Strategic Plan

Values Statement

Mizzou Libraries are essential to the University’s scholarly environment. Decisions, plans, programs, and partnerships will be based on our values. At Mizzou Libraries we:

  • Empower everyone at Mizzou to explore, learn, and discover;
  • Create spaces and opportunities that promote learning and discovery;
  • Deliver services and resources that enable every member of our community to thrive;
  • Adapt in ways that are strategic, creative, and sustainable to bolster the academic mission of the Mizzou community;
  • Engage our team, our community, and our partners with respect to bring out the best in everyone at Mizzou;
  • Celebrate Mizzou’s excellence by highlighting the research, creativity, and discovery we help make possible.

Mission & Vision Statement

Mission Statement

We empower everyone at the University of Missouri to discover, create, and share knowledge in pursuit of their ambitions.

Vision Statement

As the University’s scholarly home, Mizzou Libraries will advance curiosity, grow knowledge, and ensure every person is supported in their pursuit of learning and discovery.

Strategic Priorities

The following priorities set the direction for the Libraries over the term of its strategic plan. Each priority is grounded in a definition that explains its purpose, scope, and intended impact. Beneath each definition are a set of key objectives that provide areas of focus to guide action and help track progress. These priorities build on the work the Libraries already does and are designed to focus its resources and build on its strengths so that the Libraries’ contributions remain visible, relevant, and meaningful to Mizzou and the broader community.

Definition

Recalibrate and revitalize programs, spaces, and practices to match current realities and resources. By focusing on what is achievable and meaningful, the Libraries will deliver visible wins, strengthen morale, and focus energy where it matters most, laying the groundwork for the Libraries’ future.

Key Objectives

  1. Invest in visible, high-impact improvements that build momentum. Identify and implement attainable wins that enhance user experience and signal progress to staff and stakeholders.
  2. Realign services, roles, and resources with care and respect. Establish and execute a transparent, collaborative process that evaluates services with curiosity and respect, celebrates past contributions, aligns with evolving priorities, and communicates rationales.
  3. Make change management a shared, evolving practice across the organization. Foster a culture of change that pairs openness to experimentation, learning, and assessment with clear communication, practical training, and regular opportunities to contribute to learning and improvement.
  4. Invest in staff capacity for innovation. Build and sustain staff expertise through ongoing professional development that encourages exploration, testing, and integration of high impact practices and emerging technologies.
  5. Secure resources for revitalization. Pursue advocacy, partnerships, and external funding opportunities to sustain improvements and extend their reach.

Definition

Building on the Libraries’ strengths in supporting undergraduates to support students at every level. These avenues of support prepare students for a changing digital landscape and reflect that the Libraries are a cornerstone to every student’s success.

Key Objectives

  1. Increase access to support anytime, anywhere. Embed library and partner resources seamlessly into digital platforms and physical spaces so students can find support when and where they need it.
  2. Lead digital and data literacy across campus. Equip students, faculty, and staff with the knowledge and skills to engage confidently, ethically, and creatively with AI, data analysis, and emerging digital practices.
  3. Create high-impact learning opportunities. Offer students diverse ways to learn and contribute by connecting learning through the Libraries with hands-on projects, real-world practice, and professional growth.
  4. Tailor support for graduate and research-intensive learning. Build on the Libraries’ strengths in undergraduate engagement to meet the distinct needs of graduate students and research-driven learners through targeted services, outreach, and partnerships.

Definition

Showcase the Libraries’ role in creating, preserving, and connecting Mizzou’s research to the world. By surfacing its role in the research process, securing durable digital infrastructure, and leveraging campus and statewide partnerships, the Libraries will ensure Mizzou’s research is visible, valued, and impactful.

Key Objectives

  1. Reveal what it takes to do research. Make visible the often-invisible work of research by highlighting the processes, tools, expertise, and infrastructure the Libraries provide to support discovery, creation, and preservation of scholarship.
  2. Showcase the full spectrum of Mizzou’s research output. Share and celebrate faculty, student, and Extension research in diverse formats and venues with a commitment to surfacing less represented or visible work.
  3. Strengthen digital infrastructure. Make the Libraries’ platforms, repositories, and systems secure, accessible, and future-ready to preserve Mizzou’s scholarship, creative works, and data.
  4. Leverage existing infrastructure and partnerships. Capitalize on existing assets such as MOspace, Special Collections, and librarian expertise to connect Mizzou scholarship with broader audiences.

Definition

Advance Mizzou’s land-grant mission by extending knowledge, expertise, and resources beyond campus to serve the people of Missouri. Through statewide and system-wide partnerships, distinct local collections, and services responsive to community needs, the Libraries will share knowledge and tools to support the people of Missouri.

Key Objectives

  1. Establish the Libraries as a statewide resource. Promote the Libraries’ collections, expertise, and services to communities across Missouri through Extension, outreach roles, and public-facing programs.
  2. Maximize collections and technology for statewide benefit. Expand the reach and accessibility of unique collections, digitization projects, and shared repositories so that they inform, inspire, and serve audiences across the state.
  3. Put research into Missourians’ hands. Leverage open access publishing, open scholarship, and open infrastructure to put Mizzou’s scholarly and creative work into the hands of people.
  4. Strengthen statewide and regional partnerships. Deepen collaborations with statewide and regional networks to improve resource sharing, coordinated services, and collective capacity to serve learners and libraries across Missouri.
  5. Demonstrate the Libraries’ public impact.Showcase the Library’s contributions to learners, educators, and communities by highlighting events, sharing compelling stories, and tracking measurable impact.

Download the Plan

For a printable version of the strategic plan, click the button that says: “Printable Strategic Plan”

Printable Strategic Plan