Community Connections: Advancing LIS Education and Practice Through Partnership

1. Community Connections: Advancing LIS Education and Practice Through Partnership Joan C. Durrance Margaret Mann Professor of Information School of Information University of Michigan ALISE 2005

2. Yes No Fundamental Knowledge Theory Only Theory + Practice Pasteur’s Quadrant No Yes Considerations of Use Practice Only Edison Pasteur’s Quadrant Research

3. Recent Collaborative Funded Research Projects • Approaches for Understanding Community Information Use (Information Behavior in Everyday Contexts-IBEC). Co-PI Karen Fisher, University of Washington. I School. $249,996. 2002-05. • How Libraries and Librarians Help: Context-Centered Methods for Evaluating Outcomes. $317,800. Co-PI Karen Pettigrew.2000-03. • Community Support Systems: Information Systems that use and replenish social capital. Co-PI Paul Resnick. $198,000. 1999-01 • Help-Seeking in an Electronic World: Focus on Community Networks. $189,000. (Co-PI Karen Pettigrew, Post-Doc) 1999-01.

4. IMLS-Funded IBEC Research on Human Information Behavior--Current UW-UM Venue for Collaboration http://www.ischool.washington.edu/ibec/

5. Keys to Collaboration in Durrance-Pettigrew Research Studies Key characteristics: • Partner agency seen as a best practice site • Key informants & research issues are identified with the informed assistance of the collaborator • The relationship is mutually beneficial Key issues: • Building Trust (essential to research) • Developing mutual respect • Understanding Reactivity—(our presence as researchers in the community may have an effect). • Recognizing Reciprocity—(we have a responsibility to give something back)

6. Selected Partners in RecentCommunity-Focused Research • HartfordInfo-Hartford Public Library (IBEC-IMLS) • NCHealthInfo-University of North Carolina Health Sciences Library (IBEC-IMLS) • King County United Way-Citizen need survey (IBEC-IMLS) • CIAO-(Teen After School Program) Flint Public Library (Kellogg and How Libraries & Librarians Help-IMLS) • Wired for Youth-Austin Public Library (How Libraries & Librarians Help) • Community Information Program-Peninsula Library System (How Libraries & Librarians Help) • New American’s Program-Queens Public Library (How Libraries & Librarians Help) • CascadeLink-Multnomah County Public Library (Helpseeking) • Three Rivers Free-Net-Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh (Helpseeking) • NorthStarNet North Suburban Library System (Helpseeking)

7. Community Information Program (CIP) Peninsula Library System. San Mateo, CA • 30year old I & R is sponsored by the library system & housed with county social service agencies. • Clientele: San Mateo area social service agencies and non-profit organizations. Not the general public. • Nature of our collaboration • Worked with CIP remotely to build trust and understand service • Conducted a site visit with a team from UM • Conducted focus groups with with CIP staff, library administrators, and—most of all—agency staff who worked with CIP • Analyzed the data • Prepared Report for the library • Used study (with others) to develop Outcome Toolkit • Wrote articles and included case study in our new book (2005)

8. CIP Outcomes Identified by Our Study

9. Outcomes Toolkit 2.0 Now on IBEC Site

10. Course-Based Community Connections • SI 623: Outcome-based Evaluation. Fall 03. Student teams worked w partner orgs to conduct outcome studies • Ex. A study of the outcomes of a literacy program housed in a public library. Partner: Washtenaw Literacy (WL) • Nature of partnership: • WL provided students access to tutors, learners, and confidential records. • A team to two students-- Maria Serapiglia & Sarah Wooden--worked Sept-Dec 2003 to identify outcomes beyond those mandated by the funder—reading skill gains • Washtenaw Literacy gave permission for Maria and Sarah to publish the study. • Ch 9 in Durrance & Fisher. How Libraries and Librarians Help: A Guide to Identifying User-Centered Outcomes. Chicago: ALA Editions, 2005.

11. Director’s email to Maria S: “I just wanted to let you know how much your project helped us.  We use the diagram you developed in many ways--in our newsletter, our PowerPoint presentation, with grant apps and reports.  In addition we developed a new reporting form that we sent out to all tutor/learner pairs this Spring as the program year is ending for us.  We are getting a great response and are gathering much more information then we were previously receiving. This was a product of your recommendation to build in a defined data collection process.  I thought you might be interested in knowing this.” Ripples of Impact: Washtenaw Literacy Outcomes

12. Ann Arbor District Library Assn of Women in Computing Henry Ford Museum-Benson Ford Research Greenhills School Genealogical Society Inter-Cooperative Council Library for Blind Physically Disabled UM Map Library Michigan Center for Biological Information Medstat Menlo Innovations ProQuest UM Public Health Library Veterans’ Walk for Health Study Senegalese Association of Michigan Soar Technologies Scholarly Publishing Office (UM Library) Salem S. Lyon PL UM-Text Creation Project Washtenaw Literacy Washtenaw County IT Services Fall 2004-SI 501 Use of Information Class 21 Partner Organizations Worked with 120 SI Students (Orgs in blue built on relationships built previously by SI faculty or students)

13. SI 501Fall 04. Washtenaw Literacy Team w Partner

14. Contact Information Joan C. Durrance <durrance@umich.edu> Margaret Mann Collegiate Professor of Information University of Michigan School of Information 3084 West Hall Connector550 E. UniversityAnn Arbor, Mi. 48109-1092Phone (734)  763-1569. Fax: 734-764-2475