1. Jumpstarting the Heart of Campus
Revitalizing Connections Through a Strategic Plan
Joyce Meldrem, Library Director, Loras College

2. It all began in June 2009
The New Planning for
Results: A Streamlined
Approach by Sandra Nelson
―Excellence is a moving target.‖
Charles R. McClure and others in Planning and Role-Setting for
Public Libraries

3. Starting the Process
Our first several staff meetings were spent
discussing the book – chapter by chapter
– We began with ground rules for discussions
– We gathered background information
• A priest talked to us about being a library on a
Catholic campus and a library director shared
|with us how they proceeded with their
strategic plan
– We wrote down our reasons for doing
a strategic plan

4. Environmental Scan
• We created an environmental scan for
the campus group
– Loras Fact Book
– Dubuque Census Information
– Library Annual Report
– Overview of Current Library Services
– Readings about current trends and the
future of academic libraries

5. Campus Planning Committee
• The composition of our campus group:
– Student employee, student library users, student
library non-users, student success staff, long-time
professors, new professors, student life staff,
admissions staff, technology staff, alumni, Catholic
Identity Committee member
– Facilitator – Head of Human Resources who had
done a lot of strategic planning in the business world
• They met on March 4, March 25, and April 28, 2010.

6. Strategic Themes
Strategic themes of their visioning process
• More digital resources/fewer books
• Alterations in the Library’s infrastructure
• Shift the physical environment
• Extend radical hospitality to the larger
community
• Shift the role of the librarian

7. Enabling Strategies
• Funding
• Administrative and Regents education and support
• Connect Loras’ experiential learning with the library vision
• Maintain face-to-face contact
• Increase number of librarians and their work-methods toward
a more consultative approach
• Focus on those aspects of the strategy that are unique and
innovative
• Research to identify libraries with leading edge operations
and then Loras should push the edge of the envelope

8. Campus Planning Committee
Importance and Capacity
• Their envisioning process
developed 53 items
concerning what their library
of the future would look like,
feel like, and be like.
• The Library staff reviewed the
53 items to indicate their
importance to us and our
capacity to accomplish them.

9. Library Committee
Importance
Importance and Capacity
• There were items on our list of
– High Importance/High Capacity
– High Importance/Low Capacity
– Low Importance/High Capacity Capacity
– Low Importance/Low Capacity
• We used these designations to help us create the goals
that the Library eventually ended up placing in our
strategic plan.

10. 13 High Importance/
High Capacity Items
1. The library will still need books, should continue its collection weeding,
send those less frequently used to offsite storage to expand the space
available for other learning activities. (Hi/Hi)
2. A ―News Room‖ where students could sit and put on headphones to listen
and watch current events. (Hi/Hi)
3. A room dedicated to Faculty Development. A place where they have the
opportunity to learn about the latest instructional technologies and the best
practices in using them e.g. move the Center for Learning and Teaching to
the Library. (Hi/Hi)
4. An exhibit area that would host the work of local artists, travelling exhibits
on a specific them, or archival objects from the college’s collection(s). This
would be linked with current curricular offerings (e.g. J-Term, MOI, etc.)
(Hi/Hi)

11. 24 High Importance/
Low Capacity
1. An ―Advanced Media Lab‖ equipped with the latest technology where
students would have the ability to create experimental digital projects
(Hi/Lo)
2. A ―reading room‖ with tables, chairs, coffee and baked goods, to allow
students to gather and talk or sit and read—much like the Barnes & Noble
―Seattle’s Best‖ stations. This room should be open 24/7 to encourage
gathering at will and spontaneity. (Hi/Lo)
3. A ―Demo‖ room where students and faculty could experience new
technology, perhaps even borrow it (Hi/Lo)
4. An outdoor area with a cabana or a porch equipped with wireless
capability and electrical outlets. (Hi/Lo)

12. 6 Low Importance/
High Capacity
1. A ―laptop‖ room where students can plug in and work (Lo/Hi)
2. An electronic study area with carrels containing equipment to enable
watching videos, DVDs etc. (Lo/Hi)
3. A print center equipped with FAX machines, copiers, printers, scanners,
and charging stations to support student work while there – e.g. hotel or
airport ―business center‖ (Lo/Hi)
4. Actively work to engage external experts and alumni to share knowledge
(Lo/Hi)
5. Make the library welcoming and easily accessible for commuters and
community members (parking is an issue) as long as this can be done
without taking advantages away from tuition-paying students (Lo/Hi)

13. 10 Low Importance/
Low Capacity
1. Users will need immediate and easy access to all information in all
disciplines across different kinds of technologies. (Lo/Lo)
2. Some of the periodical and other informational archives could be moved
to the building housing the disciplines with which the materials are
affiliated as long as they can be kept securely. (Lo/Lo)
3. The goal will be to provide learners with skills in using the cutting edge
technologies (e.g. 3D technology, voice activated computers to
accommodate special needs etc., etc.) that will be required of them in
the workforce. (Lo/Lo)
4. Quiet rooms and ―Dead Room‖ where electronic media won’t work.
(Lo/Lo)

14. Previous Mission Statement
• The Loras College Library exists to support the mission of Loras College by providing library services, collections, and
facilities that enhance the curriculum and meet the informational and lifelong learning needs of Loras College students,
faculty, and staff. The Library serves as both a physical and intellectual locus for scholarly activity by providing a place for
interaction, consultation, study, and reflection, and by supplying access to resources that comprise a current and
retrospective record of human knowledge.
• The Loras College Library will advance the goals of the college by:
– Selecting, acquiring, organizing, maintaining, and providing access to a collection of information resources
regardless of format, for the current and future members of the Loras College community: when they need it, where
they need it, in the format they need it, at a reasonable cost to the college;
– Forging partnerships with faculty for the purpose of assisting with assignment development, staying abreast of
curricular changes and maintaining resources that support the curriculum, and developing programs and services
that are most useful to students, faculty, and staff;
– Attracting and retaining highly-skilled, intellectually-engaged, dedicated, and service-oriented staff, sufficient in
number, who are able to assist library patrons in effectively navigating the wealth of information attainable from the
Library;
– Anticipating and responding to the diverse and changing information needs and expectations of the Loras College
community;
– Providing formal and informal instruction in research skills, encouraging students to become self-reliant information-
seekers and lifelong-learners, and preparing students for a changing workplace;
– Participating in cooperative ventures on the regional, state, and national levels to provide our patrons access to the
broader universe of information; and
– Respecting academic freedom and diversity of ideas as expressed in the American Library Association’s Library Bill
of Rights and Freedom to Read statements.

15. Current Mission Statement
The Loras College Library is a welcoming center dedicated to
fostering the intellectual development and personal growth of
the Loras community in support of the college’s mission.

16. Strategic Themes
Strategic themes of visioning process
• More digital resources/fewer books
• Alterations in the Library’s infrastructure
• Shift the physical environment
• Extend radical hospitality to the larger community
• Shift the role of the librarian

17. Library Goals
• Shape the Loras College Library’s collection to support the
informational needs of Loras College’s faculty, staff, and
students
• Seek new and increased funding for the Library
• Ensure the library space is inviting, adaptable, and configured
to enhance learning, research, and collegial interaction.
• Promote awareness of the value of the Library in the lives of
the Loras community through our publicity and promotional
efforts
• Maintain and develop services and relationships that enhance
faculty teaching, student learning, and research

18. Sample Goal and Objectives
Shape the Loras College Library’s collection to support the
informational needs of Loras College’s faculty, staff, and students
• Objective 1: Improve data collection and usage statistics for our digital
and physical collections to drive collection development decisions and
marketing efforts
• Objective 2: Weed the physical collection according to the ―MUSTIE‖
criteria
• Objective 3: Increase our e-book collection to reflect expressed needs
and current best practices
• Objective 4: Pilot a project to digitize selected unique holdings to
determine feasibility of future digitization projects
• Objective 5: Examine the feasibility of hiring a collection management
librarian or assigning collection management duties to current staff

19. Sample Goal, Objectives
and Activities
Goal: Shape the Loras College Library’s collection to support all the informational needs of
Loras College’s faculty, staff, and students
Objective 3: Increase our e-book collection to reflect expressed needs and current best practices
Person(s) Responsible Timeline Deliverable
Activity 1: Evaluate current e-book holdings by discipline & Heidi, Kristen June-Aug Report
format 2012
Activity 2: Survey the Loras community to determine Suzanne, Julie Oct – Nov Survey
whether they have an e-reader and what kind, as well as e- 2012 Report
book needs by: Subject area, Demographics, Technology,
Type of book – e.g. reference, novel, textbooks, etc.
Report on e-reader types and e-book needs.
Activity 3: Identify e-book vendors for subjects and formats Heidi, Julie, Kristen Feb – Apr Report
identified in survey 2013
Activity 4: Survey other libraries for best practices and do a Heidi, Kristen Apr – June Survey
literature search to gather information to determine how to 2013 Literature Search
support an e-book collection and report on: Report
Software and hardware needed, troubleshooting support,
Vendor options, Cataloging options
Activity 5: Establish procedures for e-book collection Heidi, Julie, Kristen July – Sep Procedures
development 2013

20. Announced to campus
March 7, 2012
Strategic Plan
January 2012 – May 2015

21. Timeline

22. Achievement Chart

23. Loras College Library staff
diligently working on our
strategic plan and earning stars!
(The end – thank you!)