UIC Library receives second grant to support student success
The University of Illinois Chicago Library has received a second National Leadership Grant for more than $245,000 from the Institute of Museum and Library Services to train librarians across the U.S. for a student-success assessment project.
UIC Library Associate Professor and Assessment Coordinator Jung Mi Scoulas leads the project. UIC Library Professor Sandy De Groote, head of scholarly communication, is co-investigator.
An initial grant of $250,000 awarded in 2022 supported a collaboration between the UIC Library and the library at Northern Illinois University, two institutions serving underrepresented students, to develop and validate surveys exploring students’ academic engagement, psychological factors and definition of academic success. Initial findings showed that students defined academic success through two main themes: getting high grades and excelling in classes and managing their ability to achieve personal growth, such as by balancing school, life and other responsibilities. Stress and social media were the top factors affecting academic work.
With the additional grant for 2024-26, Scoulas and De Groote will develop and facilitate an online workshop series featuring self-paced training materials and interactive exercises for up to 150 librarians from 50 academic libraries around the country. The workshops aim to enhance the librarians’ knowledge, skills and applications in assessing student success and library experiences.
After completing the workshops, participants will serve as student success assessment ambassadors, sharing what they learned with their colleagues at their respective institutions. They’ll improve their ability as well to assess their students’ needs and will be able to customize library programming and foster collaborations on their campuses to support student success.
“We are deeply grateful to receive a second IMLS National Leadership Grant,” Scoulas said. “Building on our earlier work, this renewed funding enables us to scale up our efforts to disseminate and apply tools to holistically assess perceptions and academic experiences. Ultimately, it allows us to support UIC’s own diverse, specifically underrepresented student populations and students nationwide.”
View the full research project proposal for grant number LG-256587-OLS-24.
The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s libraries and museums. The institute advances, supports and empowers America’s museums, libraries and related organizations through grants, research and policy development. Its vision is a nation where museums and libraries work together to transform the lives of individuals and communities.
