Everyday Evidence-Based Practice in Academic Libraries: Case Studies and Reflections

Evidence-based practice (EBP) in academic librarianship is embedded in the way we approach our work. An EBP project might be a yearlong study with many types of evidence collected or a simple assessment that helps you make a small adjustment to your work. Large or small, EBP is a way of operating day-to-day.

Everyday Evidence-Based Practice in Academic Libraries: Case Studies and Reflections collects excellent, thorough examples of EBP across functional areas of academic libraries and includes many evidence types in a variety of contexts. Five sections explore:

• Understanding Users
• Leadership and Management
• Instruction and Outreach
• Collections
• Open Initiatives

Chapters include studies on how to understand the experiences and needs of diverse student populations; interviewing faculty to build scholarly partnerships; evidence-based strategic planning; incorporating intersectionality in information literacy instruction; conducting a diversity audit; and assessing open educational resources initiatives. The conclusion calls for librarian reflection to be incorporated into evidence-based decision-making, as reflection is key to understanding the ways that a librarian chooses to embody librarianship.

Everyday Evidence-Based Practice in Academic Libraries offers high-quality evidence from a variety of perspectives and inspires a commitment to evidence-based practice in your day-to-day work and library culture.

Claire Walker Wiley is a research and instruction librarian at Belmont University. In this position, she serves as the liaison to the Colleges of Business and Entertainment and Music Business. Her research interests include information literacy, business information literacy, the use of evidence synthesis methods in LIS, and librarians as academic advisors. Claire has a BA in English and French from Harding University, an MLIS from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and an MSM from Austin Peay State University.

Amanda B. Click is the head of research and instruction at the Nimitz Library at the U.S. Naval Academy. Previously, she was the business librarian at American University in Washington, DC. She earned a PhD in information science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she studied the cultural adaptation of international students to higher education in the United States. Prior to entering the doctoral program, Amanda was the coordinator of instruction at the American University in Cairo. Amanda also holds an MLIS from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and a BS in science, technology, and culture from the Georgia Institute of Technology. Her research interests include the globalization of higher education, academic integrity, information literacy, and scholarly communications. She has published her research in College & Research Libraries, Evidence Based Library & Information Practice, In the Library with the Lead Pipe, and Library & Information Science Research. Recently, she has explored topics such as cultural humility in the context of international librarianship, and the disciplinary values of openness, inclusivity, and equity in the LIS scholarly landscape.

Meggan Houlihan is the director of the Open Society University Network (OSUN) library resources program, where she provides creative leadership for instruction, outreach, and collections efforts for the organization. She directs the OSUN open educational resource program where she works to promote diversity, representation, and open pedagogy. Prior to her role at OSUN, Meggan served in leadership roles at Colorado State University, New York University Abu Dhabi, and the American University in Cairo. Her research interests include information literacy, international students, and the use of evidence synthesis methods in LIS. Meggan has a BA in history from Eastern Illinois University, a MA in modern history from the University of Reading (UK), and an MLS from Indian University.