Purdue University Libraries (PUL), recipient of the 2015 Award for Excellence in University Libraries from the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), is at the forefront of academic librarianship and redefining the role of the academic, research library in learning, discovery, and engagement activities of the University. Libraries faculty and staff are deeply involved in information literacy instruction and instructional design, re-defining of learning spaces, scholarly communication, data management, and global outreach. PUL has embarked upon a comprehensive program to engage in campus learning initiatives, including the development of information literacy instruction, course-redesign initiatives advancing active learning on campus, and the design and implementation of dynamic new learning spaces. Purdue Libraries faculty have expanded their collaborative endeavors with disciplinary faculty in integrating information literacy into the curriculum, culminating in 2012 with a core campus curriculum that includes information literacy as a core requirement. PUL is also home to the first endowed chair in information literacy in the United States, established in 2008.
A reconceptualization of spaces is taking place throughout PUL. The recently renovated Roland G. Parrish Library of Management and Economics is a natural extension of the classroom, re-designed with input from students. The renovation of the Hicks Undergraduate Library completed in 2014 includes three active learning classrooms in support of Purdue’s campus wide, innovative course-redesign initiative. Construction is now underway on the Thomas S. and Harvey D. Wilmeth Active Learning Center, which will bring together six science and engineering libraries into a building that will seamlessly integrate learning and classroom spaces in a $79M facility at the very heart of the campus. For a video introduction to the Wilmeth Active Learning Center, please see:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__D36R3t3Hc Libraries faculty and staff also collaborate with disciplinary faculty to develop new approaches for discovering, accessing, and sharing of research publications and data. Purdue Libraries are leaders in the areas of data curation and library publishing services. Accomplishments in data curation include the development of the Data Curation Profiles Toolkit, an instrument for assessing the data needs of faculty researchers. The Purdue University Research Repository (PURR), a Libraries initiative, provides an online, collaborative working space and data-sharing platform to support the data management needs of Purdue researchers and their collaborators. Since 2005, Purdue Libraries has collaborated in interdisciplinary sponsored research on campus with over 100 faculty, as well as partners at other libraries and institutions. The Purdue Libraries and University Press are a founding member of the Library Publishing Coalition (LPC), and are well-known for innovative approaches to partnering with faculty to better disseminate scholarly works created at Purdue and advance Open Access initiatives.
Purdue Libraries is an active member of state, regional, national, and international associations and consortia, including the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), the Center for Research Libraries (CRL), the Coalition for Networked Information (CNI), SPARC, the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR), the Digital Library Federation (DLF), the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), the International Association of Scientific and Technological University Libraries (IATUL), and the Research Data Alliance (RDA). Purdue Libraries is a founding member of both HathiTrust and DataCite. Purdue was one of four universities that collaborated with Ex Libris, Inc., on its Alma library system, the next generation library management system. Collaboration and partnerships are hallmarks of Purdue Libraries both on and off campus, including partnership with ITaP (Information Technology at Purdue) and the Purdue Office of Research and Partnerships to provide assistance with funder data requirements.
Purdue University (
http://www.purdue.edu/), located in West Lafayette, Indiana, in the historic Wabash River valley, is one hour from Indianapolis and two hours from Chicago. Renowned nationally and internationally for its programs in engineering, science, agriculture, and business, the University has over 38,700 students and 15,000 employees. Purdue is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU), and the Committee on Institutional Cooperation (CIC). Purdue has the second highest enrollment of international students among public U.S. universities, with 9,080 undergraduate, professional, and graduate students in 2014-2015.
“Purdue University prohibits discrimination against any member of the University community on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin or ancestry, genetic information, marital status, parental status, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disability, or status as a veteran.” From
Nondiscrimination Policy Statement, Purdue University
http://www.purdue.edu/purdue/ea_eou_statement.html The greater Lafayette area (
http://www.homeofpurdue.com/) provides diverse cultural, social, and recreational activities.