Purpose of the Evaluation

Section 9134 (c) of IMLS’ authorizing legislation directs SLAAs to "independently evaluate, and report to the (IMLS) Director regarding, the activities assisted under this subchapter, prior to the end of the 5-year plan." This evaluation provides SLAAs an opportunity to measure progress in meeting the targets set in their approved five-year plans and is designed to help states make effective resource allocation decisions in their upcoming five-year plans.

While both of these goals are important, previous guidance documents from IMLS focused primarily on the assessment of past practice. To make a more deliberate link between the evaluation findings and the SLAAs’ next five-year plans, IMLS is providing new guidance. This guidance identifies a core set of research questions that are designed to:

• highlight effective past practices;
• identify processes at work in implementing the activities in the plan, including the use of performance-based measurements in planning, policy making and administration, and;
• develop key findings and recommendations from evaluating the past five years for inclusion in the next five-year planning cycle.

Read more: Guidelines for "Five-Year" Evaluation
 

Resources - Results-Based Management

• Definitions (PDF, 58 KB)
• Q&A - Five-Year Evaluation Guidelines  Webinar Presentation - 4/11/11  (PDF, 842 KB)
• FAQ - Five-Year Evaluation Reports (DOCX, 15 KB)
• Further Guidance - FY 2012 "Five-Year" Evaluation Reports from State Library Administrative Agencies (SLAAs) (PDF, 105 KB) 

Read more about the Measuring Success Initiative in the Grants to States Program.

Read more about the Grants to State Library Administrative Agencies Program.