Analysis and Evaluation in Parks and Recreation Executive Summary There are numerous places for students to study and complete assignments throughout NC State University's campus such as the newly renovated student union, dorms, small coffee shops, and the brand new Hunt Library. Because there are many destinations, an evaluation of D.H. Hill Library, one of the oldest libraries on campus, needs to be completed in order to encourage more students to visit on a regular basis. The main criteria evaluated were the competition around D.H. Hill, the variety of services available, the difficulties of keeping up with evolving technology, and the location. The study population consisted of all students enrolled at NC State University, including all ages, races, ethnicities, genders, and colleges within the institution. The survey was completed through a convenience sampling strategy, in form of paper surveys. The surveys were distributed to visitors of D.H. Hill Library and were completed immediately and returned to the surveyors. Fifty-five surveys were completed, recorded, and
Transcript
Analysis and Evaluation in Parks and Recreation
Executive Summary
There are numerous places for students to study and complete assignments throughout
NC State University's campus such as the newly renovated student union, dorms, small coffee
shops, and the brand new Hunt Library. Because there are many destinations, an evaluation of
D.H. Hill Library, one of the oldest libraries on campus, needs to be completed in order to
encourage more students to visit on a regular basis. The main criteria evaluated were the
competition around D.H. Hill, the variety of services available, the difficulties of keeping up
with evolving technology, and the location.
The study population consisted of all students enrolled at NC State University, including
all ages, races, ethnicities, genders, and colleges within the institution. The survey was
completed through a convenience sampling strategy, in form of paper surveys. The surveys were
distributed to visitors of D.H. Hill Library and were completed immediately and returned to the
surveyors. Fifty-five surveys were completed, recorded, and analyzed through tables and charts
created directly from the responses.
There were four main findings outlined by the evaluation process. The first was that a
good number of students believe online resources potentially serve a better purpose than
physically visiting the library. The second was that many students are not familiar with the
variety of services offered at D.H. Hill Library. The third was that students are satisfied with the
supply of technology and the updates management performs in order to keep up with
modernizing technology. Finally, students are satisfied with the convenience of the library and
affirm that the location is influential on their visits.
The main recommendations for the management of D.H. Hill Library consist of
marketing strategies to the target population. Because students base their visits on good word of
mouth and advertisements, administration needs to focus on presenting the strengths and
opportunities of the library in order to encourage more students to stop by. Specifically, students
are pleased with the technology and location, therefore these aspects should be highlighted in
advertisements. In terms of competition, the library needs to inform more students of the variety
of services offered in order to compete with rivals. There are many great features and
characteristics that make the library stand out among the rest, but there is simply a lack of
promotion to the target market.
Background of the Organization
The libraries on North Carolina State University’s campus are great places to study, rent
books, grab something to eat, and appreciate the creativity that went into them. On campus, there
are two main libraries, D.H. Hill and James B. Hunt Jr., both having advantages and
disadvantages. For the purposes of this evaluation, we will be studying the D.H. Hill library on
NC State University’s main campus because it is full of the school’s history and plays a large
role in our everyday lives.
The library we know today was named after Daniel Harvey Hill Jr., who played a crucial
role in developing NC State’s first library in the late 1800s. Mr. Hill grew up in the southeast,
earning his bachelor’s and master's degrees at Davidson College near Charlotte, North Carolina
(Son and Namesake of Confederate General Key to NCSU Growth). After college, he taught
English here at NC State while working part time constructing our first library (Son and
Namesake of Confederate General Key to NCSU Growth). He eventually became president of
the University and wrote a number of books that are still studied today. When the library was
established in the early 1950s, it was named D.H Hill in his honor, that name remaining
unchanged. The mission statement of the library reads, “The gateway to knowledge for the NC
State University community and partners. [They] define the leading edge of information services
and collections to support the university's mission and to further knowledge in the world”
(NCSU Libraries).
The established D.H Hill Library opened in 1953, and is located on the central campus.
The library went through four major stages of development over many years. It began as a single
building, the east wing, created in 1953. The Erdahl-Cloyd Student Union, or the west wing, was
created second in 1954, followed by the old book stack tower, created in 1972. Finally, the new
book stack tower was created in 1990 (NCSU Libraries). After the four major stages of
development, there was space for over a million books, as well as offices and private study areas.
Today, it is easily accessible on NC State’s central campus and provides plenty of space for
students to study, rent books, appreciate the history, and even relax. It serves as a top student
destination because of its history, services, and location on central campus.
Description of Problem
The first criteria was focused on competition. This was derived from the threats based on
the SWOT analysis as D.H. Hill library is not the only resource available for students. Threats
that have been collected are other libraries on campus, amazon and other online resources and
Talley Student Union. Knowing that there are other resources for students other than D.H.Hill
we wanted to find out what products and services motivate students. By gathering students
opinions with regards to fellow competition with D.H. Hill, helps evaluate the strengths and
weakness of this library to make it the main resource students want to use. It is important to find
what interest students for effective use because NC State is putting a lot of money into this
library. With this our goal is to make D.H. Hill Library the primary student destination for
studying, resources, and amenities.
In the second criteria, we wanted to see if the variety of services met the student's course
needs. This is based on the resources that D.H. Hill Library provides such as laptops, text books,
cameras, and study space. For these resources that are provided for the students, we wanted to
get students perspective on how they view the resources sufficient to fulfil the demand of
students course needs. This is important because we want students to have the best resources and
experience at D.H. Hill Library.
Criteria three dealt with the Innovations/Technology that D.H. Hill Library provides.
Derived from the weaknesses on the chart, there are a couple of potential improvements. These
areas consist of the poor-quality of technology compared to Hunt Library. The technology is not
up to date as Hunt Library so we wanted to get the students views on the quality of technology in
DH Hill and how the availability at this library influence the study experience. The mission for
us is to improve the internal and external aspects of the facility in order to fulfil the students
needs and the university's high tech standards.
For the fourth and final criteria, we focused on Location/Convenience of library to
students. This is based on the strength of the location by it being on campus and having varied
food selections across the street. The library is on main campus, has study space and nearby
foods spots walking distance. To get a better grasp on if the library is convenient for students,
finding out how convenient would they say the library is and how would they describe the
location, would help our findings on the issue. This would need to be evaluated because it is
important to be aware of any changes needed to improve the convenience to study. It is highly
worthy as this is suppose to be the main resource for students on campus and we want to make
sure that everything that is needed is provided at their fingertips.
Study Population
The study population for this evaluation was the population of students at North Carolina
State University. Despite D.H Hill being open to the general public, we have excluded them from
our study population due to their lack of access to the particular amenities we have focused on in
this evaluation, our focus will be discussed in subsequent sections.
As the State’s largest public university, North Carolina State University serves a wide
variety of people located in the city of Raleigh. One of the many great attributes of NC State is
the library system, more specifically the D.H Hill Library. With a very diverse population of
students on campus, the D.H Hill Library has to be equipped to accommodate people from every
walk of life. According to the Office of Institutional Research and Planning, in fall of 2016 North
Carolina State University had 30,942 graduate and undergraduate students. These 30,942
students divide up into: 4,303 freshmen, 4,816 sophomores, 5,775 juniors, 7,087 seniors, 5,429
students pursuing their Masters, and 3,329 students pursuing their Doctorates. The breakdown of
these 30,942 students also includes: 12.3% International students, 4.4% Hispanic students, 0.3%
White, 3.1% two or more races, and 2.8% Unknown. To break these numbers down even further,
the student population of North Carolina State University is composed of 55% Males and only
45% females (Office of Institutional Research and Planning).
These students can be broken down one step further into the 12 Colleges that NC State
hosts on campus. The 12 Colleges include: Agriculture, Design, Education, Engineering, Natural
Resources, Humanities, Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Textiles, Veterinary Medicine,
Management, Graduate School, and University College.
Sampling Strategy
For our sampling method we utilized the Convenience Sampling Method. As college
students we have limited money; and time available for random sampling; so we believed the
most effective way for us to sample was by standing in the brickyard and by going inside D.H.
Hill library and surveying students. Our belief was that this would be the easiest way for us to
reach the study population we wanted to. By utilizing a short survey we were able to not only get
responses from students in the brickyard, we were also able to obtain feedback from students
inside of D.H. Hill Library. As a central location on campus the Brickyard provided us with a
well-suited environment to survey a diverse body of students, providing us with a more
representative sample in our convenience sampling. While we acknowledge that there are many
sources of potential biases, we made an effort to decrease it through this sampling method. We
surveyed 54 students that we encountered in both the brickyard and inside D.H. Hill. Ideally our
sample size would have been closer to 379 people as our study population was 33,755 NC State
Students. Sampling 379 people with the limited time and money that we had, would have taken
far too long for us. However, that sample size would have given us much more accurate data
according to Figure 2 in our textbook.
Findings
Crosstab 2The Crosstab 2 chart portrays the relationship between students’ university status
and how influential the location of D.H. Hill Library is on their visits. This chart is very
insightful because one of the purposes of this study was to understand which students are visiting
D.H. Hill Library and create ways to increase visitation. As the chart portrays, the majority of
students that visit the library are Juniors (45%). In terms of all the students, the response that was
chosen the most was “somewhat influential” (40%), meaning the location of D.H. Hill is
somewhat influential on their visits. For freshmen, the location of the library was “very
influential”, most likely because they live on campus.
The majority of the findings related to the location of the library express the importance
of the convenience to students. In Appendix J, the majority (87%) of students claimed they
“sometimes” and “frequently” visit the library. This means there are very few students who are
unlikely to visit the library throughout the school year.
Scatter Plot
This scatter plot combines the data from the importance-performance tables which are
Appendix D (1) and (2), Appendix E (1) and (2), and Appendix F (1) and (2). The graph
compares the importance of desktop computers, laptop computers, and book selection to their
perceived performance at D.H. Hill Library. All of the products listed above were to be scored
from 1, being the lowest, to 5, being the highest. According to the scatter plot above, desktop
computers are viewed as slightly more important (3.6) than they perform (3.04) at the library. Of
the three products, desktop computer importance was scored the lowest. In addition to desktops
are laptops, with the importance (3.82) being perceived higher their performance (3.07). Finally,
the book selection at D.H. Hill Library has the lowest performance (2.95) in students’ opinions,
and an importance score of 3.62.
Because books, laptops, and desktops are offered at the various competitors of D.H. Hill
Library, it is important to note that students are “likely” (27%) and “extremely likely” (31%) to
use online resources such as Amazon and Google Scholar over physically visiting the library,
located in Appendix B. The competition is continually growing and evolving, therefore it is
imperative that D.H. Hill continues to advance.
Table F1
This ranking question portrayed in Table F1 gave insight into why students visit D.H.
Hill. They ranked a variety of services offered at the library on their importance. A ranking of
“1” indicated the student felt that product or attribute was of least importance, and a ranking of
“5” indicated the student felt that product or attribute was of most importance. The characteristic
that received the most ranking of “1”, was the location (47%), followed by the variety of
technology (27%), bookstacks (11%), availability of products (7%), and digital media lab (5%).
The characteristic that received the most ranking of “5”, was the bookstacks (44%), closely
followed by the digital media lab (40%). The rest of the “5” rankings were spread out between
location (9%), variety of technology (5%), and availability of products (2%).
In general, about half of the surveyed students concluded they are “moderately familiar”
(27%) and “extremely familiar” (31%) with the services offered, depicted in Appendix C.
Specifically, technology was an important aspect of this survey as students ranked their
excitement of the evolving technology at the library. In Appendix I., about half (54%) of the
respondents scaled the quality of technology as “5” or “6” out of ten.
Conclusions and Recommendations
In terms of the competition D.H. Hill faces on a daily basis, online resources seem to be
the top competitor. Even though Hunt Library is a top contender, the surveyed students chose to
visit D.H. Hill over Hunt because of its location and variety of services. Where D.H. Hill lacks,
compared to its rivals, is its food selection. The amount of respondents who chose to visit the
library for its food offerings was extremely slim. With the results of this survey, we recommend
D.H. Hill management incorporates more food options that appeal to students, which in turn will
encourage more students to visit. Specifically, include another option next to the coffee shop on
the main floor of the library, or create an easier access from the library to the Atrium Food Court,
which is currently next door to the library. This would encourage more students to grab a meal
and get some schoolwork done at D.H. Hill.
The next topic in need of addressing is the variety of services offered at the library. We
found that about half of the participants were familiar with the variety of services offered at D.H.
Hill, while the other half were not sure of the offerings. In addition, it was concluded that
students ranked the importance of services quite low, with aspects such as the location and
variety of technology being ranked significantly higher. One recommendation for the
management of D.H. Hill is to advertise the variety of services in order to educate students on
the offerings of the library. It was concluded that students simply are not familiar with the
amenities of the library and need to be enlightened. One specific technique that relates to the
current population is social media. If D.H. Hill marketed their products and services on social
media, more students would become familiar with the library and all it has to offer,
The third criteria we evaluated through the survey was technology and its ability to keep
up with the changing digital world. As technology continually evolves, it is crucial for agencies
to constantly evaluate their offerings and determine if they are keeping up. In terms of D.H. Hill
Library, the majority of students agreed that the library is maintaining an up to date inventory of
technology. In addition, we found that a good number of students believed the quality of
technology is noteworthy. Because the majority of students are pleased with the technological
offerings at D.H. Hill, management should highlight this aspect in marketing techniques. If more
students are familiar with the modern offerings, they will be encouraged to visit the library and
potentially bring company with them.
The final topic analyzed through our survey was the location and convenience of D.H.
Hill. Because the library is located on main campus, near many of the academic buildings, we
were interested to see if the convenience impacted the frequency of students’ visits. Interestingly,
our findings concluded that location is a top reason students visit the library. In addition, a
survey question was asked directly relating to the location and its influence on visits, concluding
the location is definitely influential to students. Because D.H. Hill is convenient for many
students to visit, management needs to advertise this factor throughout NC State’s campus in
order to encourage more students to visit. Specifically, the library could offer discounts to those
who visit on a regular basis in order to reward them, and potentially encourage new visitors to
become regulars.
Appendices
Competition
Appendix A.
Table A1
Why_Visit_DH_Hill
Total %
Available Technology
10 18.52
Location 18 33.33
Food 5 9.26
Variety of Products for
Rent/Use (Cameras, Laptops,
Textbooks)
12 22.22
Other 9 16.67
Total 54 100.00
Appendix B.
Table C2
Other Resources
Total %
Extremely Unlikely
3 5.56
Unlikely 10 18.52
Neutral 9 16.67
Likely 15 27.78
Extremely Likely
17 31.48
Total 54 100.00
Mean 3.61
Standard Deviation
1.27
Variety of Services
Appendix C.
Table C1
Familiarity of Products
Total %
Not at all Familiar
3 5.56
Slightly Familiar
7 12.96
Somewhat Familiar
12 22.22
Moderately Familiar
15 27.78
Extremely Familiar
17 31.48
Total 54 100.00
Mean 3.67
Standard 1.21
Deviation
Appendix D. (1)
Table D1 (a)
Desktop Computer Importance Total %
Not at all important 15 0.27
Mostly unimportant 7 0.13
somewhat important 8 0.15
Important 11 0.20
Very important 14 0.25
Total 55 100%
Mean 3.04
Standard Deviation 1.57
Appendix D. (2)
Table D1 (b)
Desktop Computer Performance Total %
Poor 4 0.07
Fair 5 0.09
Good 16 0.29
Very good 14 0.25
Excellent 16 0.29
Total 55 100%
Mean 3.60
Standard Deviation 1.21
Appendix E. (1)
Table D2 (a)
Laptop Importance Total %
Not at all important 11 0.20
Mostly unimportant 10 0.18
somewhat important 9 0.16
Important 14 0.25
Very important 11 0.20
Total 55 100%
Mean 3.07
Standard Deviation 1.44
Appendix E. (2)
Table D2 (b)
Laptop Performance Total %
Poor 4 0.07
Fair 1 0.02
Good 14 0.25
Very good 18 0.33
Excellent 18 0.33
Total 55 100%
Mean 3.82
Standard Deviation 1.14
Appendix F. (1)
Table D3 (a)
Book Selection Importance Total %
Not at all important 11 0.20
Mostly unimportant 12 0.22
somewhat important 14 0.25
Important 5 0.09
Very important 13 0.24
Total 55 100%
Mean 2.95
Standard Deviation 1.45
Appendix F. (2)
Table D3 (b)
Book Selection Performance Total %
Poor 6 11.11
Fair 4 7.41
Good 13 24.07
Very good 12 22.22
Excellent 19 35.19
Total 54 100.00
Mean 3.63
Standard Deviation 1.34
Appendix G
Common Themes
Total %
Desktops 13 24.07
Smart Boards 10 18.52
Book Vault 7 12.96
Virtual Reality 7 12.96
Wifi 5 9.26
Total 42.00 77.78
Technology
Appendix H.
Table B2
Evolving Tech Satisfaction
Total %
Strongly Disagree 2 3.70
Disagree 7 12.96
Agree 40 74.07
Strongly Agree 5 9.26
Total 54 100.00
Mean 2.89
Standard Deviation 0.60
Appendix I.
Table G1
Bored_Excited Total %
Bored 0 0.00
1 1 1.85
2 1 1.85
3 2 3.70
4 6 11.11
5 15 27.78
6 15 27.78
7 9 16.67
8 5 9.26
Excited 0 0.00
Total 54 100.00
Mean 6.57
Standard Deviation 1.49
Location
Appendix J.
Table B1
Frequency Visit Total %
Never 4 7.41
Sometimes 34 62.96
Frequently 13 24.07
Always 3 5.56
Total 54 100.00
Mean 2.28
Standard Deviation
0.68
Appendix K.
Table B3
Location Influence
Total %
Not at all Influential
4 7.41
Slightly Influential
12 22.22
Somewhat Influential
21 38.89
Very Influential 17 31.48
Total 54 100.00
Mean 2.94
Standard Deviation
0.92
Appendix L.
Table F2
Possible Ranking Books Calculators Cameras Laptops Chargers
1 11 20.00% 4 7.27% 1 1.82% 22 40.00% 17 30.91%
2 9 16.36% 6 10.91% 8 14.55% 15 27.27% 17 30.91%
3 9 16.36% 19 34.55% 9 16.36% 12 21.82% 6 10.91%
4 7 12.73% 18 32.73% 15 27.27% 6 10.91% 9 16.36%
5 19 34.55% 8 14.54% 22 40.00% 0 0.00% 6 11%
Total Number 55 100.00%
55 100.00%
55 100.00%
55 100.00%
55 100.00%
Mean 3.25 3.36 3.89 2.04 2.45
Median 3 3 4 2 2
Standard Deviation
1.57 1.09 1.15 1.04 1.37
Appendix M.
Visit DH Hill
Gender Never Sometimes Frequently Always Totals
Male # 1 19 8 3 31
Male (%) 1.82% 34.55% 14.55% 5.45% 56.36%
Female # 2 14 5 1 22
Female (%) 3.64% 25.45% 9.09% 1.82% 40.00%
Prefer not to answer # 1 1 0 0 2
Prefer not to answer (%) 1.82% 1.82% 0.00% 0.00% 3.64%
Totals # 4 34 13 4 55
Total (%) 7.27% 61.82% 23.64% 7.27% 100.00%
Demographic
Appendix N.
Table H1
College Total %
Agriculture and Life Sciences
4 7.41
Design 0 0.00
Education 1 1.85
Engineering 6 11.11
Humanities and Social Sciences
9 16.67
Natural Resources 13 24.07
Poole College of Management
8 14.81
Sciences 8 14.81
Textiles 2 3.70
Veterinary Medicine 0 0.00
First Year College 2 3.70
Other 1 1.85
Total 54 100.00
Appendix O.
Table H2
Gender Total %
Male 30 55.56
Female 22 40.74
Prefer Not To Respond
2 3.70
Total 54 100.00
Appendix P.
Total H4
Class Total %
Freshman 6 11.11
Sophomore 10 18.52
Junior 25 46.30
Senior 11 20.37
Graduate Student 2 3.70
Other 0 0.00
Total 54 100.00
Infographic (Appendix Q)
Survey Instrument
Development of Evaluation InstrumentsAnalysis and Evaluation in Parks and Recreation - Spring 2017
Nicole Wild, Chris Dunham, Kayla Roberts,Gianna Frontera, Hampton Billips, and Clark Gustafson
Improving Student Satisfaction at D.H. Hill Library
The purpose of this survey is to evaluate D.H. Hill Library, from the students’ perspective, to assess the services offered and to make changes to aspects that receive negative feedback. The goal is to make D.H. Hill Library the primary student destination for studying, resources, and amenities by improving the internal and external aspects of the facility. As students complete this survey, responses will be analyzed and reviewed, then presented to D.H. Hill Management in hopes of bettering students’ experiences.
1. We are interested in competitors of D.H. Hill Library and would like to know why you visit D.H. Hill Library over Talley Student Union?
❏ Available Technology❏ Location❏ Food❏ Variety of Products for Rent/Use (Cameras, Laptops, Textbooks)❏ Other______________
2. How frequently do you visit D.H. Hill Library? ___ Never ___Sometimes ___Frequently ___Always
3. D.H. Hill Library keeps up with evolving technology?___ Strongly Disagree ___Disagree ___Agree ___Srongly Agree
4. Is the location of D.H. Hill influential to your visits?___Not Influential ___Slightly Influential ___Somewhat Influential ___Very Influential
5. D.H. Hill offers a wide variety of products including, but not limited to, laptop computers, desktop computers, books, cameras, calculators and chargers. How familiar are you with these products offered at D.H. Hill Library?__Not at all Familiar __Slightly Familiar __Neutral __Moderatley Familiar __Extremely Familiar
6. How likely are you to use online resources such as Amazon and/or Google Scholar over physically going to D.H. Hill and using their resources?___Extremely Unlikely ___Unlikely ___Neutral ___Likely ___Extremely Likely
In the following questions circle one number for how important the amenity is to you and then one number for how well it performs at D.H. Hill. With 1 being the lowest and 5 being the highest.
10. For you to be involved in the improvement of the current technology at D.H. Hill, please answer the following question: Think of some technological advances that you would like to see added to D.H. Hill Library?
11. Please rank from 1 to 5, with 1 indicating your primary reason for visiting and 5 being the least, the reason why you choose to go to DH Hill Library.
Location_______Extensive Bookstacks_______Variety of Technology (i.e Computers, printers, Televisions, etc)__________Available Products_______Digital Media Lab________
12. Please rank from 1 to 5, with 1 being the library’s product you use the most and 5 being the library’s product you use the least.
13. Please rate how you feel about the quality of technology at D.H. Hill using the adjective pairs below. Check anywhere on the scale from bad to good.
Bad __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ Good
14. What College are you a part of at NC State?Agriculture and Life Sciences_____Design______Education______Engineering_____Humanities and Social Sciences______Natural Resources_____Poole College of Management_____Sciences______Textiles______Veterinary Medicine______First Year College______Other______
15. What Gender do you identify as?Male_____ Female_______ Prefer Not to Say______
16. What is your age? (Circle One) 16-18 18-20 20-22 22-24 24-26 26+
17. University status:Freshman_____ Sophomore_____ Junior_____ Senior_____ Graduate School_____ Other________
CodebookD.H. Hill Survey Codebook
Question V Variable Name Format Variable Label Value Type of
1 A1
Why do you visit D.H. Hill Library over Talley Student Union? Why_Visit_DH_Hill QA2_Format
Available Technology 1
Partially close-ended
Location 2Food 3
Variety of Products for Rent/Use
(Cameras, Laptops, 4
Other 5
2 B1
How frequently do you visit D.H. Hill Library? Frequency_Visit Attend
Never 1
Likert-Type
Sometimes 2Frequently 3
Always 4
3 B2
D.H. Hill Library keeps up with evolving technology Evolving_Technology Satisfaction
Strongly Disagree 1Disagree 2
Agree 3
Strongly Agree 4
4 B3
Is the location of D.H. Hill influential to your visit Location_Influential Location
Not at all Influential 1Slightly Influential 2
Somewhat Influential 3Very Influential 4
5 C1
How familiar are you with these products offered at D.H. Hill Library?Familiarity_Products Familiarity
