Meriam Library
At
California State University Chico
Strategic Plan
December 2, 2011
LIBR 204
Group 3
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Historical Background
Overview of CSU Chico and Meriam Library
CSU Chico is the second oldest of the 23 campuses of California State University. The campus was established in 1887 as a
result of legislation passed to create the Northern Branch State Normal School of California (CSU Chico, 2011). Chico was chosen as
the location for this branch and opened its doors to 90 students in 1887 as the Chico Normal School. The school has grown
considerably, changing its name to Chico State Teachers College and eventually to Chico State University in 1972.
The university now offers over 100 majors, with business administration, liberal arts and psychology being their largest
enrollments. In the fall of 2011, Chico State had 15,920 students with seniors being the largest group making up 35% of the student
population. The student body is approximately 52% female and 48% male (CSU Chico, 2011). Ninety-five percent of Chico State's
students hail from California and 5% are out of state or international students (CSU Chico, 2011). In terms of ethnicity, the majority of
the student body is Caucasian (58.3%) followed by Hispanic/Latino, Asian, African American, Native American and Pacific Islander
(CSU Chico, 2011).
The Meriam Library is CSU Chico's campus library and conveniently located in the heart of the campus. The campus offers a
wide variety of services and resources for CSU staff and students as well as external users. The library has over one million books/e-
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books and approximately 60,000 periodicals/e-periodicals in their collection (Meriam Library, 2011). The Meriam Library also has
special collections focusing on Native American and California history.
Nature of Trends and Changes
Academic libraries, in general, have changed considerably in the past five to ten years. Significant technological and
economic changes have made an impact on these libraries. As a result of these changes, academic libraries have evolved and have
adapted their resources, services and products to meet the needs of its changing clientele. An environmental scan performed by the
Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) in 2010 showed some emerging trends in academic libraries. These trends
included budget, technology and changing clientele.
Budget
A looming issue for academic libraries today is the continually increasing budget cuts and decreasing state financial support.
The state of California is no different. Due to the economic downturn and rising state debt, California's public colleges and universities
have seen deep cuts in state funding, leading to increased tuition fees. The recent budget signed by Governor Jerry Brown in July 2011
creates a loss of approximately $650 million in state funding for California State University's 23 campuses, equivalent to a cut
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exceeding 20% (Chea, 2011). Depending on future state revenues, both California universities, CSU and UC, can face another $100
million in cuts (Chea, 2011).
An interview with Chico State University Librarian, Sarah Blakeslee, reflected these changes and how they affect academic
library budgets. Blakeslee has seen a decreasing trend in the library's budget over the last three years as the Meriam Library has lost
about 5% of their total budget. Before these changes the library budget had remained stable, but when one considers inflation rates,
this budget is actually decreasing. Sara estimated that with the 5% cut and an inflation rate of 4% to 7%, there is about an 11%
reduction in buying power every year.
Clientele
The largest user group in Meriam Library is CSU students. University Librarian, Sarah Blakeslee, has seen a change in
student’s preferences over the years. Students today use the library as a meeting and study space as opposed to just a place to look for
materials and information. Blakeslee has also mentioned that although the library's print collection has declined, the number of
visitors to the library has not decreased at the same rate. Students' study habits have also changed throughout the years. Today’s
student body works more collaboratively and prefers group study spaces. This has resulted in the library having to reconsider their
physical space.
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Resources, Services and Products
Physical Space
The CSU Chico Meriam Library's physical environment has changed over the years to adapt to fluctuating user needs. The
library has responded to the results of its most recent LibQUAL survey in 2009 regarding the negative responses relating to the
library's physical space and ambiance. Based on the LibQUAL survey, the library has focused on making Meriam library more
welcoming for its patrons. They have incorporated this into their 2007-2012 Strategic Plan and have created the goal of making the
library a "safe and inviting space conducive to study and learning" (Meriam Library, 2011). They have renovated their Laptop Lounge
area with powered study carrels, lounge furniture and vending machines. On the fourth floor, they have created a large group study
space where patrons have access to modular furniture and white boards. They have also changed signage and added artwork
throughout the library to make the library a more welcoming place to stay.
Reference
As a response to the changing student needs, the library has created the ReSEARCH Station where library staff offers Chat
Reference and Text a Librarian services.
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Databases
The library has purchased EBSCO Discovery System which allows the user to perform simultaneous searching across a broad
range of Meriam library's articles, books, and other collections similar to Google. The library has added some databases and journal
titles and deleted others based on usage, need, and costs.
Collections
The library continues to weed their book, Gov Docs, and media collections to reflect the changing needs of the student
population and other patron groups. The library has replaced two of their large micro card collections (U.S. Serial Set and Early
American Imprints) with the digital versions. The implementation of the Blackboard Learning Management System in CSU has
allowed the library to remove their e-reserves collection since faulty can post articles directly without the need of library staff acting
as middleman.
Leadership and Organizational Structure
Meriam Library currently has eight full-time librarians and one University Librarian (S. Blakeslee, personal communication,
October 27, 2011). The library has a total of 39 individuals in its staff composed of librarians, library assistants and student assistants
(Meriam Library, 2011). In 2002, the library had 13.5 staff members but was forced to reduce employees as a result of budget cuts (S.
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Blakeslee, personal communication, October 27, 2011). Chico State's Meriam Library is part of the university's Academic Affairs
department and is under the management of the Provost. The University Librarian reports directly to the CIO/VP of Information
Resources. Librarians and other library staff report to the University Librarian. The Library Department Chair is responsible for the
day to day operations or problems when the University Librarian is not available or on leave. If some larger issue came up it would go
to the Chief Information Officer/Vice President of Information Resources who reports directly to the Provost. Heads of each library
unit and university faculty are also part of the Administrative Council which helps advise the University Librarian on policies, issues
and planning.
Being a part of the larger entity, which is the CSU Chico campus, the library adheres to a lot of procedures required of the
university. Hiring, for example, is done through the Human Resources department in coordination with the Provost. The process of
approving the position, advertising and hiring takes approximately four to six months. Promotions are mostly done within the library
organization itself. According to Sarah Blakeslee, there is no set way that individuals get promoted to management. When it does
happen, it is typically because the employee has shown initiative and done a good job in their previous position so that when a higher
position becomes empty they are asked if they would be willing to move into it.
Vision, Mission and Values
Based on Meriam Library’s historical background, the library has developed its vision, mission and values. Below is a
summary of the library’s vision, mission and values as stated in the library’s website:
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Vision
Meriam library aims to provide the students and faculty of CSU Chico with a collection that meets their information needs.
They strive to develop a collection that contributes to the students' university education. The library believes that its users should have
open access to information.
Mission
The library's main mission is to prepare the students in their chosen fields by helping them use and find information. Meriam
Library does this by providing students with programs that promote information literacy, print and electronic collections that support
the academic programs and by providing a space that promotes study and collaboration.
Values
Meriam Library values information literacy and provides program and services that encourages student inquiry and research.
The library values freedom of information and ease of access to information and services. The library aims to be an important part of
the academic community and provide students and faculty with a collection that meets their information needs. The library has also
continued to improve their current services and physical space to support their patron's university education. The Meriam Library staff
takes pride in their work and value professionalism and providing excellent customer service to their patrons.
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Environmental Scan
The patrons of the California State University, Chico library have a large variety of resources and computer labs to utilize on
four different floors. The first floor contains circulation services along with the student computing and help desk. It is a rather busy
and noisy floor providing benches in the lobby where students congregate and hold conversations. The second floor has a large
amount of departments to include: a copy center, reference services, popular collections, media and microform, interlibrary services
and a law center. This is a heavily populated floor as the open space allows for quiet study time and research stations are available.
The third floor houses the special collection materials and collection management and technical services department. This is a
relatively quiet floor with students typically using the study areas. The fourth floor holds a map collection, curriculum and juvenile
services and government documents. This floor also contains a computer lab which is usually full and noisy. On this floor, students
have more freedom to eat, drink, talk and listen to music.
Strengths:

Extensive amounts of online databases and journals offered.

Efficient interlibrary services utilized.
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
Chat and text librarian help implemented.

Conducts feedback programs to fulfill the needs of patrons.

Improved environment for students through upgraded furniture and additional machines.

Provides quiet and group study areas to meet the preferences of the students.

Specific/knowledgeable librarians available for a variety of subject areas.
In 2010/2011, there were 770,220 articles viewed by patrons using the online databases and journals, making them the most
heavily used resources in the library. The library purchased the program EBSCO Discovery which allows a user to search most of the
databases and e-journals in one search. Interlibrary services are also heavily used by patrons and 8,759 books and journal articles
were obtained in 2010/2011.
Information can be obtained through the chat and text option for users that cannot come into the library. Also, a patron can
obtain information from librarians in person, by phone, instant messages and e-mail services (Wood, 2001). Programs such as Patron
Driven Acquisition and LibQUAL allow feedback from patrons and assists librarians in deciding which materials to keep or delete and
how to better improve the quality of the library. Comments and suggestions can be made by patrons to improve the library offerings
and environment through these programs. Through patron suggestions on LibQUAL, the library has made some upgrades and
refurbishments. The Laptop Lounge located on the first floor now contains powered study tables and counters, comfortable lounge
furniture and vending machines. The fourth floor now contains additional study rooms with whiteboards and moveable furniture to
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meet the needs of the students. The carpeting has also been replaced to eliminate previous tripping hazards. Artwork has been added
to the walls to create a more inviting atmosphere.
Students have preferences for studying in groups or individually, so the library recognizes these needs by providing study areas
to accommodate both. One floor provides quiet study areas while the other floors are group friendly allowing collaborative meetings
to occur (S. Blakeslee, personal communication, October 27, 2011). Subject areas such as math and history have specific librarians
working in those particular collections. They are knowledgeable in assisting students based on their specific degree of study. There is
a librarian assigned to all of the subject areas to best suit the needs of the students (http://www.csuchico.edu/library/).
Weaknesses:

Building structure needs cosmetic repairs/safety issues need to be addressed.

Staff presence is weak throughout the library.

Advertisements/flyers for library services are scarce.

Print collections are hardly utilized by users.
Although many additional decorative accents have been added to the library for patron use, the building itself is in dire need of
revamping. The interior/exterior is old, and the crumbling of the interior is immediately recognized. The paint color is not consistent
between the floors and is cracking, peeling, and fading in some areas. Some of the panels in the elevator roof along with the floor tiles
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are broken and chipped. Safety needs improvement as well as there is an open stairway between the first and second floors, but a
closed one for the second floor through the fourth floor. The closed stairway has no windows and no sound can be heard which poses
a safety hazard for students. The elevators are slow moving and since they tend to be crowded, need to be upgraded also.
With the exception of the circulation department, staff presence is weak. Due to budgetary constraints, staff members that
have left or retired are not being replaced. In 2002, there were 13.5 librarian positions and today, there are only eight. At least five
staff positions have been lost in this timeframe (S. Blakeslee, personal communication, October 27, 2011). Advertising for library
services is fairly non-existent except for a flyer about the copy center and a few brochures at the reference desk. Due to increased
computer use and online resources, printed materials are hardly accessed. The departments who house special collections are varied
and diverse but are empty of patrons, and the librarians at the reference desks are rarely busy. The main collection area is hardly
occupied by patrons.
Opportunities:

Collaborate with professors to recommend tours of the specialty collections within the library to increase use and efficiency.

Provide information by updating brochures and increasing signage about services offered.

Scan and preserve printed books that are highly used each semester to increase availability and circulation.

Allocate more funds from the Chief Information Officer to improve the overall physical structure of the library.
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
Rearrange the library to increase multipurpose areas such as computer labs, wireless space, meeting rooms and research
stations.

Implement additional staff to accommodate users and actively offer assistance.
Currently, some professors require fieldtrips to the special collection archive as part of their course requirements where
students read and view available material (G. Thompson, personal communication, November 1, 2011). The library staff could
collaborate with all professors in every discipline to discover what suits the needs of the students and base fieldtrips accordingly. This
would increase the usage of the main collection and specialty areas. Updating and creating new brochures and signs about the services
within the library could increase the value of the services offered. Establishing book displays on various topics would encourage more
material to be borrowed from the library to increase circulation. Books that are no longer in print or are highly used in the library can
be scanned into an e-format to ensure the patron has access at all times to the material.
In order to update and maintain the structure of the building, more funds can be requested from the Chief Information Officer
or grants can be applied for. Updating the structure allows for a more inviting atmosphere and can increase patron use. Rearranging
the library to accommodate for additional multipurpose area is essential as a majority of the library patrons utilize the computer labs
and meeting rooms. These areas are usually full with a line of patrons waiting their turn.
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Implementing additional staff would increase the assistance levels for the patrons. Staff would be more readily available to
assist in obtaining the desired information and answers to their questions. This would eliminate the patron having to search for a
library staff member to assist them which happens at times.
Threats:

Inadequate training of staff members and long length of time to acquire new employees.

Diminished or no funds available for salaries, improvements or new services.

Limited printed materials in the library will cause patrons to seek information elsewhere, such as the internet or bookstores.

Lack of e-reader stations and e-books limits the resources available to the users.

If the library does not provide adequate training for its staff, the assistance levels go down.
Cross training librarians in a variety of areas and subject fields within the collections would increase the knowledge and value
of the employees. It takes approximately four to six months for the process to be completed for a new hire. Decreasing this time
would eliminate the shortage of employees in the library and ensures a full staff is always present. Due to this timeframe, the library
may always stay understaffed as employees move or retire (S. Blakeslee, personal communication, October 27, 2011).
Increasing funds all around for the library would allow the facility to be more inviting and valuable to the patrons. Updating
and upgrading the structure and adding new services would increase the number of patrons who visit the library. The lack of funds
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and how they are distributed limits the library staff in deciding what is more important to address over other things. Having one
budget to cover salaries, improvements, and new services is difficult to work with, especially since the amount allocated tends to
decrease every year.
Patrons who cannot find the information at the library will go to other places to find it. If the collection is lacking in certain
topic areas, the patron will search the internet or even a bookstore to find what they need. Without many e-reader stations and ebooks, the patrons will be limited in the amount of resources available. With advancements in technology, the library will need to
continue downloading e-books and provide as many e-reader stations as possible for the patrons.
Goals and Assessments
Goal #1
Develop a stronger student interest in library services through the introduction and placement of more advertising, the
development of instructional and tutorial opportunities and by the creation of suggestion boxes.
Advertising:

Increase the number of internal advertisements near areas of heavy foot traffic – entrances, exits and study areas – on each
floor.
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
External advertisement: Place advertisements of general (relevant for all) library services at locations around campus –
entrances, exits, foot-path intersections – and place similar advertisements, with the addition of relevant or related services, in
specific buildings and near specific departments.
Instructional and training opportunities:

Match the current computing workshop and training with two levels, non-curriculum specific and curriculum specific, of
library instruction and training.

Non-curriculum specific training will cover all aspects of the physical library and introductory aspects of information literacy.

Curriculum specific literacy will cover areas of the physical library and aspects of information literacy that could be specific to
a degree, department, or course.
Interest through input:

Post suggestion boxes outside the library entrance and at high-traffic areas inside the library. A suggestion board, showing
prescribed opinions, will be placed above the box.

Each box will not be advertised for a specific group on campus – employees, faculty, students – in order to promote a wider
audience and more diverse opinions.
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Assessment #1
Advertising:

Conduct employee, faculty and student questionnaires. Questions will include opinions on the visibility of advertisements,
whether an advertisement prompted a student to use a service, and the frequency of service usage before and after placement of
advertisements.

Satisfaction surveys with differing content will also be distributed to each group.

Compare tracking metrics (if applicable) of services before and after placement of advertisements.
Instructional and Training Opportunities:

Questionnaires given out at the end of instruction to determine student-perceived usefulness.

Questionnaires given out to library employees and faculty. Questions will include judgment of student response to course and
whether a noticeable advancement in information literacy was seen.

Comparison of library resource usage before and after first unit of instruction and training.
Interest through input:

Track number of suggestions turned in and attempt to determine a pattern (peak early then fall off, peak then sustain)

Track number of original suggestions, as compared to those that incorporate material from the suggestion board.

Incentives of extra credit points (after consensus is obtained from departments) or gift certificates, will be used in all
questionnaires, to improve response rate. (Grassian and Kaplowitz, 2005)
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Goal #2
Develop a link between the library and the outside academic community. This community will be segmented into public
schools and junior colleges, in order to better identify and provide for differing wants and needs specifically for these different
academic institutions. (Evans and Ward, 2007) For both groups, exhibitions and displays will be held at each school’s library to bring
attention to the public the academic services and resources available at CSU Chico’s library. (Evans and Ward, 2007)
Public Schools:

Create and develop programs for surrounding public schools through information obtained by holding meetings, interviewing,
or offering questionnaires to faculty at each school.

Hold programs, designed as introductory workshops, at CSU Chico’s library for each school.
Junior Colleges:

Create and develop transition programs for local junior colleges by offering questionnaires that deal with students’ academic
interests and desired areas of study.

Workshops at CSU Chico’s presented as the creation of a LibGuide – linking databases and websites – which the students can
library will be held that are directed by the interests and potential areas of study found in the questionnaires.

Digital information will be use and reference after the workshop.
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Assessment #2
For both groups:

Upon completion of each workshop, distribute satisfaction surveys combined with a questionnaire to the faculty of each school
represented.

The questionnaires will deal with information needs further developing within the students or those not presented at the library.
This assessment will provide information for the following cycle of workshops. (Grassian and Kaplowitz, 2009)

Track the number of students attending the workshops and compare the numbers over time.

Track the number of visits to each LibGuide.

Provide a means of assessment on the LibGuide site, as either a fill-in form or short questionnaire.
Goal #3
Provide patrons with an increased sense of security and comfort through improvements in the building and the general library
environment.

Evaluate current safety measures effectiveness and determine where improvements need to be made.

Commission portion of budget to improvements for outside and inside of library. Improvements should not only be cosmetic
but also functional.

Use survey to decide where patrons would like to see the most improvement in the library.
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Assessment #3

Perform new environmental scan to access improvements.

Review budget to analyze if any further improvements need to be included.

Issue subsequent survey to judge students response to improvements.
Goal #4:
Increase staff visibility throughout the library and allocate more time spent among the stacks and the students.

Although students primarily study alone more, many do not have a good set of study or search skills. By improving staff
visibility, more students will learn to search effectively.

Allot every staff member a certain amount of time during their shift to spend among the stacks and the students.
Assessment #4

Issue survey to determine if improved visibility is successful.

Compare library usage for studying to past usage. This should help determine if the improved visibility is improving library
usage.
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References
ACRL Research and Planning Committee (2011). 2010 Environmental Scan. Retrieved from
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/acrl/.../EnvironmentalScan201.pdf
California State University Chico (2011). About Chico State. Retrieved from http://www.csuchico.edu/about/index.shtml
California State University Chico (2009). Meriam Library Organizational Chart. Retrieved from
http://www.csuchico.edu/ires/departments/documents/LibrarybyDept_0909.pdf
Chea, T., (2011). California college students brace for more state budget cuts. Community College Week, 23(25), 7-8. Retrieved from
http://www.ccweek.com/news/templates/template.aspx?articleid=2646&zoneid=7
Evan, G.E., & Ward, P.L (2007). Management Basics for Information Professionals (2nd ed.). New York: Neal-Schuman.
Grassian, E. & Kaplowitz, J. (2005). Learning to Lead and Manage Information Literacy Instruction: Theory and Practice. New York:
Neal-Schuman
Grassian, E. & Kaplowitz, J. (2009). Information Literacy Instruction: Theory and Practice (Rev. ed.). New York: Neal-Schuman.
Meriam Library. (2009). LIBQUAL+ Survey 2009. Retrieved from http://www.csuchico.edu/library/libadmin/LibQUAL_2009_sum.pdf
Meriam Library. (2010). Library Fact Sheet. Retrieved from http://www.csuchico.edu/library/libadmin/MLfacts.doc
Meriam Library. (2011). Library Year-end Report and Highlights (2010/2011). Retrieved
from http://www.csuchico.edu/library/libadmin/MeriamLibraryAnnualReport.pdf
Wood, K. (2001, January 24). Library continues to develop in technology. The Orion. Retrieved from http://theorion.com
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Appendix
The Strategic Plan for this group was developed through a series of online meetings and discussions. When the project was
first assigned, the group scheduled a meeting through Elluminate in order to identify which library organization would be used for the
project. Once California State University Library at Chico was chosen, one team member volunteered to conduct the environmental
scan as well as an information seeking interview with the University Librarian. The team developed a series of questions that would
assist in providing the information needed to create the Strategic Plan for the library. Team members volunteered to do the research
for each specific section of the plan individually. A Wiki page was created for all team members to add their individually assigned
sections of the assignment in order to facilitate editing as well as for everyone involved to be able to access the documents.
Information Collected
The information collected for this project came from a variety of sources. The majority of the procedural and operational data
was retrieved from the interview with University Librarian, Sarah Blakeslee. This interview provided the majority of the information
used to create the content of this report with other material coming from the library website and an environmental scan of the location.
An environmental scan gave the team an opportunity to get an idea of how the library performs on a daily basis through the
eyes of a patron. Some of the questions the environmental scan answered were how library employees interact with patrons, how
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knowledgeable the employees appear to be, the overall feel and comfort level of the library as well as the features, special sections and
areas contained within. The necessary information regarding budgeting, goals, library staff and the library strategic plan were found
on the library website at www.csuchico.edu.
Organizational Chart
The formal organizational chart that was uncovered for this library is attached to this Strategic Plan as a separate document.
The chart includes a complete listing of employees and their specific department assignments. The listing below was retrieved from
their website and provides information on the total amount of employees the library currently has and their employment track.
Current Staff and Faculty
10
Librarians (FTE)
8
Librarians (FTE) Tenure and Tenure Track
2
Faculty Early Retirement Program (FERP)
20
Library Assistants
24
Student assistants from all funding sources (FTE)
2
Management Personnel Plan
2
Information Technology Staff
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The library Annual Report contained on the website, listed several of the staff by name but not all. The faculty members listed
were those that were retiring (five in total) and a new addition to their team in the position of Instructional Technology Consultant.
Two library staff members were also identified as award recipients for the previous year.
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Meriam Library Organizational Chart (http://www.csuchico.edu/ires/departments/documents/LibrarybyDept_0909.pdf)
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Description of Physical Facilities
The environmental scan offered an essential part of the data necessary to complete this
portion of our Strategic Plan. Through this procedure, different sections of the library were
identified and reviewed as well as suggestions for improvement. The scan recorded the activity
throughout the library, floor by floor, as well as the services available on each. The CSU Library
at Chico is officially named the Meriam Library. The building consists of four floors, each
dedicated to a specific purpose. The first floor houses the collection desk as well as the
computer and laptop labs which were heavily in use at the time the scan was conducted. The
second floor features a quiet study area as well as a research station, which according the
environmental scan were both extremely active and busy. On the third floor are more study
areas, which the scan identified as the most popular areas of the library. Also on this floor are
sections that had little activity at that time which were the Main Collection and Special
Collection areas. The fourth floor also contained an open study area and computer labs. This
area has no noise restrictions and students are free to talk openly, eat, drink as well as listen to
music.
The scan also identified the building as old, weathered and in need of a remodel. Items
of note include the large disparity between the amount of available space between the first floor
and the other three floors. The first floor was found to be claustrophobic and cluttered in
comparison to the rest. A possible safety concern was also uncovered in regards to the library
stairwells. The scan mentioned the stairwells were extremely isolated and could pose a hazard to
students.
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Current Organizational Budget
The interview conducted with Sarah Blakeslee allowed the team to also gather
information on how the library distributes their budget dollars within different sections of the
library. According to Blakeslee, 70 % of the library’s budget was used in the previous year for
digital materials.
The chart below was provided by Blakeslee and lists how much of a
percentage of the budget each format received during the year 2010-2011.
The library website also included the Annual Report for the year which offered
information regarding the total amount of the Collection Budget which was listed at $1,134,586.
The interview as well as the Annual Report included information on other items purchased for
the library which included new furniture, DVD players and flat screen monitors, new carpeting,
new entrance mats, new signage, a coffee vending machine and wall art.
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