Purpose & Goals

At BYU, each university college, school, or entity undergoes a university level review in preparation for accreditation and for improvement. Between these seven-year reviews, the BYU library conducts internal reviews of each department — one department each semester. The process models the university level evaluation and utilizes a team of library internal reviewers and an external reviewer. This presentation describes the history of the internal reviews, a meta-review of the internal review process, and subsequent changes to the process. It finishes with a full description of the current internal review process.

Design & Methodology

The presentation uses learning gained from conducting internal reviews over the past 11 years. It will be a power point presentation, that allows for participant questions. The presentation connects to evaluations from other disciplines (references available upon request). The intent is to enable others to see our evaluation process, learn how it helped develop a culture of assessment that describes the value of each department and aids decision-making. If so desired, it may help other libraries institute similar processes.

Conclusions

While the initial round of evaluations underwent growing pains as it aligned to university practices and met the needs of library departments, the meta-review and subsequent changes have improved and made the process stronger and more effective.

Implications & Value

Internal Reviews provide departments with information that make others aware of their contribution to the library and institution. It also provides recommendations for improvement and fosters a culture of assessment throughout the library.