The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) will host a Library Assessment Forum at the upcoming ALA Annual Conference in Chicago, featuring research on the value of e-books in academic libraries conducted at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) as part of the LibValue project. The forum will be held on June 28, 2013, from 1:30 to 3:00 p.m. in the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place (Adler 24A-C). No registration is necessary to attend this event.
The UIUC Library has conducted research on e-book value as part of the LibValue grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The data collected from these studies include longitudinal e-book use and cost data; logbook diaries of e-book users; data on patron-driven acquisition in humanities subject areas via short-term loan and purchase on demand; and perspectives of UIUC humanities faculty and graduate students in architecture, art, art history, classics, music, and religion/theology. Overall, these multiple data sets have shown positive e-book engagement, and the library has gained insight into how users want to access, read, download, and browse e-book collections.
The panel of presenters from UIUC will include Paula Kaufman, dean of libraries and university librarian; Tina Chrzastowski, chemistry librarian and professor of library administration; and Lynn Wiley, head of acquisitions and associate professor.
