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Our Vision: Intellectual Leadership

The Library will be a dynamic and adaptive organization that provides intellectual leadership and outstanding client-centered services to assist the UNH community, the state of New Hampshire and the wider scholarly community in the advancement of knowledge and creative expression. By providing optimum access to information regardless of its location or format, the Library will support the teaching and research missions of the University of New Hampshire in new and enhanced ways.

Our Mission: Partnership for Excellence

The Library fosters a culture of collaboration within the University and beyond. Working in partnership with a variety of UNH stakeholders and the wider library community, we contribute to excellence in teaching, learning and research by providing convenient access to quality resources, offering user-focused programs and services and creating a virtual and physical setting conducive to life-long learning.

Our Identity: Client-Centered and Future Oriented

The Library is distinguished for providing the personalized client-centered services of a small New England liberal arts college with the breadth and depth of collections, spirit of discovery, and civic commitment of a forward-looking, research-intensive state institution.

Statement of Organizational Values

Organizational values are an important component to any work environment. As UNH Library employees, we subscribe to the American Library Association’s Code of Ethics. Committing to our own organizational values in addition to those of our profession lays a strong foundation of mutual understanding necessary for creating productive interactions with our colleagues and the individuals we serve. While the ideals in this document reiterate concepts that may be perceived as well understood, we believe that stating these values in writing further demonstrates our intent to create an atmosphere in which all employees can contribute to their fullest professional potential. Therefore we aspire to:

Accountability: We hold ourselves personally and organizationally accountable for all that we do in the workplace. We commit to continually assessing our efforts and actions on both the personal and organizational levels.

Communication: We encourage the open exchange of information and ideas from all members of the University community. We believe that through collaboration and participation, each of us has an important role in determining the direction and well-being of our community.

Cooperation: Support a team environment in which members participate, respect and cooperate with each other to achieve desired results.

Diversity: We commit to an inclusive community for diverse Students, Faculty, Staff and Patrons. We encourage differences and reject bigotry, oppression, degradation and harassment, and we challenge injustice toward any member of our community.

Excellence: We dedicate ourselves to exhibiting a high degree of professionalism and personal integrity in our interpersonal relationships, professional work, outreach, public service, mentoring, and advising.

Innovation: We dedicate ourselves to being at the forefront of change. We believe that the best way to succeed is to learn from our experiences - both successful and unsuccessful. We maintain a culture in which experimentation is encouraged and understand that while not all initiatives are successful, the freedom to try new things is essential to an evolving workplace. Results must then be evaluated in order to find the best methods to meet important community and societal needs.

Integrity: We commit ourselves to an open, honest, and trustworthy approach to all our endeavors. We value fairness, straightforwardness, adherence to the facts, sincerity and transparency.

Respect: We foster an environment of mutual respect. We listen to each other, encourage each other, and when making decisions, give consideration to each other's ideas and feelings.

Responsiveness: We respond to and address to the best of our abilities the needs and expectations of our students, faculty, staff, partners, and external constituents.

The UNH Library acknowledges the University of Vermont - Office of Human Resources and the UNH Office of Environmental Health and Safety for providing us with reference material upon which we created the Library Statement of Organizational Values.

April 16, 2009