EdX

Identifying Community Needs for Public Library Management (edX)

Offered by University of Michigan, MichiganX,
Identifying Community Needs for Public Library Management (edX)

Learn how to conduct research, surveys, and interviews as well as how to analyze data to better assess the local needs and wants of a public library community. Public libraries are becoming dynamic hubs for learning, civic engagement, and community. This course will discuss strategies for gathering statistical and descriptive data about public library communities. Learners will identify local partners in education, social services, government agencies, and more.

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While conducting real-world investigations, learners will gain deeper insight into the wants and needs of community organizations. This will empower learners to make better management decisions to address those needs, even in libraries with limited budgets.
This course is part of the Public Library Management Professional Certificate.

What you'll learn

  • How to find demographic and persona data from online sources;
  • To conduct environmental scans;
  • How to lead focus groups and interviews;
  • How to analyze data to find patterns, overlaps, and gaps in available community services;
  • To synthesize your findings in a report.

Course Syllabus

Lesson 1: Why Study Community Needs?
Lesson 2: Environmental Scanning
Lesson 3: Found Data
Lesson 4: Surveys
Lesson 5: Reviewing Survey Data
Lesson 6: Interviews
Lesson 7: Synthesis

Go to Class
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