The group met 2-3 times this reporting period.
After reviewing the current PLA Strategic Plan, please tell us:
Describe the current work of this committee and how it supports our strategic goals. Include work accomplished, decisions made, and any recommended follow-up actions.
In the past six months MEAAG members have assisted in subcommittee work and provided support to PLA staff related to PLA’s data platforms.
The Project Outcome subcommittee has been placed on pause, given the planned transition for the Project Outcome platform. Instead, a temporary task force (comprising MEAAG members, past MEAAG members, and subject matter experts) has explored potential alternatives for continuing Project Outcome. Unfortunately, none of these alternatives proved viable, and the group has shifted to assisting with the development and implementation of a Project Outcome transition plan. At its December meeting, MEAAG reviewed the Project Outcome for Public Libraries Transition Implementation Plan and agreed by consensus to approve the plan.
The Benchmark subcommittee has provided feedback to support annual development of Benchmark, including recommending improvements to the Benchmark product and providing feedback to PLA staff throughout the development process, and contributed to PLA’s efforts to increase adoption of Benchmark and subscriber retention, which included assisting PLA staff with the Become a Data-Informed Library with Benchmark webinar in November 2024.
The Topical Surveys subcommittee assists PLA staff with the development, testing, and reporting of new annual topical surveys administered via Benchmark. In summer 2024, MEAAG members helped PLA staff present the results of the 2023 topical survey at the ALA Annual Conference and through a free webinar. Additionally, the Public Library Staff Survey was conducted for the second time. Advisory Group members assisted with annual survey promotion and encouraged participation through their networks.
The Case Studies subcommittee is continuing to pilot and refine a new process for soliciting and reviewing case studies that support use of PLA’s data tools. Derived from the model used by ACRL, the new process includes revised case study guidelines, a submission form, and individual roles for committee members in the review process to make the work more streamlined.
Do you see opportunities to better align committee work with those goals?
MEAC members continue to pursue these growth areas in the 2024-25 committee year:
EDISJ – Data is a necessary component to advancing EDISJ in the profession. Through PLA's data tools, we help those in the profession better understand our communities (an essential step in making our spaces more inclusive), learn from other communities' successes, and measure our impact. In addition, applying an EDISJ lens to MEAAG’s work will help ensure that data is gathered responsibly and that necessary context is provided when we present and share data.
Professional Growth – MEAAG strives to increase the field’s understanding of data-informed practices, provide unique and valuable data to professionals, and increase the network of data-focused library professionals to provide support and growth to those innovating in the field. We will continue to encourage members to seek opportunities to contribute to supporting professional learning and development related to library data and evaluation.
Advocacy and Awareness – PLA’s Benchmark data platform provides considerable value to the profession, in helping us tell the story of how public libraries benefit communities. MEAAG members are very invested in the success of this tool, and we are exploring ways we can increase awareness about the data, tools, and resources available to support library staff and leaders in communicating the true impact and value of libraries to stakeholders.
Transformation – MEAAG members represent a good cross-section of the field, with representation from public libraries, state library agencies, and support organizations from locations across the country. MEAAG will continue to draw from these perspectives to identify emerging needs in the field. Working with the PLA data products, MEAAG members will contribute to identification of trends and development of resources to support responsiveness to community needs.
Organizational Excellence – MEAAG members participate in continuous improvement of PLA’s Benchmark data product with a focus on increasing value for subscribers and are working to develop accessible resources to support adoption of Benchmark. MEAAG’s assistance in curating resources for the transitioned Project Outcome static site and other elements of the transition plan support PLA’s efforts at fiscal responsibility in light of available revenues.
What recommendations do you have for in-coming committee members? Are there particular streams of
work in progress to be carried over into the new committee year? (January–June reporting period only)
The Topical Surveys subcommittee will review the results data from the 2024 Staff Survey for insights to highlight for the field, and will assist PLA staff in preparing for the 2025 Services Survey. (Supports Transformation, EDISJ, Advocacy and Awareness)
The Case Studies subcommittee will continue refining its approach to soliciting and reviewing case studies about data-informed practices using Benchmark and outcomes assessment. (Supports Professional Growth, Transformation)
The Benchmark subcommittee will advise PLA staff about potential improvements to the platform and assist with webinars and conference presentations to provide professional development to the field. (Supports Organizational Excellence, Advocacy and Awareness, Transformation, EDISJ)
The Project Outcome subcommittee will assist PLA staff in implementing the Project Outcome for Public Libraries Transition Implementation Plan, as well as investigate and develop new learning resources to support continued outcomes assessment work within the field. We envision this subcommittee transitioning in the next committee/advisory group year to support data-driven librarianship resources. (Supports Organizational Excellence, Transformation, Professional Growth)
What specific activities will this committee undertake over the next six months to support that alignment? (July–December reporting period only)
Are there other PLA or ALA committees whose partnership and collaboration would accelerate meeting PLA strategic goals?
We are actively investigating opportunities to partner with other ALA divisions in support of professional development on collecting, evaluating, and reporting data – and doing so in an equity-informed way – including the Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Social Justice Committee. Continued learning support for outcomes assessment is a key to success in ongoing grant-funded digital equity projects. The Digital Literacy Committee is increasingly addressing the increase in interest in and visibility of digital equity as a result of landmark federal legislation that provided funding to support these efforts. MEAAG believe that PLA data products can help stakeholders make strong decision about how to best use those resources.
Is there anything else about your committee experience you’d like to share?
The past six months have brought challenges, with one of MEAAG’s liaisons (Sara Goek) on a sabbatical and one of our co-chairs resigning due to job changes, while we pondered how to address the future of Project Outcome. Katina Jones has continued to be a great support for our advisory group and is fabulous to work with. We appreciate the opportunity to continue supporting data-driven librarianship and look forward to sharing results with the field from the 2024 Staff Survey!
Submitted by Jerianne Thompson, Laurie Covington on 12/20/2024