I have decided to repost this note for several reasons. First and foremost, I have had several requests from several people to post a synopsis of the information I have found on needs assessments for specific populations. Unfortunately, those requests greatly outnumber the four responses (much thanks to those folks, you know who you are) I received from museums who have conducted focus group interviews, or have done needs assessments for a specific population. I find it hard to believe that these are the only four museums who are trying to better serve a specific portion of their audience, so I put out the call again. Apparently, there is interest, and I'm assuming the information is out there. Again, please post directly to me. Any and all information or leads would be helpful; your institution does not have to be in the New York--Washington D.C. corridor I mentioned. Thanks again for the help. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Patrick S. Larkin "If trees could scream, would we be so cavalier Longwood Graduate Program about cutting them down? We might if they University of Delaware screamed all the time, for no good reason." [log in to unmask] -Jack Handey ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Thu, 19 May 1994 08:28:24 -0400 (EDT) From: Patrick Sean Larkin <[log in to unmask]> To: Museum Discussion List <[log in to unmask]> Subject: Focus Groups and Needs Assessments A little background first, and then I'll get to my request: I am in the Longwood Graduate Program at the University of Delaware. It is a two year program leading to a Master of Science Degree in Public Horticulture Administration. As part of the Program, we earn a certificate in Museum Studies. Longwood Gardens is "the premier display garden on the East Coast," and they provide the funding for the Program. As part of our studies (and a way to "pay back" Longwood) the ten students in the program do a group project which will in some way benefit Longwood Gardens. The Project is worked on from July to September. The Project the Fellows have decided on this year is to do a needs assessment of the Latino community in the Kennett Square area (the town in which Longwood is located), to determine what Longwood could be doing to serve this community better. Kennett Square has a large Latino Community, however visitation by this community is nil. We have brought together a task force to guide us in this endeavor. It includes members of the Longwood staff (one of whom is from the Kennett Latino Community), a teacher from the community who also teaches EFL, and a museum professional from the Philadelphia Museum of Art. As part of the process, we were thinking about doing focus group interviews with the people of the community to get their thoughts and feelings, and to better help us understand how Longwood could better serve them. Now, for the request (Sorry it took so long to get to the point)... We would like to visit and contact institutions who have conducted focus groups interviews, or have done a needs assessment of a specific community (cultural, disabled, elderly, etc.) so we can better understand the process, and learn from your experience. Ideally institutions we would visit would be between New York and Washington D.C. for logistical reasons, but I would like to hear from anyone with insight or experience. Please reply directly so as not to clutter the list. If people would like, I could post a synopsis of the info I get. Thanks for you time.