Welcome!

This handbook/resource guide presents the official policies, practices, and information pertinent to all faculty and staff at the School of Information. It supplements, but does not supersede, the Provost’s Faculty Handbook, the University of Michigan Staff Handbook, the University of Michigan Standard Practice Guide (SPG), and other official policies of the University. It is the intention that this handbook document UMSI policies and practices relating to faculty and assist faculty in identifying other UM policies of importance to them. If, however, there are more recent written policy statements from the Dean, or a delegated policy making authority by the Dean, those more recent statements will supersede this handbook. We will make every effort to ensure that the documents linked by the URLs are the most up-to-date and authoritative.

UMSI: Who we are

Our mission is to create and share knowledge so that people will use information -- with technology -- to build a better world.

Our principles

• We share a willingness to take risks: risks in our teaching, in our research and in our service.

• We are welcoming and diverse. We work together in community.

• We have a lot of fun.

• We are progressive and forward looking and have been for 90 years.

• We share a passion for the fundamental intertwining of people, information and technology.

Our vision

The School of Information delivers innovative, elegant and ethical solutions connecting people, information and technology. When there is a need for world-changing information discoveries, we will be there.

Our history

The School of Information was chartered by the Board of Regents in 1996, but the school has had several other incarnations since its origin as the University of Michigan Department of Library Science in 1926. In 1927, the first class of 34 students graduated with an ABLS degree. In 1928, the department was the third in the nation to receive accreditation by the American Library Association – an accreditation it has held continuously ever since.

The department continued to evolve throughout the twentieth century, reinventing itself to meet the needs of each new generation.  In 1948, the department ended its undergraduate program, replaced the bachelor’s degree in library science with a master’s degree, and introduced a Ph.D. program. In 1969, the department of library science became the School of Library Science. In 1986, the name was changed again, to the School of Information and Library Science.

Toward the end of the 20th century, as the pace of change quickened in the information field, the name changed again. The School of Information was founded in 1996, taking on a new identity and mission: to prepare socially engaged information professionals, and to create people-centered knowledge, systems and institutions for the Information Age.

The school inherited the rich traditions of service, leadership, research, and universal access from the School of Information and Library Studies and extended these values into the digital age. Students and faculty with diverse backgrounds are forging a new body of theory, principles, and practices drawing on the information and computer sciences, social sciences, and humanities.