From Access to Action

Abstract

Research data services have grown fast in academic libraries during the past decade. Our libraries have offered data services like research data plan, instructions on data sources, and data archiving and preservation for years. Our currently enrolled survey results show that students were looking for workshops on Python, Tableau, R, and other data manipulation, analysis, and presentation tools. Visualization of data became apparent as a need from the students and faculty at Texas Tech University. No one was addressing visualization as a service need across campus. There was a gap in our services to which would help people produce better research by shifting focus from data access to data action, then to production and visualization. Two librarians saw this need and acted. Both decided to attend a Carpentries training independently, and then decided to work together to develop a service for the library by helping to fill the gap between theory and a more practical approach. Libraries moving from services that promote access to data to more of an interaction with the data for analysis.