Information is central to knowledge; to truth; to impact. Amid a public health crisis, climate change, threats to democratic institutions and a revolution in artificial intelligence, information plays a pivotal role in solving the monumental challenges we all face and realizing the opportunities in front of us. The UW Information School is leading the global movement to devise information solutions that improve people’s lives and tackle the world’s toughest challenges.

Grand Challenges

In facing the challenges articulated below, we draw upon a range of disciplines that focus on how people create, use, store, share and communicate information. Our faculty and students are drawn together into this work because of the problems they want to solve, and a recognition that it takes the widest range of knowledge and skills to do so.

Strategic Objectives

As we work towards our strategic vision, we have defined five areas that require qualitative and continuous improvements to our work and our school:

Increase access to information science education: Increase teaching capacity; create routes to better affordability; foster pedagogical inclusivity

Invest in supporting infrastructure and resources: Expand and enhance Information School space; recruit the best faculty and staff; sustain, support and retain a joyous faculty and staff community; support sustainable responsive processes for efficient execution across all units; secure sustainable financial resources that support strategic needs.

Expand research impact through translational research: Engage more students in research; align research and teaching; start and support collaborative research centers; maximize our competitiveness for major funded research opportunities; invest in risky research and collaborations; increase and sustain our variety of researchers.

Invest in constituent experience: Engage the public; enhance the student experience; foster and support a joyous faculty and staff culture; actively engage alumni; strengthen external partner engagement.

Strengthen the Information School identity: Refresh the Information School identity; renew the future of the field of library and information science; amplify the identity of our programs.

Commitments

Beyond what we hope to achieve, we also recognize that how we structure our efforts is critical to our success. We have identified two cross-cutting values that will be central to all of our strategic objectives, priorities and initiatives: 

Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Access & Sovereignty

The Information School is working toward a more just world by dismantling institutional barriers through our research, education and daily work. We go beyond only saying we support intersectional identities. We will confront and take action against any expressions of racism, sexism, homophobia, ableism, transphobia, religious discrimination, or any other instances of bias, microaggressions and discrimination to build a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive School and community. We are committed to cultivating a multicultural experience for faculty, staff, and students to incorporate diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout their lives within the School and beyond.

Responsiveness, Planning, Strategy

Through planning and crafting coherent strategies, we are committed to operating with responsiveness in an ever-changing environment. Through each of our objectives and priorities, we will reflect on process with an eye to making transactions efficient and compliant.