ACRL Literatures in English Section Strategic Plan (2025)

 

Overview

The Strategic Plan of the Literatures in English Section (LES) is modeled on the Plan for Excellence of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL).

Mission of Literatures in English Section

The Literatures in English Section, as part of the Association of College and Research Libraries, provides a forum in which academic and research librarians who support literatures in English programs exchange ideas, exercise leadership, and contribute to the improvement of library service in the field.

Goals and Objectives

Value of Literature Librarianship

Goal: Support and promote the role of literature librarians as integral partners in literary studies.

Objectives:

  • Sustain and build upon our partnership with the MLA and investigate further partnerships with other professional or scholarly organizations, including those associated with Writing Studies, Creative Writing, and other disciplines allied with English Departments.
  • Sponsor programming that allows attendees to keep current in developments concerning student learning, research, and the scholarly environment as they relate to literary studies.
  • Promote the value and impact of libraries, collections, and library workers in supporting literary studies.
  • Recruit and retain a diverse membership.

Student Learning

Goal: LES members actively support student learning in literary studies as a means to promote critical thinking and humanistic engagement with the world.

Objectives:

  • Showcase model information literacy instruction units and lesson plans in literary studies that emphasize active learning and critical thinking at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
  • Support the use of the LES Research Competency Standards in English in instruction.
  • Seek opportunities to recognize and align interests among English faculty, librarians, and other professional organizations to promote student learning.
  • Support student learning in new literary research methods.
  • Foster critical research and teaching practices that interrogate power structures in literary publishing and scholarship.

Research and Scholarly Environment

Goal: LES will advance new and traditional modes and forms of literary scholarship, particularly those that support open and equitable scholarship, as well as representative and inclusive ways of knowing.

Objectives:

  • Promote collection policies that are responsive to innovations in scholarly communication and publishing, and inclusive of principles of equity, diversity, and inclusion.
  • Support open access, open educational resources, and publishing/collecting in the humanities that is inclusive of diverse perspectives and marginalized or underrepresented voices.
  • Encourage its members' knowledge of and engagement with digital humanities, including digital methods, tools, technology, and culture.
  • Support literature librarians' involvement in Writing Studies, Creative Writing, and other disciplines allied with English Departments.
  • Foster an interdisciplinary approach to research in literary studies and the humanities, including support for research that connects literature with visual, material, and maker approaches to culture.

New Roles and Changing Landscapes

Goal: LES recognizes and fosters reflection and change in literary studies and the library profession.

Objectives:

  • Uphold ACRL’s advocacy and support for the full range of the academic library workforce.
  • Equip LES members to effectively lead, manage, and embrace change, advocate for their communities, and serve as a catalyst for transformational change in higher education.
  • Support LES members as advocates for diversity, equity, and inclusion in their libraries and broader communities, and work to decolonize academic libraries and higher education environments.
  • Recognize the changing nature of librarianship practice and scholarship, and support LES members as advocates within their workplaces.
  • Create space for education and discussion around GenAI in our work.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

Goal: LES recognizes a history of canonical bias and marginalization of underrepresented voices in both literary studies and scholarship. To honor our commitment to EDI, members and officers will promote ongoing discussion within the section on these issues, practice cultural humility and radical hospitality, and regularly assess our progress critically and honestly.

Objectives:

  • Promote collection development best practices and tools aimed at building and assessing diverse collections that effectively represent marginalized literary voices while avoiding tokenism.
  • Embrace critical research and teaching practices to interrogate power structures in literary publishing and scholarship, foregrounding underrepresented communities.
  • Annually review, revise, and update the LES Anti-Racist Action Plan to ensure the section is actively engaging with its practices and pursuing its goals.
     

Strategic Plan last updated October 2025.

Web page last updated: October 10, 2025.

Comments may be directed to the LES Website Administrator, Jenny Dale.

Special thanks to Jackie Hackman for designing the LES logo.