Our Vision, Mission, & Values

Vision
USM Libraries envisions all its students and faculty achieving an intuitive connection with information, fully understanding the interconnectedness of resources and using them to locate and use information fluidly.

Mission
Adhering to the ACRL Information Literacy Standards for Higher Education, the USM Libraries Information Literacy Program fosters the development of information literacy skills through partnership with faculty and other relevant academic units to integrate information literacy into the curriculum of USM. The Information Literacy Program is committed to supporting the variety of learning styles and learning locations of its user communities in order to empower our users to become lifelong learners. We seek to develop in our students the “ability to recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information” (American Library Association, 1989)

Values
Information literacy is more than teaching students how to use the library. The goal of information literacy is to create lifelong learners; people who are able to find, evaluate and use information effectively to solve problems and make decisions.  We believe that librarians can be active partners in teaching students how to become lifelong learners because we have expertise in the structure of information, how it is organized, how to access it and, most importantly, how to evaluate it.It’s great to live in an information-rich environment, but it does no one any good they don’t understand how it works and how to use it. The following areas help explain values upon which the information literacy program at USM Libraries is founded.

• Information Literacy Is Essential -- To fully understand and effectively use information users require a systematic educational approach designed to bring then in contact with increasingly more complex information skills.

• Enjoyable -- Learning must be active and fun, otherwise it is soon forgotten. While library workbooks and tutorials useful, they are just parts of a whole. The library seeks to present the “big picture” of information literacy through a variety of techniques to both inform and inspire.

• Personal – The library must have a face. Subject-specific class instruction is a vital part of the program. Librarian-faculty liaisons are essential in providing one-on-one instructional support at the individual level and providing the personalized help individuals require. Those individuals are both students and faculty members.

• Get the Word Out -- A vigorous public relations campaign is essential in conveying the information literacy message across the institution. Building tours and orientations conducted by librarians will support ample print and web-based promotion of library services. Brown bag instructional sessions and greater participation in campus events, especially those geared toward new students and faculty, as well as professional development efforts, will be targeted.