Department of Library Information Technology
Program Outcomes
Program Student Learning Outcomes
Mission and Goals
Fall 2012; updated Fall 2013
9/4/13; updated notes (below) June 2014; June 2015
PO 01. Department fosters and encourages library employment at paraprofessional and professional levels by historically underrepresented groups
PO 02. Department strives to expedite program completion; to rationalize with national standards; to facilitate education for employment; or to support college transfer and graduate study for professional schooling
PSLO 01. Students demonstrate competent understanding of the acquisition, description, storage, retrieval and use of library information products and services
PSLO 02. Students understand problems of information access encountered by minorities, by the information poor, by the under-served and by special populations within the context of US and state constitutional and statutory law, and the professional ethics of the American Library Association.
PSLO 03. Students develop technical and practical skills by using library resources vended or distributed worldwide, through practical exercises in each course, site visits, field trips and by practical library employment
PSLO 04. Students learn to scrutinize the quality of information products and services, to evaluate them both for agency purchase, and for practical or academic use by self and others
PSLO 05. Students learn of library organization, management and supervision; of collegiality, teambuilding and communication; of job description and employment qualification; of hiring practices for special libraries, non-profits and civil service
Mission:
The department of Library Information Technology aims to meet the needs of individuals seeking paraprofessional employment or advancement in a library or related information service agency; or those seeking an introduction to libraries and information services in anticipation of further study in library science.
Goal: Support higher educational aims of the college, the discipline and the student:
Enrollment is open to all interested students. General education, elective and advised courses will be selected according to the student’s educational and occupational objectives. The associate degree major complements requirements for graduation from the college with an Associate of
Science. The certificate is designed for individuals transferring to a senior college or already possessing an academic degree.

Objectives:
Open enrollment conforms to institutional mission and professional aims to foster diversity in the library workforce, and to promote efficiency in program completion
Desired Outcome:
Students will complete program without undue delay or extra cost
Students completing program will reflect diversity of community
Students seeking further schooling will be encouraged and advised accordingly
Goal: Broad Study of resources and services:
Instruction in library organization and services; standard reference materials; supervision; computer applications; the acquisition, processing, and cataloging of print and non-print materials, legal, medical and business resources, and practical experience in a library or resource center.
Objectives:
Common core curriculum promotes broad outlook and flexibility in prospective employment
Desired Outcome:
Students will be able to seek employment from any type of library in which they show interest and find mutual benefit
Goal: Cross-disciplinary specialization:
Students are encouraged to augment study with courses from other college departments such as office systems, graphics, or computer networking and communications technologies.
Objectives:
Foster expedience and flexibility in program choice by accepting electives in coursework from other college departments
Program Outcome:
Students gain greater control and flexibility over coursework and occupational goals
Goal: Advantages in public employment
Those who complete the curriculum satisfactorily may find advantages when taking civil-service examinations with federal, state, county, and city agencies.
Objectives:
Encourage participation in civil service examinations at the local, stare and federal level
Program Outcome:
Students will more fully understand the public employment process and its complexities
Goal: Cooperation with national organizations
The department is approved for support staff certification through the ALA-APA.
Objectives:
Raise awareness of ALA-APA and standards for library support staff
Program Outcome:

Students are now eligible for support staff certification through ALA-APA if desired
Note: June 2014 . The general method expressed here, of presenting program learning outcomes as a product of mission and goals of the program and the college, as well as of looking at the knowledge and skills areas expected for library support staff, continues to inform the development of outcomes at the course, program and institutional level. These outcomes facilitated both the development of course outlines with revised student learning outcomes in the Fall of 2013, and of continue reflection on our relationship with the library support staff certification program.
The program in general is intellectually healthy, but the demand for instruction seems to have diminished, in part from changes in the delivery of library services, and in part from changes in the working expectations of students, and the high cost of living in the vicinity. We find that employment opportunities for support staff, and those appropriately schooled for it, seem to be undermined by an increasing number of library professionals – or those schooled for it – assuming positions intended for support staff.
Note: June 2015 . An assessment of PSLO 5 was conducted by identifying names on the San Francisco
Civil Service lists, for May of 2015, as a measure of both general knowledge of libraries, library practices, job descriptions, positions, hiring practices and knowledge of collegiality and team building. These were reported for the first time using the Software “Curricunet.” In general: “
We are trying to gather information from changes in the size of our job seeking list-serve; from the number of students who served internships at
CCSF or elsewhere; from the number of certificates and/or degrees issued; and from the number of students reported to complete the Civil Service exams for the City and County of San Francisco.” With respect to the particulars, we reported that:
This initiates PSLO data collection and analysis. We have 215 students, or former students, on a list serve for job announcements in the bay area. We have 9 number of students who served internships at City
College in the Spring of 2015. We have 14 students who earned program certificates in the Fall or Spring of
2014-15. We have 68 students reported to pass the Civil Service examinations for the City and County of
San Francisco classes 3602, 3610 and 3630 in the Spring of 2015. With respect to the civil service lists, there are three new lists originating in May of 2015: 3602, page; 3610, Library Assistant; 3630 Librarian. The
3602 is an entry level clerk position, while the 3630 is an entry level professional page position. The former requires a high school diploma, while the latter requires a master’s degree. Students who have taken classes, some of whom have completed the Library Tech program, appear on all of these civil service lists.
Ideally, the Tech Assistant positions (3610, 3616 and 3618) are our primary target population
– it is these three positions that privilege a certificate or diploma. It is here that over 25% of the candidates on the 3610 list are former students, with four students ranked at the top of the list, and 12/168 or 7.1% ranked number 5 or above. This shows first that our students are seeking their way to civil service examination, and are placing well in numbers. With respect to 3630, those holding professional degrees, it is gratifying to see that
3.6% of those on the current list are former students, and that four of these are ranked number one. This suggests we may have had some influence on their subsequent schooling
– as personal experience does inform us. In general, the three lists for the Spring of 2015, our students have fared well in representation across the lists. It is worth noting that in addition to department instruction, the civil service lists test heavily general education and experience, thus it is vital for us to promote good general education.
And, that in the future we may take account of, and use, other resources for data gathering, such as:
1. Continue checking the results of Civil Service Exams (Lists are not anonymous). 2. Better tracking of program graduates, through inclusion on the department list and through periodic survey using that device. 3. Better evaluation and assessment of students enrolled in work experience classes.
To synopsize, we reported that It is gratifying to see 68 of our students qualify for civil service placement in the Spring of 2015. The most important showing is in the 3610 Library Assistant classification where a full

1/4th of those appearing on the list (43/168) are former students, and 12 of these hold ranks of 1-5. This classification is the threshold classification and chief target of our instruction. It is equally gratifying to see that four of our former students ranked 1 on the 3630 exam for professional librarians. It is no less gratifying as our code of ethics supports encouragement for advancing in the library professions. We know each of these students personally, and respect that they have chosen us to assist in the development of their careers.
The program outcomes were developed in the Fall of 2012 to include:
PO 02. Department strives to expedite program completion; to rationalize with national standards; to facilitate education for employment; or to support college transfer and graduate study for professional schooling
Since that time all the courses in the department were revised with specific learning outcomes. Courses that no longer fit into the curriculum were removed, and a key set of courses were identified for a core curriculum. In addition, the entire set of courses were evaluated against the competencies and standards for
ALA-APA Library support staff certification. As a result of this process, one additional course was incorporated into the core curriculum (LIBR 53) thereby expanding the core to 14 units from 12, and reducing the electives from 6/5 to 4/3 for the degree and certificate programs. The net result has been to create a good, but lean, program, and expand advising to include a wide range of appropriate electives drawn from other departments in the college, as for example: Graphic Communications, Art, Computer
Science, Computer Networking and literature.
PO 01. Department fosters and encourages library employment at paraprofessional and professional levels by historically underrepresented groups
This has been primarily accomplished through inter—personal relations and encouragement at the classroom level. This has been augmented by the Department Chair’s attending of meetings for low-level library staff in the County of San Mateo, through the San Mateo Office of Education. In general, the department recognizes the need to reach further into the student population and the community to accomplish this goal, and must piggy-back on other measures for recruitment. These include Frisco Day,
Library Programs and Exhibitions, and school presentations.