ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries C&RL New s ■ June 2001 / 623 C o l l e g e & R e s e a r c h L i b r a r i e s weNs Members assess ACRL Results of the 2000 Membership Survey by Melissa Cast and Shannon Cary F or an association to truly serve its mem­bers, it must constantly strive to be aware o f the concerns and issues that its member­ ship faces, as well as the values that guide their professional development. Every three years, ACRL surveys a sam­ pling o f its members to assess the state o f the association, ensure its membership is receiv­ ing high-quality services and programs, and track any new trends or needs. In order to increase input from members, the most re­ cent survey conducted by Research USA, Inc. in the fall o f 2000 was administered online. The profession o f academic librarianship is in a state o f flux. In the last three years, challenges and opportunities never before imagined have had a great impact on aca­ dem ic libraries and librarians. A ccess to online materials and library services for dis­ tance learning are probably among the most prevalent o f concerns, but by no means the only issues that today’s academ ic librarian faces. The results o f this survey are instrumental not only in assessing the needs and wants of academic librarians, but also for planning new services and improving existing services in response to those needs. Methodology The sample size for the survey was 8,576 members. These names included all ACRL members with known e-mail addresses. On O ctober 3, 2000, all names w ere e-mailed an advance notice m essage, w hich informed them of the survey and requested their par­ ticipation. On O ctober 11, 2000, every name was e-mailed a cover letter from ACRL, which explained the importance of the survey and provided a link to the survey’s W eb site. Another request was sent by e-mail to non­ respondents on O ctober 30, 2000. All mes­ sages were signed by ACRL President Betsy Wilson. By November 27, 2000, there were 4,055 completed returns for a response rate o f 47.3%. This is the highest response rate for the ACRL membership survey to date. Results of the survey for the total mem­ bership are projectable within a range o f 1.2% with a confidence level o f 95%. The questionnaire consisted o f 33 ques­ tions under six headings w hich included: about ACRL; ACRL publications; ACRL and professional development, rating the asso­ ciation; about your work; demographic char­ acteristics. Key demographic findings The typical ACRL member has not changed much from the last survey. An ACRL mem­ ber is most likely Caucasian (88.9%), 48 years old, and has been a member o f ACRL for 8 years. She most likely works in a university (45.2% ) and in reference services (51%). About the authors] Melissa Cast is ACRL director o f membership services and Shannon Cary is ACRL director o f research and special initiatives, e-mail: mcast@ala.org and scary@ala.org mailto:mcast@ala.org mailto:scary@ala.org 624 / C&RL News ■ June 2001 Technology, change, and customer service are key issues In the 1997 survey, close to 39% of re sp o n ­ dents highlighted “technological change” as the m ost critical issue they face as librarians. In 2000, this issue is still in the forefront with 66% o f the respondents rating the “impact of expanding technologies” as a “very im por­ tan t” issue to them in their jobs. The next three most highly rated issues w ere “customer service,” “electronic versus print materials,” an d the “changing roles o f librarians.” Members interested in professional development Throughout the survey, m em bers expressed the im portance of professional developm ent. W hen asked to indicate the im portance of each o f these ACRL services, 64.6% of re ­ spondents rated “professional developm ent” as “very im portant,” with 91-9% responding that they also look to other library organiza­ tions for professional developm ent. Accord­ ing to 41.1% of the respondents, “professional developm ent opportunities” are “very im por­ tan t” in their decision to re n ew their ACRL membership. And “professional developm ent/ continuing ed u c atio n ” w as ranked second after “publications” as the program, activity, or service ACRL should continue above all others. Although professional developm ent is im­ portant to them, respondents are concerned about the cost of traveling to conferences and workshops. Of the respondents w ho had not attended the 1999 or 1997 ACRL National Con­ ferences, 57.9% said that the “cost of travel and/or lodging” kept them from attending. Re­ flecting this concern, 25.5% of the respondents said that “distance learning” was the one p ro ­ Leading issues "v e ry im p o rta n t" to m em bers' jobs. C&RL News ■ June 2001 / 625 gram, activity, or service ACRL should add. One respondent commented, ‘‘Though I have not attended because of the cost, this [ACRL Na­ tional Conference] is widely considered to be the best academic-focused librarian conference. I look forward to the day when I can attend and take part in the sessions.” New directions for ACRL When members were asked to identify pro­ grams, activities, and services not currently being provided by ACRL that would be most beneficial to them, the responses strongly sup­ p o rted electronically b ased services and reaching out regionally and to other associa­ tions. The most popular choice of respon­ dents was “distance learning” (25.5%). The next three most listed services were: “more chapter/regional activities” (7.5%), “e-jour- nals/Web portal” (5.5%), and “joint programs "I find the publications the most useful activity provided by ACRL." with other organizations/ALA divisions” (3.2). One member stated, “I love the idea of vir­ tual access to the ACRL Conference—a vir­ tual site for vendor exhibits would be great— transcripts of programs, Web sites for program handouts or speakers Powerpoint presenta­ tions, etc.” Member participation Members have continued to stay active in ACRL activities: 22.9% of respondents are members of a section committee, 21.6% are members of a discussion group, and 18% are members of an ACRL committee. These num- Electronic programs in w hich members are "very interested." 626 / C&RL News ■ June 2001 Academic focus is still the most important reason for keeping an ACRL membership. bers all represent slight increases from the 1997 survey. Members are also m ore active in sections w ith 76.5% belonging to a section as com ­ pared to 74.4% in 1997. The three largest sec­ tions re p resen te d am ong the resp o n d en ts w ere the University Library Section (23.6%), the Instruction Section (23.1%), an d the Col­ lege Libraries Section (12.9%). The Instruc­ tion Section an d the Community and Junior College Libraries Section have show n the larg­ est percentage o f growth in respondents since 1997. O ne respondent sum m ed u p the im­ portance of sections by writing, “The section activities should continue— they m ake ACRL m ore personal and relevant to my everyday w ork.” O ur m em bers have also rem ained active in their regional organizations: 50.8% of the respondents belong to their state library or­ ganization an d 39-8% belong to their ACRL chapter. This also represents a slight increase from the 1997 survey. ACRL as a virtual association In an environm ent o f rapidly expanding tech­ nology, m any opportunities exist for ACRL to becom e a virtual association. ACRL m em ­ bers responded positively to the possible ad ­ dition o f electronic programs, products, and services, such as the 60.2% w ho indicated that they w ere “very interested” in “library statistics available on the W eb,” and the 55.5% w ho w ere “very interested” in “electronic jour­ nals.” The concept o f ACRL becom ing more Leading reasons "v e ry im p o rta n t" fo r ACRL m em bership renew al. C&RL News ■ June 2001 / 627 of a virtual association was also a common thread in the comments on the survey. One member wants “As much information as pos­ sible disseminated through the Web site. It would be good to increase content and make it easier for members to collaborate on as­ sociation initiatives.” Publications read regularly O ur members see ACRL publications as an invaluable service. An overwhelming 92.7% of respondents indicated that they read Col­ lege & Research Libraries News (C&RL News) regularly, with 90.3% reading College & Re­ search Libraries (C&RL) regularly. They also indicated that these publications are impor­ tant in carrying out their jobs, “I really like C&RL and C&RL News—unlike most library journals available, these two journals always have articles I find useful,” one member re­ sponded. C&RL News and. C&RL were seen as “very” or “somewhat useful” by more than 92.2% and 88.7% of respondents respectively. Re­ spondents also expressed their approval by indicating that ACRL publications were im­ portant in their decision to renew their ACRL membership. And “publications” received the most responses (29.2%) w hen respondents were asked what programs, activities, or ser­ vices ACRL should continue above all oth­ ers. As one m ember remarked, “At this stage, I find the publications the most useful activ­ ity provided by ACRL. Although I am active in a different national organization, the ACRL publications keep me abreast of trends and activities in a variety of academic libraries . In the 1997 survey, m em bers dem on­ strated an interest in the continuation of the print form of the publications. Although this question was not repeated in the 2000 sur­ vey, 5-5% of members indicated that ACRL should add e-journals to its existing services. O ne respondent commented, “Continue to publish C&RL and C&RL News, but think about making them electronic publications with an archive,” Professional development must continue In addition to publications, the second pro­ gram, activity, or service that members feel … respondents feel that the association is meeting many of their needs and that programs and services are valued. ACRL should continue is professional devel- opm ent/continuing education opportunities. Among the comments members m ade re­ garding professional development, the ACRL National Conference stood out as an exem­ plary program. One respondent replied, “The National Conference is really wonderful. It is so much easier to get a full-packed day of useful sessions from it than from ALA, which has to cater to a much w ider audience.” ACRL programming at ALA Annual Con­ ference was highlighted, as well. One ap­ preciative member felt that ACRL provides “excellent programming at ALA—you bring in outside speakers w ho contribute to my continuing education objectives!” The #1 reason for membership Academic focus is still the most important reason for keeping an ACRL membership. Listed as the most important reason in 1997 and in 2000, 73.6% of the respondents indi­ cated that “academic focus” was a “very im­ portant” reason for renewing their member­ ship. “Advocacy for the profession” is also im­ portant as was reflected in the comment por­ tion of the survey. One m ember stated, “The respect our profession gets varies widely from one institution to the next. The library as the heart of the university is a pleasant dream that is rarely reality,” Other activities that were rated highly ac­ cording to importance as a reason for re­ newal were; “access to ACRL publications” and a place to “address your professional concerns and interests.” “C&RL News is one of the greatest and most useful benefits of ACRL membership, in addition to the opportunity to network, to meet and work with colleagues interested in the same areas I am. Sections are w on­ derful and should receive increased support “The sta n d a rd s/com petencies w ork is critical for library service and collections, 628 / C&RL News ■ June 2001 staff, an d students. We must establish effec­ tive outcom es assessm ents.” Summing up The success of an association is m easured by the extent to which it meets the dem ands of its m em bership and strengthens the m em ­ bers’ ability to provide superior library ser­ vices at their institutions. Therefore, the mem­ b e r s u rv e y b e c o m e s o n e o f o u r m o st important tools to gauge the extent to w hich our m em bers’ needs are being fulfilled. “The only h o m e for non-ARLs is really ACRL. [It provides] service to all college an d university libraries, w ith em p h asis o n creating o p p o rtu n itie s for the non-ARL.” The 2000 M em bership Survey clearly in­ dicate d th at ACRL’s m em bers c o n sid e r in­ form atio n tech n o lo g y an d its im plications in academ ic libraries to b e a co n stan t is­ sue th a t m ust be struggled w ith. In o rd e r to c o n te n d w ith a ch a n g in g tech n o lo g ical lan d sca p e, m em bers w a n t ACRL to c o n ­ tin u e to p rovide p rofessional d e v e lo p m e n t activities that im prove th eir ability to ef­ fectively u se a n d ap p ly technology. M em­ bers also e x p re sse d an in tere st in ACRL d e v e lo p in g its virtual capabilities, e s p e ­ cially in pro v id in g p u b licatio n s a n d c o n ­ tinuing e d u c a tio n o n th e Web. ACRL is a vital o rg an izatio n for higher education an d libraries b ecau se o f its m em ­ bers. We are p le a se d th at re sp o n d e n ts feel th at th e asso ciatio n is m eetin g m any o f their n ee d s an d that program s an d services are v alu ed . ACRL will co n tin u e to track trends, assess th e n ee d s o f th e ACRL m em ­ b ersh ip , a n d ev alu ate its p rogram m ing so that w e ca n co n tin u e to be re sp o n siv e to m em b ersh ip w ith h ig h -q u ality program s and services. ACRL w o u ld also like to ex p ress its a p ­ p reciatio n to th e survey re sp o n d e n ts w h o took tim e o u t o f th eir b u sy sch e d u le s to co m p lete this im p o rtan t asse ssm e n t tool. The inform ation g ath ered in the survey will be u s e d by th e ACRL B oard o f D irectors, com m ittees, sections, an d ch a p te rs to re ­ view, u p d a te , an d d e v e lo p pro g ram s a n d p ro d u c ts th a t m eet th e n e e d s of o u r m em ­ bers. The B oard will co n tin u e to u se th e su r­ vey results in setting priorities an d u p d a t­ ing th e Strategic Plan. ■ C&RL News ■ June 2001 / 629