CPCC Non equipment report

CPCCNonEquipmentReportby
HaroldEscalante
GabrielGrana
ChristinHope
MariaL.SaldarriagaOsorio
UniversityofNorthCarolinaGreensboro

CPCC Non equipment report

ExecutiveSummary
Thepurposeofthisreportistoexaminetheuseofnonequipmentitemsby
faculty,staffandstudentsatthecentralcampuslibraryofCentralPiedmontCommunity
College(CPCC).ThisdatawascollectedfromAugust1,2013untiltheendofMay,
2014viaCPCC'sIntegratedLibrarySystemSierrabyInnovativeInterfaces.Through
analyzingthisdatawewereabletobreakdowntheinformationandcreategraphicsto
showthetypeofpatronsCPCChaspersemester,themostcheckedout
nonequipmentitems,themostpopularnonequipmentitemscheckedoutbylibrary
patronsaswellasnonequipmentcirculationtrends.Analyzingthesefindingsledusto
theconclusionthatCPCCshouldmoreactivelypromoteKindlesinordertoincrease
onlineresourcecirculationsandthatfurtherdataisneededinordertocreatestrategies
thatwillenableCPCCtokeepnonequipmentitemscirculating.Theresultsprovidedby
thebreakdownofthisdatacanbeusedtomakemoreinformeddecisionswhenit
comestoweedingandpurchasingnonequipmentmaterials.

CPCC Non equipment report

Introduction/ProblemStatement
CentralPiedmontCommunityCollege(CPCC)Librariescontinuouslycollectsdata
onfactorsrelatingtocirculationofnonequipmentitemsincluding,books,eBooks,
movies,andmore.AnalyzingthecirculationtrendsofnonequipmentitemsatCPCC
Librariesisnecessaryinordertomeettheneedsofcommunitycollegestudents,
faculty,andstaffastheyrelatetolibraryresourcesandservices.Bycontinuously
assessingcirculationtrends,CPCCLibrariesarebetterequippedtomakedecisions
relatedtopurchasing,staffing,marketing,andmore.
WhileCPCChassixcampuslibraries,thefocusofthisstudyisoncirculationtrends
ofnonequipmentitemsatCPCCsCentralCampusLibrary,whichislocatedin
downtownCharlotte,NorthCarolina.Students,facultyandstaffarethemainfocusof
thisstudy,thoughtrendsrelatingtootherusersincludinginterlibraryloanpatrons,
expiredlibrarycardpatrons,andotherswillalsoassessed.Forthepurposeofthis
evaluation,threeprimaryquestionsaddressed:
1. WhattypeofpatronsdoestheCPCCCentralCampusLibraryserveper
semester?
2. Whatarethemostcheckedoutnonequipmentitemsoverall?
3. Whatarethemostpopularnonequipmentitemscheckedoutbylibrary
patrontype?
4. Whatarethenonequipmentcirculationtrends,includingbusiesttimesofthe
semester?

BackgroundoftheProgram/Service

CPCCslibrariesmaintainavarietyofmaterialsforitspatrons.Amongtheseare
bothequipmentandnonequipmentitems.Nonequipmentitemsarethefocusofthis
assessment.Typically,thesetypesofresourcesarethosecommonlyassociatedwith
thoseresourcesonemightcheckoutfromalibrary,includingaudiobooks,books,CDs
&CDroms,DVDs,Kindles(countedbecausetheyareonlycheckedouttoread
eBooks),Reservesarticles,andVHStapes.BecauseCPCCslibrariesservicemultiple
typesofstudentswithavarietyofneeds,thefollowingitemsarealsoconsidered
nonequipmentitems:CrossroadsCafKitasetofmaterialsthataimtoteachESL
studentstospeakEnglishTelecoursesfullyaccreditedvideobasedcoursesdelivered
viatelevisionStudyroomsmobileUSBdevices[kitmixedmediareference].These
materialseachhavedifferentloanperiodsassociatedwiththem,aswellasrulesfor
feesfordamages,overduefines,andconcomitantconsequencesfordelinquency.
Studentsandfacultyhaveavarietyofguidelinesforcheckingoutthesematerialsatany
oftheaforementionedlibraries.

Efficienttrackingofthethesenonequipmentitemsisameaningfulwayto
addressCPCClibrarysmissionandvision,specificallythefollowing2points:Providing
innovativelibraryservicesthatsupportinformationliteracyforcurriculum,career,and

CPCC Non equipment report

professionaldevelopmentandServingCPCCanditscommunitybyorganizing,
managing,anddeliveringinformationresourcesandservices.Tobothends,new
materialsineachsectionareadvertisedviadisplays,promotionontheCPCClibrary
websiteandblogs,emailstofaculty,andprintandonlinenewsletters.Whilethis
promotionseemswidespread,acursoryscanofwhenthematerialsarebeingchecked
outyieldssomemajorvariations.Thisisdiscussedinfurtherdetailintheresultssection
ofthisreport.

MethodsoftheEvaluation
Thedatagatheredandanalyzedinthisstudyareusedtoshowthefrequencyin
whichnonequipmentitemscirculateandarenotintendedtoassessthecurrentstateof
thecollection.DataforthisassessmentwerecollectedfromAugust1,2013throughthe
endofMay,2014.Inordertoassessthecirculationtrendsrelatingtononequipment
items,datawasdownloadedfromCPCCLibrariesintegratedlibrarysystem,Sierraby
InnovativeInterfacesWebManagementReportandDecisionCenter,intoanExcelfile
formatforeasymanipulationandanalysis.ChartsandgraphicscreatedusingExcel
allowedtheassessmentteamtoexaminethetrendsrelatedtothecirculationof
nonequipmentmaterialsintheCentralCampusLibrary.

Results

Basedinourdataandthequestionsweaddressedinourintroduction,theresults
arepresentedaccordingtoourinitialevaluationquestions.

WhattypeofpatronsdoestheCPCCCentralCampuslibraryserveeach
semester?

CPCC Non equipment report

AccordingtothecirculationdatacollectedbyCPCCLibrary,studentsarethemain
populationwhocheckmaterialsout,withanaverageof81%forthe2013/2014Year.
ThesecondpopulationisFacultyandStaffwithanaverageof15%forthesameyear.
interlibraryloanis2%,anditkeepsthisvaluesduringthewholeyear.Undefinedusers
were4%duringthefallsemester,anditchangedto0%inspring.

Whatarethemostcheckedoutnonequipmentitemsoverall?

ThedataaboutNonEquipmentmaterialshowthatthe5mostimportantmaterialsare
books,DVDs,CrossroadsCafKits,audiobooks,andmediamix.Someunexpected

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th
dataaboutVHStapesinthe7
placeshowsusthattheyarestillinuse.Kindlesarein
use,however4checkedoutsinonesemesterisalowrate,anditwouldbepossibleto
promotetheserviceinregardsofincreasetheonlinecollection.

CPCC Non equipment report

Whatarethemostpopularnonequipmentitemscheckedoutbylibrarypatron
type?

Studentsarethemainpopulationthatchecksbooksout,followedbyfacultyand
staff.
ThesecondmostpopularmaterialisDVDs,itfollowsthesamepatternasbooks.
Interlibraryloanapplies,inthiscase,justforbooksandDVDs.Itwouldbe
interestingtoanalyzeILLpoliciesbecauseaccordingtothedata,itlookslikethe
othermaterialsdonotapplyforILL.
FacultyisthemainpopulationthatchecksVHStapes.
Mixedmediaismainlycheckedoutbystudents.
Audiobooksarecheckedoutbyfacultyandstudentsatalmostthesame
frequencyduringthesemester.
Undefinedpopulationisaquantitytohaveinmindbecausetheyincreasethe
circulationresults,mainlybooks,DVDsandaudiobooks.

CPCC Non equipment report

Whatarethenonequipmentcirculationtrends,includingbusiesttimesofthe
semester?

December2013isthelowermonthincirculationduetowinterbreak.Someof
thematerialsdroptozero.
Circulationishigherinfallsemester2013thisisanormalsituationbecauseof
enrollment,whichisnormallyhigherinfallthaninspring.
ReferencehasalowrateinFall2013,however,inspring2014increases
betweenJanuaryandApril.
StudyroomwasnotusedinfallsemesteritwasusedbetweenFebruary2014
andMay2014.
Thisgraphicconfirmsthatbooks,DVDs,andCrossroadCafkitarethemain
materialsinCPCCCentrallibrary.

CPCC Non equipment report

VHStapeswherecheckedoutatthebeginningofFallsemesterandtheynever
circulateagain.

Discussion
AftertheanalysisofthedatafromCPCCLibrary,thefindingsaboutpatrons,
materials,andcirculationrevealedhelpfulinformationintheprocessofmaking
decisionsatCPCC.Someitemsaudiobooks,books,DVDs,mixedmedia,andthe
CrossroadsCafkitarecheckedoutmorethanmostofothermaterials.However,
therearesomeunexpecteddataaboutVHSsandKindles.VHSsarestillbeing
checkedout,andthentheweedingprocessshouldbedonecarefullyinregardstothis
material,mainlybecauseFacultychecksthemout.Kindlesneedtobepromotedin
ordertoincreasetheonlinelibraryresources.
Thecirculationbehaviorresultsarerevealingaswell,particularlywithregardto
thedecreaseofthecirculationinspringsemester.Thissituationmightbeduetothe
decreaseofenrollmentinspring.Somematerialsshowedsomeinterestingbehaviors
suchasthestudyroom,whichwasnotcheckedoutuntilFebruary2014.Thismight
happenbecausetheroomwasneworitwasnotavailableduringfall.TheCrossroads
CafkitcirculationinDecemberiszero,anditmightbeexplainedbecausethereareno
ESLclassesinDecember.ThesamehappenswithMixmedia.Ingeneral,allmaterials
demonstratethesametrendsduringbothsemesters.
CPCCdataaboutpatronsislimited.Itwouldbeinterestingtoknowwhat
percentageofstudentsusesthelibraryascomparedtofaculty.Thedatashowedthat
theoverallpercentageoffacultyisverylowcomparedtostudents,butwhatcantbe
gleanedfromthedataiswhetherthatpercentageisparalleledinlibraryusage.

Recommendations

TherecommendationsareprovidedforCPCCLibrariesconsiderationforfuture
practice.CPCClibrarianscanusethesesuggestionsfortheadvancementofthelibrary,
itspatrons,facultyandstaff.Fromthegraphsandexplanationspresentedinthe
aforementionedsectionsonecanseethecommontrendsandareasthatareinneedof
modification.Toimprove,increaseormaintainnonequipmentcirculationstatisticsat
CPCCthefollowingsuggestionsaremade:

Implementaplantoincreasecirculationstatisticsduringthebeginningofspring
semesters
PromoteKindlesinordertoincreaseonlineresourcecirculation
Refinedataoffacultyandstudentstocreatestrategiestoreachthemorinterest
theminthelibrary.

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Implementingaplantoincreasecirculationstatisticsduringthebeginningofthe
springsemesterwillbeamajoradvancementforCPCC.Basedonthegraphicswithin
theabovesectioncirculationishigherduringthefallsemestersthanspring.Inorderto
increasespringsemestercirculationforincomingstudentsthelibrarycouldhavean
openhouse,tourorwelcomecurrentandincomingstudentsprogram.Theseevents
beingheldduringthebeginningofthespringsemestercouldlikelyattractcurrentand
newstudentstothelibraryfortheprogramsandtolearnofprovidedservices.Therefore
theseeventswilleventuallyincreasespringsemestercirculationstatisticswhenitems
arebeingcheckedoutbecausemoreindividualsarecomingintothelibrary.

PromotingKindlestoincreaseonlinecirculationisanotherrecommendationthat
mayhelptoincreasethecirculationofelectronicresources.Itcouldbepossiblethat
studentsareunawarethatthelibraryhastheKindleservicesavailablefortheiruse.
CPCCCentralCampuslibrarianscouldcreate,promoteandexecuteaKindletraining
course.ThecoursewouldmakestudentsandfacultyawareoftheavailabilityofKindles,
whilealsoteachingthemhowtousethelibrarysonlineservicesthroughthedevice
whichmayultimatelyincreasecirculationofbothelectronictoolsandresources.

Overall,toincreasethecirculationofnonequipmentitemsatCPCCLibraries,itis
recommendedthatnewstrategiesaredevelopedtoreachpotentiallibrarypatrons.
Strategiessuchasnewprograms,outreach,andmarketingmayhelptoattractfaculty
andstudentsintothelibrary.Fromthegraphicsandexplanationspresentedearlierin
thisreport,studentsarethemaingrouptocheckoutmaterialwhilefacultyisthesecond.
Toincreasethereturnrateatthelibrarythenewlycreatedprograms,outreachand
marketingstrategiesshouldbeconsistentandcontinuedthroughouttheyear.Again,
fromthegraphsaboveonecanseethatitispossiblethatsomemonthsmighthave
higherparticipationsuchasinthefallsemester.However,byadoptingthethethree
combinedrecommendationslistedinthissection,itisanticipatedthatCPCCsCentral
CampusLibrarywillincreasespringsemesternonequipmentcirculation,improveonline
circulationthroughpromotingKindles,andattractadditionalfacultyandstudentsinto
thelibraryconsistentlythroughouttheyear.

Conclusion

Bookshavelongbeenthecentralfocusoflibrarieshowever,thevarietyofwhat
constituteslibrarymaterialshaschangedvastly.Withawiderspectrumofmaterials
comestheneedtotracetheirusagemorecarefully.Intracingthecirculationofthe
nonequipmentmaterials,attentionneedstobepaidtotheformsneededtodoso.Each
monthofusageshouldincludeeverytypeofitemconsideredanonequipmentmaterial
alongwithadescriptionofeachwherenecessary.Thisway,patternsofcirculationcan
beseenmorecompletelyandcomparisonscanbemorethoroughandimmediate.
Attentiontothisalsoallowsformoreefficientknowledgeofwhoisusingthelibrary
materialsandwhen.Facultyandstudentpatternsofcirculationarepivotalforthe
successfuloperationofalibrary,andunderstandingthehistoricalnatureofthese
patternscanmeanstreamliningofresourcesincludingpersonnel.Forinstance,knowing

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thatfewermaterialsarecheckedoutintheSpringmeansthatthelibrarycould
potentiallyusethattimetotakecareofweedingorotheractivitiesthatfallbythe
waysideinthebusierFallsemester.

Keepingtrackofthistypeofdataiscrucialtolibraryoperations.Community
collegesinparticularhaveawiderangeofpatronswithawiderangeofneeds.Efficient,
thoroughtracingofcirculationofnonequipmentitemswillallowforthelibrarytomodify
itsservicesandmakedecisionsaboutwhentoweedandwhentosupplement.These
numbers,whenconsistent,willsupportpurchasingdecisionsandcanpotentially
increaseawarenessofthelibrary.Reviewingthecirculationtrendsofnonequipment
libraryitemshelpstorevealstrengthsandweaknessesofthesystem.Makingthese
trendsknowntoadministrationwillhelptoensurethatthematerialsprovidedandtheir
usagefallsintoalignment.
Reviewingtrendsrelatedtothecirculationofnonequipment
libraryitems,helpstorevealstrengthsandweaknessesofanorganization.Making
thesetrendsknowntoadministrationwillhelptoensurethatthematerialsprovidedand
theirusagefallsintoalignment
.Thesetrendscanleadtopatronsurveystofurther
demystifythesepatternsandrevealusercenteredsolutions.Theresultsand
recommendationsshouldbeconsideredcarefullyandfurtherdiscussedasCPCC
Librariescontinuestoprovidethebreadthandqualityofresourcestispatronshave
cometoexpect.

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References

http://www.cpcc.edu/tv/eLearningcourses/learnenglish?searchterm=Crossroads+Cafe
http://www.cpcc.edu/elearningcommunity/support/documentation/elearning/whatisatel
ecourse?searchterm=telecourse
http://www.cpcc.edu/cpcc/library/aboutthelibrary/missionstatement