Mission Statement
In keeping with the University’s mission of teaching, research, and service, the mission of the University of California, Merced Library is to achieve excellence by meeting the diverse research, teaching, and public service needs of UC Merced researchers (students, faculty, and staff) with targeted, quality collections and relevant services which effectively and efficiently support the research life-cycle of finding, using, creating, and managing information.
Definition: A project is a temporary endeavor with a defined beginning and end undertaken to meet unique goals and objectives. Projects stand in contrast to operations, which are the permanent, repetitive efforts of a business or organization.
Goal A Projects - leverage physical resources
2012-2013
Goal B Projects - user communication & instruction
2012-2013
Goal C Projects - collaborations to increase usability & accessibility of resources
2012-2013
Goal D Projects - sustain information resources
Goal E Projects - positive work environment
2012-2013
Goal F Projects - digital curation and data management
2012-2013
Definition: Operations are the permanent, repetitive efforts of a business or organization. Operations stand in contrast to projects, which is a temporary endeavor with a defined beginning and end undertaken to meet unique goals and objectives.
Goal A Operations - leverage physical resources
Goal B Operations - user communication & instruction
Goal C Operations - collaborations to increase usability & accessibility of resources
Goal D Operations - sustain information resources
Goal E Operations - positive work environment
Goal F Operations - digital curation and data management
The library will leverage its physical resources (space, furniture, fixtures, equipment, and IT infrastructure) to provide for the common good of the UC Merced Library user community, with a non-exclusive bias towards meeting the needs of undergraduate students.
Outcome A1
Provide accessible, functional, comfortable, and productive spaces that support a variety of academic needs, including quiet study, group study, social interaction, and campus meetings and events.
Outcome A2
Reduce physical barriers to information by providing easily navigated spaces, logically organized and maintained book stacks, and options for library services.
Outcome A3
Make all decisions about library public spaces based on both user assessment and the professional judgment of library staff.
Outcome A4
Make all decisions about library staff spaces to achieve maximum utilization of space and increased workflow efficiency.
The library will sustain—in the face of a growing community of students and faculty—current quality of user communication and instruction services by optimizing our resources, collaborating with partners, leveraging technology, and diversifying our instruction models.
Outcome B1
Increase undergraduate student research skills in a sustainable manner through consistent and effective information literacy instruction and the use of existing and emerging technologies.
Outcome B2
Provide library student assistants with the knowledge and skills to provide excellent customer service, including the ability to answer and refer questions.
Outcome B3
Increase awareness of library resources & services, collections, faculty & student research, cultural knowledge through digital signage, exhibits, the website, and social networking tools.
The library will actively pursue innovative solutions and worthwhile collaborations that increase the usability and accessibility of information resources to support users' course work, research, and service.
Outcome C1
Advocate with vendors, knowledge institutions, and other UC libraries to improve the usability and accessibility of information resources.
Outcome C2
Undertake local projects to improve the usability and accessibility of information resources such as enhancements to the website and other library information technology.
Outcome C3
Provide, when necessary, personal assistance via a triage system that relies heavily on well-trained student employees and, as necessary, career staff.
Outcome C4
Advocate among UC researchers for more economically sustainable publishing models.
The library will sustain the current quality of library information resources in an environment of rapidly increasing numbers of users and growth of programs.
Outcome D1
Provide information resources–both owned and leased–that directly support the current research and instructional needs of the students, staff, and faculty of the university.
Outcome D2
Acquire information resources in any format as appropriate, though with a preference for resources in electronic format.
Outcome D3
Maintain current collection funding priorities:
- Materials purchased or licensed at faculty request
- All-campus licenses for e-journals, e-books and databases (Tier 1)
- Selected less-than-all-campus licenses for e-journals, e-books and databases (Tier 2)
- Locally licensed e-books available through patron-driven acquisition plans
- Strategic investments in response to changes in research and publication practices (e.g. open-access publishing, digital preservation)
- Purchase of print monographs through an approval plan
- Coverage of areas of emerging interest that may be included in future research and instructional programs.
Outcome D4
Maintain commitment to, and investment in, non-ownership-based information-access strategies, such as:
- Interlibrary Loan
- Supplemental course resources
- UC system-wide strategies (e.g. UC Shared Print in Place)
- Regional/national/international strategies (e.g. WEST, HathiTrust)
- Transformative strategies (e.g. open-access publication)
The library will maintain a positive work environment for all employees at all levels, providing regular opportunities for both individual and organizational development.
Outcome E1:
Support effective recruitment, training, and professional development opportunities as key elements in the success of the library.
Outcomes E2:
Support effective recruitment and training of library student employees to enhance the success of the library and to foster their academic, professional, and personal growth.
The library will provide digital curation services in order to support the research needs and output of UC Merced researchers.
Outcome F1
Define policies for archiving, delivering access to, and disseminating locally produced research data that are determined to be university assets or of value for future use.
Outcome F2
Identify and evaluate service offerings available within the UC system or external organizations that may address local needs.
Outcome F3
Communicate and implement data curation services to campus stakeholders.
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