The survey results are critical for state and national planning and policy making, according to Bertot… |
FSU News College of Information wins $1.4 million grant to study Internet use at public libraries by Jill Elish The American Library Association has awarded Florida State University's College of Information a three-year, $1.4 million grant to continue studies of Internet use at public libraries. John Bertot
Researchers at the college's Information Use Management and Policy Institute will conduct annual national surveys for the next three years to investigate the kinds of computer and Internet services public libraries are providing and how changes in funding affect the connectivity and sustainability of those services. The FSU research will be one component of the American Library Association's multiyear Public Funding and Technology Access Study. "This partnership with the American Library Association to conduct these annual surveys is an excellent example of how researchers can assist a professional association in the development of library services," said Professor John Bertot, associate director of the institute. The survey results are critical for state and national planning and policy making, according to Bertot, who serves as project director along with FSU Francis Eppes Professor Charles McClure. The researchers have studied public libraries and the Internet for more than a decade, and they expect to have preliminary results from their latest survey by June. Their previous studies can be found at: www.ii.fsu.edu/plinternet.cfm. Denise Davis, director of the Office for Research and Statistics at the American Library Association, heads the entire project. For more information, visit www.ala.org/plinternetfunding. |