Data Matters for User Service: Acquiring & Assessing the Impact of NYPL’s Money Matters Grant-Funded Initiative Marie L Radford Chair, Department of Library & Information Science & Associate Professor Rutgers University, NJ Kristin McDonough  Director, Science, Industry, and Business Library, The New York Public Library Library Research Round Table American Library Association Conference Chicago, Illinois June 27th-July 2nd, 2013 The New Normal Agencies Mandated to Develop Consumer Education Programs Pre-Training Survey of Branch Staf Why How What We Found Grants: Acquisition & Execution  Not about the money…  Define scope but the meaning  Opportunity lookout  Chat before submission  Pitch & pivot  Manage RFP process  Negotiate and collaborate with contractor  Engage internal stakeholders Evaluating Money Matters  Goal: To create a corps of frontline staf equipped with the skills & confidence to meet the growing need among their patrons to access timely, accurate & trustworthy information about personal finance  Evaluation  IMLS requirement  RFP by NYPL to recruit outside evaluator  Measure MM’s success in meeting goals for: Individual workshops (content & format) Instructors Overall program Money Matters Pro Program Staf Training Portal http://bit.ly/NYPLMoneyMatters Evaluation Design  Mixed-Methods  Quantitative & Qualitative  Instruments designed with NYPL input  Surveys  Pre-Training Survey  Immediate Post-Training Survey  Final Post-Training Survey  Observation  Focus Groups  Website Analytics Surveys  Mix of paper & online (Survey Monkey)  Staf cooperation vital  Understand need & purpose  Paper successful for individual session evals (100% return rates)  Online useful for Pre & Post surveys  Incentive for Final Survey (gift card raffle) Money Matters Workshops Workshop Titles (3 core, electives, … 10 eLearning Modules) Banking (core) Retirement Planning (core) Credit & Debt (core) Credit & Debt Identity Theft Investing Investing Paying for College Income Tax Insurance Immediate Post-Training Survey Results Completed at end of each training workshop Nearly 100% return rate (administered onground) Uniformly excellent results (means 5.0 to 4.0) Quality of instruction Content/scope Activities/scenarios Resources/handouts Likert scale = Strongly Agree (5) to Strongly Disagree (1) Immediate Post-Training Survey Results “Before this workshop, how prepared were you to answer patron questions? 3.0 to 2.3 (mean, on several PF topics) “After completing this workshop how well prepared are you to answer patron questions?” 5.0 to 4.0 (mean, on same PF topics) Reported all workshops practical, relevant, enjoyable, excellent instructors, & useful in daily interactions with NYPL patrons 90, 69%) vs Final Post-Training (n= 95, 73%) Confidence in knowledge & understanding Personal Finance 2.6 (Pre-Training mean) rose to 3.9 (PostTraining mean) Adequate training in locating quality PF resources 2.7 (Pre) rose to 4.2 (Post) Adequate training in evaluating PF resources 2.7 (Pre) rose to 4.1 (Post) Would welcome PF questions 2.8 (Pre) rose to 3.8 (Post) Staf Voices on Money Matters Program  “Suggested to a single mom that starting to save now for her child's college education is beneficial because of the time value of money.”  “Helped a patron who was a grandfather find information on how to pay his granddaughter's college costs and how to ask financial questions.”  “Helping immigrants at the adult learning center set up bank accounts and helping them to improve their financial knowledge.”  “I understand investment company information and reports better since I'm more comfortable with financial terms.” Conclusion Critical factors in successful MM program Clear vision of need & goals Talented/qualified instructors NYPL involvement in content & design Staf cooperation in evaluation Feedback & adjustments Early observation Mid-point Focus Groups Interim reports Acknowledgements & Contact  This is one of the outcomes from the project Money Matters Financial Education Program  Funded by the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and NYPL  Special thanks to: Marzena Ermler, T.J Woods, Gretchen Smith, Brandy McNeil, Barbara O’Neill, & Carole Glade  Staf training portal Money Matters Pro http://bit.ly/NYPLMoneyMatters  Money Matters Web Site: http://www.nypl.org/moneymatters ... O’Neill, & Carole Glade  Staf training portal Money Matters Pro http://bit.ly/NYPLMoneyMatters  Money Matters Web Site: http://www.nypl.org/moneymatters ... Individual workshops (content & format) Instructors Overall program Money Matters Pro Program Staf Training Portal http://bit.ly/NYPLMoneyMatters Evaluation Design  Mixed-Methods  Quantitative & Qualitative... (Post) Staf Voices on Money Matters Program  “Suggested to a single mom that starting to save now for her child's college education is beneficial because of the time value of money. ”  “Helped a