Library use
In tracking library usage at ASU, three useful measures of how heavily a library is used are the number of volumes held (i.e., all physical documents on the library shelves), the gate count (i.e., how many times people enter through the front door), and how many times books are checked out, not counting renewals.
We have separated out Hayden Library’s specific statistics because of our focus on Hayden Library as a space that will soon be renovated and redesigned as part of the project. For these numbers, we are looking at the 2015-2016 academic year.
Volumes held (ASU Library overall): 4,997,424
Volumes held (Hayden Library specifically): 1,100,000
Gate Count (ASU Library overall): 3,199,161
Gate Count (Hayden Library specifically): 1,595,892
Checkouts (ASU Library overall): 140,889
Checkouts (Hayden Library specifically): 79,861
Community demographics
In any discussion about how we should imagine libraries, we must think about the communities that they serve, both with respect to gender and ethnicity. Here we must pay attention not only to the university community but also the larger population surrounding it.
For ASU, we examined the population of both Arizona at large and the student population (both graduate and undergraduate students) of ASU as a university. For these numbers, we are looking at the 2015-2016 academic year and the estimates by the census for 2015.
Gender
Arizona (6,828,065 residents)
Female: 50.3%
Male: 49.7%
ASU (71,049 students)
Male: 53.5%
Female: 46.5%
Ethnicity
Arizona (6,828,065 residents)
Hispanic: 30.7%
White Non-Hispanic: 55.8%
Black or African American: 4.8%
American Indian and Alaska Native: 5.3%
Asian: 3.4%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander: 0.3%
Two or More Races: 2.7%
ASU (71,049 students)
Hispanic/Latino: 18.6%
White: 50.9%
Black or African American: 4.1%
American Indian and Alaska Native: 1.5%
Asian: 6.1% (4,303)
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander: 0.2%
Two or More Races: 3.6%
International: 13.9%
Unspecified: 1.2%