Commonwealth Campuses Tactical Plan
under
The University Libraries Strategic Plan
2008/2009 – 2012/2013
October 2009
The following tactics apply to each section of the University Libraries Strategic Plan in order.
Area 1: Services
1.1 Physical spaces/knowledge commons concept
• Develop a Knowledge Commons service concept for campus libraries that is technologically rich, student-centered, supportive of collaborative learning, and enhances access to related student services (IT helpdesk, Learning Center, Writing Center, etc.).
• Develop program plans for user needs and services taking into account changing space needs for collections as more materials are available online.
• Collaborate with digital commons support to help them publicize their services
• Eliminate barriers to access – continue to partner with Disability Services for students offices on each campus.
• Re-envision service desks and either eliminate or combine service points. [See 5.4 Changing needs of our students]
1.2 Promotion and Campus Partnerships
• Become familiar with campus strategic plan and partner with campus recruitment and retention efforts
• Share marketing campaigns for CC libraries. Create a marketing poster based on the knowledge commons concept for the campuses. This approach could highlight the "one library geographically dispersed" idea.
• Encourage community use of resources for research, especially among high school students.
• Be more inclusive of academic faculty on libraries committees.
• Develop programs that would appeal to members of the community.
1.3 Instructional partnerships/improve students’ abilities to locate and evaluate information ethically [see also 1.5]
• Collaborate directly with faculty on developing effective Digital Commons assignments.
• Partner with Digital Commons and faculty to encourage/enhance access to the Libraries digital content and images.
1.4 Delivery of collections and consultation services (classrooms, the World Campus, and Penn State Online)
• Assign a librarian to each web-based course when a course is added to the schedule.
• Establish library contact with faculty when a course is scheduled and with students at the time of registration.
• Add course guides to all World Campus courses including basic information about where to access help from the libraries and then let the World Campus faculty know this resource exists. [See 5. 3 Collaborate in terms of IT services]
1.5 Promoting information literacy
• Develop a better understanding of digital commons assignments being required by faculty and how they relate to more traditional student assignments.
• Establish a better means of direct access to learning objects for students so they can get to the digital or visual materials that they need for current projects.
Area 2: Collections
• See CDC Tactical Plan at https://intranet.libraries.psu.edu/home/toolboxes/companion/tactical_plan_for.html
Area 3: Information Technology
3.1 Infrastructure
• Determine additional equipment needs (i.e. Apple laptops, Sony/Kindle readers for e-books)
3.2 Campus Needs
• Survey library facilities to assess electrical, lighting, HVAC, wireless capability needs to add new technology.
• Communicate with campus administrators about facilities needs.
• Develop graphic illustration/presentation of a knowledge commons at pilot campuses for presentation to campus chancellors and development officers.
Area 4: Diversity
4.1 Professional development and leadership opportunities at all levels
• Create and support opportunities for diversity programming in campus libraries and on campus.
• Support campus services for diverse populations of learners (returning adult students, international students, etc.)
• Develop leadership among Libraries faculty and staff to enable ongoing awareness of classism and design of educational programs on civility-related issues.
• Articulate the Libraries diversity efforts to campus faculty, staff, and students.
• Engage students and faculty in diversity programming; develop or co-sponsor events with a diversity theme with student groups.
• Use web redesign to highlight diversity in campus collections.
• Use expanded definition of diversity as expressed in the University Libraries Framework for Diversity and Diversity Strategic Plan documents.
Area 5: Agility
5.1 Collaborate in terms of services
• Institute regular campus forum (voice/video IP) meetings for sharing ideas.
• Examine equipment ordering and statistics process to see what could be done differently, collected automatically, handled centrally.
• Review all paper flow (such as exchange lists) to see what we can eliminate.
• Determine if there is a need to check in serials.
5.2 Collaborate in terms of collection development
• See Collection Development Tactical Plan.
5.3 Collaborate in terms of IT services
• Implement printing from wireless devices, determine additional services required.
• Augment/expand ITS liaison training.
• Become more familiar with the technology in the digital commons.
• Ask for more assistance from campus IT departments if the library houses the digital commons.
• Look at extending weekend hours by cross-training IT student workers to work in the library giving students better library and IT service.
5.4 Changing needs of our students
• Directly address students’ “digital support” needs.
• Design more ANGEL pages for online courses and determine the best method to deliver ANGEL guides to all World Campus classes.
5.5 Changing staffing patterns
• Take advantage of vacancies to rethink assignment of duties – what skills do librarians and staff need to meet changing expectations of the library?
• Evaluate service points and determine student/faculty needs.
• Review job assignments and make appropriate changes.
5.6 Employee development and training
• Develop targeted workshops for library staff training on technology, work flow, etc.
• Centralize/build database of, or enhance access to PSU resources for improving teaching.
• Enhance awareness of the importance of diversity in the Libraries and the Libraries’ expectations of all employees.
