The Globalized Library

Many academic institutions count internationalization among their most important strategic goals and priorities: To be competitive, colleges and universities need to produce globally conscious graduates and assert their influence in areas of research and funding. As the center of campus life, academic libraries are integral partners to their institutions’ missions and goals and are deeply involved in all aspects of the globalization efforts on their campuses. Libraries continue to develop innovative approaches to welcoming and educating diverse student bodies and supporting faculty research and teaching, and are delving into new areas and crafting programs that utilize new approaches, technologies, and pedagogies.

In five sections—Information Literacy; Outreach & Inclusion; Collections & Digital Humanities; Establishing Libraries & Services Abroad; and Career & Professional Development—The Globalized Library collects chapters from practitioners across North America detailing how their work has become globalized and demonstrating new ways to address language and cultural differences, the international purchase and processing of materials, professional development and growth of librarians, and information literacy needs of students from all over the world. It explores ways to provide support to students studying abroad, create online teaching tools, establish American-style libraries at satellite campuses, and leverage campus partnerships to create specifically designed programs and learning opportunities for international students, making a huge difference in the success and retention of a diverse student body.

Academic institutions have an obligation to help all students succeed academically and become information-literate citizens of the world. The needs and stresses of globalization on American campuses will only continue to grow following the trends of American society. The Globalized Library provides new and innovative ideas to those who are embarking on some of these services and hopes to begin a broader national conversation on this work among library professionals.