This study was funded by a generous grant from The Andrew R. Mellon Foundation. The grant has funded a series of projects that consider ways of integrating disparate support services for curricular uses of visual materials. The research funded through this grant has proven to be critical in our institutional discussions about designing a more holistic approach to providing curricular support at the College.
This research project is the fruit of many labors. There were 20 people from the Carleton community involved in this labor-intensive project. The study design team consisted of Paula Lackie (academic technologist), Beverly Nagel (associate dean), Heather Tompkins (reference and instruction librarian), and myself. Student researchers played critical roles in designing and conducting the case studies: Egohsa Awaah, Anna Duchon, Hope Harvey, Chelsea Jones, and Alex Scuito. Particular thanks go out to Egohsa and Alex for their tireless work in transcribing and coding case materials.
The case study analysis teams were designed to carefully consider each case and to engage in analyses of how the College might better attend to needs identified. The following members of the cases analysis teams were generous with both their time and insights: Egohsa Awaah, Heidi Eyestone, Paul Hager, Paula Lackie, Jaye Lawrence, Tucker MacNeil, Kristin Partlo, Alex Sciuto, Cynthia Shearer, Carol Thunem, Heather Tompkins, and Kristi Wermager. Special thanks also go to Matt Bockol and Wei-Hsin Fu for providing expertise and tools upon which the case studies depended. Matt provided support for Transana, the transcription and analysis tool used in this study. Wei-Hsin did the GIS-based analysis of the locations in which student study participants worked on their assignments.
Special thanks to Nancy Fried Foster for her advice and council through this research project.
Andrea Lisa Nixon, Ph.D.
Project Lead and Director of Curricular and Research Support