Analyzing Library Collection Use with Excel - Jacksonville (07/08/16) 

Knowing how your collection is used is a core part of librarianship.  Budgeting, purchasing new items and duplicates and weeding can all be done faster and better when you have information how your library collection is used at your fingertips. In this workshop we will take the use records for a local library collection and for any given range learn how to determine average and median use, age of the collection, use of recently purchased books, relative use (use compared to the size of the sub-section), candidates for weeding, and more.  The class will take a day, and in the past participants have completed use analyses of their own collections the next day. 

Partipants will receive a handout with step-by-step directions in addition to hands-on work.  This will be Tony's 4th trip to NEFLIN, and the classes always fill up. 

Learning Objectives:

• Participants will learn the reasons behind doing numerical analysis of collection use, and why it is superior to anecdotal.
• Participants will learn how to use Microsoft Excel to clean up data provided by their ILS, and quickly analyze the collection to discover patterns of use, hot and cold areas in the collection, and how to adjust their purchasing and weeding to reflect that.
• Participants will learn how to use Excel in order to present the numerical information in graphs for easy display and communication.

Facilitator: Tony Greiner, Portland Community College, OR 

As a librarian I am most interested in learning how and if library materials are used by the community the library serves. This strikes many as dry stuff, but I think it is interesting. I have co-written a book, Analyzing Library Collection Use with Excel, and given a number of workshops on the subject. In my personal life I like to travel, camp and hike, and attend performing arts events.

Cost: NEFLIN classes are free of charge for Florida library staff. Registration is required for all classes and NEFLIN members get priority.

Cancellation Deadline is 9:00 am on Wednesday, July 6, 2016.
See all NEFLIN CE policies at http://www.neflin.org/training