Champlain College Library, located in the Robert and Holly Miller Information Commons offers a variety of programs and some of the best views of Lake Champlain in Burlington, Vermont. (Photos by Stephen Mease / Champlain College)

The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) announced today that Champlain College Library has received the 2012 Excellence in Academic Libraries Award in the college division. Other recipients are Seattle Central Community College (SCCC) Library, and the Grand Valley State University (GVSU) Libraries, Allendale, Mich.

Sponsored by ACRL and YBP Library Services, the award recognizes the staff of a college, university and community college library for programs that deliver exemplary services and resources to further the educational mission of the institution.

"This year's award recipients exemplify the commitment of today's academic and research librarians to providing quality, innovative student learning experiences," said ACRL Executive Director Mary Ellen K. Davis. "Receiving an Excellence in Academic Libraries Award is a national tribute to each library and its staff for outstanding services, programs and leadership.

The Champlain College Library, winner of this year's award in the college category, impressed the selection committee with its nontraditional approach to instruction and positive student-driven environment.

"The library's small but mighty staff have a big impact on campus, and they have fun as well, fostering community through inventive social and cultural events," said Lori Goetsch chair of the 2012 Excellence in Academic Libraries Committee and dean of libraries at Kansas State University . "The campus has adopted technology and information literacy as a core competency, and the library provides leadership through an information literacy program that is incremental, inquiry-based, embedded in the core curriculum and assessed through established rubrics. Surveys indicate that students have come to recognize the technology and information literacy core competency as most important to their academic success. It is clear that these librarians love what they do and spark creativity by working as team."

"The Champlain College Library is deeply honored to receive this award," said Janet Cottrell, director of the library at Champlain College. "This recognition from ACRL is a tribute to the enthusiasm, creativity and hard work of everyone in the library, and to the collaborative spirit of our campus. Our work is - and will remain - challenging, and this honor is a testament to what a small group of people can accomplish through innovation and dedication as we aspire to embody Champlain College's motto: 'Audeamus - Let us dare!' We are deeply grateful to ACRL and YBP."

Seattle Central Community College Library, winner in the community college category, was chosen for its team support for student learning through innovative information literacy offerings. Grand Valley State University Libraries, winner in the university category, was selected for the collaborative and effective approach taken to restructuring the library organization and build an innovative, agile and flexible team-based organization that is responsive to changing user needs.

Each winning library will receive $3,000 and a plaque, to be presented at an award ceremony held on each recipient's campus.

Additional information on the award, along with a list of past winners, is available online athttp://www.ala.org/acrl/awards/achievementawards/excellenceacademic

About ACRL
ACRL is a division of the American Library Association (ALA), representing more than 12,000 academic and research librarians and interested individuals. ACRL is the only individual membership organization in North America that develops programs, products and services to meet the unique needs of academic and research librarians. Its initiatives enable the higher education community to understand the role that academic libraries play in the teaching, learning and research environments. ACRL is on the Web at http://www.acrl.org/, Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ala.acrl and Twitter at @ala_acrl.