Evaluating Teen Services and Programs

Sarah Flowers

May 2012 · American Library Association

About this ebook

Flowers offers guidance for librarians in examining all aspects of teen programming and services to determine where improvement is needed. Readers will learn how to

• Develop goals and objectives for evaluation
• Collect the data for a realistic picture of a library’s strengths and weaknesses
• Use many different types of data with the help of practical examples included in the text
• Evaluate YA collections, summer reading programs, special events, and library staff

This guide comes with an explanation of the YALSA competencies, the YALSA teen services evaluation tool, and models for what excellent teen services programs should look like. Ready-to-use evaluation forms and checklists save time and resources by improving assessment methods in minutes.

About the author

 Sarah Flowers has worked as a young adult librarian, a supervisor of adult and young adult services, the manager of a community library, and as the deputy county librarian for the Santa Clara County Library in California, where she learned the practical details of analyzing and evaluating library data. She was a member of the top 40 distinguished alumni of the San Jose State School of Library and Information Science, and was a member of the first class of Library Journal’s “Movers & Shakers.” She is the author of four nonfiction books for young people and numerous articles and reviews for library journals, as well as the author of Young Adults Deserve the Best: YALSA’s Competencies in Action. She has been active in ALA and YALSA for many years, and was the 2011–2012 President of YALSA.

The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) is the fourth-largest division of the American Library Association, with more than 5,400 members. YALSA’s mission is to expand and strengthen library services for teens and young adults. Through its member-driven advocacy, research, and professional development initiatives, YALSA builds the capacity of libraries and librarians to engage, serve, and empower teens and young adults. YALSA’s major initiatives include Teen Read Week™ and Teen Tech Week™. Known as the world leader in recommending books and media to those ages 12–18, YALSA each year gives out six literary awards, including the Printz Award, and chooses titles for seven book and media lists.