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Mission

New York University Libraries is a global organization that advances teaching, learning, research, and scholarly inquiry in an environment dedicated to the open exchange of information by:

  • Building, preserving, interpreting, and providing access to rich and diverse collections;

  • Fostering the effective use and critical evaluation of information;

  • Delivering creative and responsive services for diverse user communities.

Our primary responsibility lies with the students and faculty of New York University. The Libraries also welcomes and engages in scholarly, cultural, and artistic interactions with broader communities in our role as stewards of cultural heritage for current and future scholars.

Values

Service

  • We are dedicated to improvement, excellence, and balance, putting the user first.

  • As participants in the educational mission of an interconnected, multi-agency, global institution, we recognize that every member of the library organization is engaged directly or indirectly in public service.

  • We treat all users, from beginning to advanced, as individuals, and we are dedicated to providing an equitable, inclusive, and consistent quality of service to everyone.

  • We know that users deserve choice, and we offer welcoming and secure environments, virtual and physical, for study, research, work, reflection, and interaction.

  • We recognize the imperative that library resources and services must be unified and coherent, particularly as we seek to proliferate and diversify them.

Access

  • We provide equitable access to information and resources.

  • We oppose censorship and embrace principles of intellectual freedom and privacy rights.

  • We respect intellectual property rights, as well as rights to fair use, and encourage open access.

  • We collect, steward, and preserve materials for the benefit of those beyond our own institution and beyond our own time.

  • We develop and promote sustainable processes.

Diversity and Inclusion

  • We respect, encourage, and embrace the diversity of individuals and groups, ideas, backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences.

  • We​ ​value​ ​the​ ​diversity​ ​of​ ​our staff​ ​and​ ​the​ ​communities​ ​that​ ​we​ ​serve.​ ​We believe inclusion​ ​is​ ​both​ ​an​ ​individual​ ​and​ ​an​ ​organizational responsibility.

  • We are​ ​committed​ ​to​ ​building​ ​and​ ​sustaining​ ​a​ ​diverse,​ ​inclusive,​ ​and equitable​ ​organization​ that supports a sense of belonging for the staff and communities we serve.

  • We​​ ​work​ ​toward​ ​inclusive​ ​practices:​ ​individually,​ ​through​ ​our​ ​language​ ​and​ ​behavior, and​ ​institutionally,​ ​through​ ​our​ ​services,​ ​collections,​ ​metadata​ systems​.​ ​

Read our full Diversity and Inclusion Values Statement

Respect and Integrity

  • We relate to each other with honesty, courtesy, and candor.

  • We adhere to the principles of fairness, justice, and equity in our work through our actions and communication.

  • We demonstrate a strong work ethic, taking responsibility for our actions, keeping our word, and following through on our commitments.

  • We encourage differences in perspective, opinions, and ideas.

  • We consider the needs of others and treat everyone with equal consideration and courtesy.

  • We respect our environment, and promote institutional policies for energy conservation, efficiency, and the use of sustainable materials.

Learning

  • We foster a vibrant, innovative work environment.

  • We encourage and reward employee creativity and recognize that experimentation and failure are necessary to the learning process.

  • We base decisions on evidence.

  • We enable an informed workforce through effective communication and transparency.

Collaboration

  • We celebrate the scholar in everyone.

  • We are a catalyst for discovery, engagement, and partnerships that support learning.

  • We understand our role as a provider as well as a consumer of services or goods within our division.

  • We work in partnership with each other, our teaching faculty, students, and our colleagues to meet the research and instructional needs of our user community for the present and the future.