mercer and Mandy Swygart-Hobaugh, though both also have progammatic responsibilities (digital initiatives and subject specialty/liaison). Darrell McNamara brings a technical processing perspective from our most specialized library. Every one of the 22 people who volunteered had compelling reasons to be considered. Staggered one- and two-year terms with a practice of annual rotation will enable wider participation over time.

Stemming from this initial conversation, extensive discussion was devoted to possible ways of making the ISAC's work more transparent to the broader IS community. The following were discussed: (a) offering an open invitation to all IS employees to attend the ISAC meetings, possibly via emailing an agenda prior to the meetings; (b) disseminating ISAC's activities via a regular column in Info Matters as well as via the ISAC website; (c) soliciting input specifically from those who volunteered for but were not chosen as ISAC representatives; and (d) opening assessment training opportunities to the broader IS community.

Preliminary discussion was devoted to establishing a structure/method for proceeding with analysis of assessments already in place (e.g., LibQUAL+) and implementation of changes grounded in assessment results.