Community college libraries exist to support institutional outcomes. One such outcome is student retention. This study’s purpose was to fill the gap in the literature at the community college level, proposing that a model including all library service use types would explain variance in student retention beyond that explained by total library financial expenditure. Services included were numbers of physical materials circulated, digital books circulated, e-serials used, reference transactions, library presentations, attendees at presentations, gate counts, and interlibrary loan materials borrowed. Additionally, it was proposed that the relationship between gate counts of physical entry into the library and student retention would be moderated by ratios of nontraditional students attending colleges and Pell Grants awarded.
The study uses 2018-2019 fiscal year data obtained from the ACRL Annual survey and IPEDS. A multiple regression analysis found no relationships between the service use model and retention. No relationships were found between any independent variable in the study and student retention, nor was any moderation detected.
It was proposed that a feedback loop may exist at community colleges that divorces library activity from institution level student retention outcomes. Such a feedback loop has been untested in the literature, and further research is suggested.
","abstract_html":"<p>Community college libraries exist to support institutional outcomes. One such outcome is student retention. This study’s purpose was to fill the gap in the literature at the community college level, proposing that a model including all library service use types would explain variance in student retention beyond that explained by total library financial expenditure. Services included were numbers of physical materials circulated, digital books circulated, e-serials used, reference transactions, library presentations, attendees at presentations, gate counts, and interlibrary loan materials borrowed. Additionally, it was proposed that the relationship between gate counts of physical entry into the library and student retention would be moderated by ratios of nontraditional students attending colleges and Pell Grants awarded. </p> <p>The study uses 2018-2019 fiscal year data obtained from the ACRL Annual survey and IPEDS. A multiple regression analysis found no relationships between the service use model and retention. No relationships were found between any independent variable in the study and student retention, nor was any moderation detected. </p> <p>It was proposed that a feedback loop may exist at community colleges that divorces library activity from institution level student retention outcomes. Such a feedback loop has been untested in the literature, and further research is suggested. </p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Deatherage, Eric"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Doctor of Education in Adult and Lifelong Learning (EdD)","degree_level":"Dissertation","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Grover, Kenda S.","Morris, Adam A."],"advisors":["Roessger, Kevin M."],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2021,"date_issued":"2021-12-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2021-12-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:00:19Z","subjects":["Community College","Feedback Loop","Library Expenditure","Library Services","Self-Regulated Learning","Student Retention","Adult and Continuing Education","Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research","Library and Information Science","Scholarship of Teaching and Learning"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/4253","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Grover, Kenda S.","Morris, Adam A."]},{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["Roessger, Kevin M."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Deatherage, Eric"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2021"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2024-02-06T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Education in Adult and Lifelong Learning (EdD)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Community College","Feedback Loop","Library Expenditure","Library Services","Self-Regulated Learning","Student Retention","Adult and Continuing Education","Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research","Library and Information Science","Scholarship of Teaching and Learning"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/4253"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Community college libraries exist to support institutional outcomes. One such outcome is student retention. This study’s purpose was to fill the gap in the literature at the community college level, proposing that a model including all library service use types would explain variance in student retention beyond that explained by total library financial expenditure. Services included were numbers of physical materials circulated, digital books circulated, e-serials used, reference transactions, library presentations, attendees at presentations, gate counts, and interlibrary loan materials borrowed. Additionally, it was proposed that the relationship between gate counts of physical entry into the library and student retention would be moderated by ratios of nontraditional students attending colleges and Pell Grants awarded.
The study uses 2018-2019 fiscal year data obtained from the ACRL Annual survey and IPEDS. A multiple regression analysis found no relationships between the service use model and retention. No relationships were found between any independent variable in the study and student retention, nor was any moderation detected.
It was proposed that a feedback loop may exist at community colleges that divorces library activity from institution level student retention outcomes. Such a feedback loop has been untested in the literature, and further research is suggested.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Examining the Relationship Between Library Services Use and Fall-to-Fall Retention in Community College Libraries"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Grover, Kenda S.","Morris, Adam A."],"dc:contributor.advisor":["Roessger, Kevin M."],"dc:creator":["Deatherage, Eric"],"dc:date":["2021"],"dc:date.available":["2024-02-06T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Community college libraries exist to support institutional outcomes. One such outcome is student retention. This study’s purpose was to fill the gap in the literature at the community college level, proposing that a model including all library service use types would explain variance in student retention beyond that explained by total library financial expenditure. Services included were numbers of physical materials circulated, digital books circulated, e-serials used, reference transactions, library presentations, attendees at presentations, gate counts, and interlibrary loan materials borrowed. Additionally, it was proposed that the relationship between gate counts of physical entry into the library and student retention would be moderated by ratios of nontraditional students attending colleges and Pell Grants awarded.
The study uses 2018-2019 fiscal year data obtained from the ACRL Annual survey and IPEDS. A multiple regression analysis found no relationships between the service use model and retention. No relationships were found between any independent variable in the study and student retention, nor was any moderation detected.
It was proposed that a feedback loop may exist at community colleges that divorces library activity from institution level student retention outcomes. Such a feedback loop has been untested in the literature, and further research is suggested.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/4253"],"dc:subject":["Community College","Feedback Loop","Library Expenditure","Library Services","Self-Regulated Learning","Student Retention","Adult and Continuing Education","Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research","Library and Information Science","Scholarship of Teaching and Learning"],"dc:title":["Examining the Relationship Between Library Services Use and Fall-to-Fall Retention in Community College Libraries"],"thesis:degree_level":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Education in Adult and Lifelong Learning (EdD)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:00:19Z"}