About

  1) SLIS Enrollment, Retention, MLIS Degrees Awarded

* Southern Miss Institutional Research (Fall 2021)

** WEAVE Assessment Data 

*** IHL Degree Books: 2019 (PDF), 2020 (PDF) 2021 (PDF) 2022 (PDF) 2023 (PDF) 2024 (PDF)

 

2) Average Time to Degree Completion

• Full-time students- 2.6 years

• Part-time students- 3.3 years

 

3) Percentage of Graduates w/Positions Relevant to Degree within 12 months of Degree Completion

• 2015-2024 - 95%

 

SLIS History, Educational Goals, Strategic Goals

Southern Miss SLIS has been ALA-accredited since 1980. At the last review by the ALA Committee on Accreditation (COA) in 2019, ALA Accreditation status was Continued and the next accreditation review by ALA COA is scheduled for spring 2027.

Read about this history of Southern Miss SLIS in Library Science Education at Southern Miss: A History of Survival and Growth by Dr. Matthew Griffis.

Educational Goals for Students Include:

1. Technological Competency and Skills
2. Engagement in Research and Evidence Based Practices
3. Information Resources and Reference and User Services
4. Knowledge of Foundations and Inclusive Professional Practices
5. Life-long Learning and Continuing Education
6. Management and Administration
7. Organization of Recorded Knowledge and Information

 

Educational Goals and Objectives (2016, updated 2022)

•  SLIS_Educational_Goals Objectives 2016-2022.pdf

 

Strategic Plan with Strategic Goals, Objectives 

• SLIS Strategic Goals 2024 (PDF)
• SLIS Organizational Chart (PDF)
• Planning Documents: Relation of Course Objectives, SLOS, to Professional Competencies

 

Policies

• Southern Miss Institutional Policies

• Professional Education Council (PEC) Policies

• Student Accessibility Services
• SLIS Graduate Student Handbook 2023-24 (PDF)

 

ALA Biennial Report 2022

• Biennial Report 2022

ALA Biennial Report 2020

• Biennial Report 2020

ALA Accreditation Report 2019

• Southern_Miss_Self-Report_01-14-19.pdf

Program Assessment

• MLIS students must take a technology class as one of their electives and create an e-portfolio
• In LIS 695 capstone course, students must complete a master's research project
• In LIS 695 capstone course, students must pass a comprehensive exam.

 

Assessment of MLIS Program by Students

The Exit Surveys of Graduating MLIS students are aligned with the American Library Association's Core Competencies of Librarianship.  Students evaluate their knowledge of the core competencies using a Likert Scale.  

• Exit Surveys of Graduating MLIS students (Quantitative data) graduate_student_exit_survey.pdf
• Annual Focus Group conducted each October at the Mississippi Library Association Conference (Qualitative data) focus-group_mla2013-18.pdf
• Course evaluations
• Survey research conducted by Dr. Creel and Dr. Welsh

 

Student Learning Outcomes (SLO)

Program assessment is an ongoing, active and systematic process intended to monitor and improve the overall quality of Student Learning Outcomes (SLO). The documents below relate to SLIS program assessment based on Student Learning Outcomes (SLO) as required for SACS and ALA Accreditation.  

MLIS WEAVE Assessment Reports

• SLIS WEAVE Report 2022-2023 
• SLIS WEAVE Report 2021-2022
• SLIS WEAVE Report 2020-2021 (PDF)
• SLIS WEAVE Report 2018-2019

2024-25 Advisory Board

Jeannie Jones Damiano, MLIS, Pascagoula Branch Manager, MS

Natalie Dunaway, MLIS Community Outreach Coordinator/State Data Coordinator, Mississippi Library Commission

John Eye, MLIS, Ed.D., Professor and Dean, USM University Libraries

Mantra Henderson, MLIS, Ph.D./a.b.d., Library Director, Mississippi Valley State University

Sarah Mangrum, MLIS, Ed.D., Assistant Teaching Professor, USM SLIS Faculty Representative

Natalie Mitchell, MLIS, School Librarian, Jackson Elementary, Pascagoula, MS

Stephen Parks, MLIS, JD, State Librarian, Jackson, MS

Julie H. Schiavo, MLIS, Ed.D., AHIP, Assistant Director Dental Library, LSUHSC-NO Libraries

Elizabeth Simmons, MLIS, Ed. S., Instructional Materials and Library Services Director, Mississippi Department of Education

Diana Simpson, MLIS, Assistant Professor/Catalog Librarian, USM Libraries

Adam Singletary, MLIS, Director, The Library of Hattiesburg, Petal, and Forrest County

Lorraine Stuart, MLIS, Head of Special Collections, Curator, Historical Manuscripts & Archives, USM University Libraries

Karlie Herndon, MA, MLIS, Assistant Professor, Curator, de Grummond Children's Literature Collection