STRATEGIC PLAN 2019-2021
Mission
Library Culture
We engage, inspire, educate and unite everyone in our diverse community.
We exceed our community members’ expectations. The exemplary customer service that we provide for our members and guests is what sets us apart from other libraries.
Vision
We innovate. The library’s staff, boards and stakeholders are bold and creative. We think about new ways to improve our community every day.
My favorite place in Princeton.
We educate and enrich. We curate extraordinary collections and research tools, constantly develop our level of expertise and offer classes, lectures and events that complement these resources and services.
Shared Values
We listen. We want to hear from everyone about how well we are doing in meeting their needs and how we can do better; we analyze evidence and question our assumptions and we commit ourselves fully to making thoughtful changes.
Learning and teaching Clarity and transparency Kindness and an assumption of good faith Humility and teamwork Creativity and collaboration Optimism and accountability
We value diversity, equity and inclusion. The library is stronger when we bring varied perspectives to the work of serving a growing and increasingly diverse community.
We collaborate. We are eager to learn and love to lead. We consult with and support colleagues at other libraries and community partners in order to ensure our ability to implement the ideas that best meet our community members’ needs. We steward. The library is a beautiful, welcoming, versatile building and collection, a world class resource that is owned by our community, funded through public-private partnership and entrusted to the management of a dedicated and talented library staff.
Goals and Strategies A six-month planning effort identified three primary outcomes for the future of our library. The library’s strategic and annual operating plans will be evaluated twice per year.
1) Unite Our Community through Reading, Literacy and Shared Experiences
Initiate a campaign to double the budget for print and electronic books and other collections to provide immediate, convenient access to all materials. Promote tangible increases in communication across generations and cultures, measurable increases in literacy, and highly valued shared experiences through timely, innovative classes, lectures and events that complement the collection.
2) Reach Everyone in Our Community Develop and implement an impactful, visionary marketing plan for interacting with our entire community. Welcome all new residents to the library and the community, and prepare for increases in population.
3) Enhance Physical Spaces
and Technological Resources
Upgrade the first and third floors, along with library resources, to eliminate physical, economic, linguistic and other barriers and offer a unified, inviting, valuable experience. Employ standard-setting technology in providing resources and support for community members to use in designing, creating and making physical objects and digital media.
Tactics
Methods that shape our approach and areas that need to be strong for us to achieve our goals.
Staff Encourage and advance staff-driven initiatives and ensure that staff contribute to all strategies and tactics. Support and reward staff and provide opportunities for training, collaboration and advancement. Recruit staff who reflect community diversity.
Development Increase the library’s endowment in order to ensure: the strength, convenience and utility of the library’s collection; the excellence of the library’s classes, events, lectures and outreach; the quality, accessibility and adaptability of the library’s interior spaces; and the retention and recruitment of staff members who will continue to exceed our community’s expectations. Engage the Friends and Foundation in cultivating the new donors necessary to sustain the library and facilitate its continued effectiveness.
Communication Invest in marketing in order to provide individualized engagement with community members across languages and media platforms. Ensure that community members understand that the library is a public-private partnership, reliant on both municipal appropriations and individual donations to succeed. Create a unified, accurate understanding of library activities by defining methods for timely, efficient communication between and among staff, volunteers and key stakeholders.
Partnerships Establish and enhance innovative, joint initiatives with local educational institutions, nonprofits, government agencies and businesses. Collaborate with partner organizations through classes, lectures, events and other shared service opportunities. Curate skills-based opportunities for volunteers and increase coordination among the large contingent of volunteers who help sustain the library’s operations and advance its outreach.
Access Address physical and economic barriers by decreasing or eliminating restrictions on, or providing alternatives for, meeting and gathering, learning and working, and eating. Reduce financial barriers by eliminating some or all fines and fees, and by working toward an economically viable parking solution that promotes library use. Increase services in languages other than English (e.g., collections, programs and marketing; additional multilingual staff; services that appeal to a diverse community). Anticipate community members’ interests through research and advanced analytics to enhance the collections and develop even more engaging programs. Use technology to increase accessibility and ensure that technology itself is not a barrier.
Produced by the Princeton Public Library Office of Marketing and Communications
Princeton Public Library Sands Library Building 65 Witherspoon Street Princeton, NJ, 08542 609-924-9529 www.princetonlibrary.org