About the Science and Technology Information Center 

Our Mission and Vision

The Science and Technology Information Center is both a physical facility and a virtual information service of Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne (IPFW). As a library within Walter E. Helmke Library's Integrated Information Foraging Environment (see more about our IIFE Model), the special mission of the Science and Technology Information Center is to enhance the information-literacy skills of users seeking authoritative health, scientific, and technical information, as well as science-education resources. In alignment with Helmke Library's mission statement, we envision the Science and Technology Information Center becoming a major community resource and the most comprehensive science library in northeastern Indiana.

History and Collections

The Science and Technology Information Center is supported by library operating funds and, in part, by generous donors to the Campaign for Helmke Library. The center's reference consulting area, public-access workstations, and offices for librarians were completed at the end of 1999. A conference room within the center provides space for small groups to meet. The center also houses the library's technical staff and computer network infrastructure.

Medical and sci-tech reference books, along with periodicals and circulating book collections (call numbers Q through Z), have been brought together conveniently on the fourth floor. Printed reference materials are shelved in the Science Reference Collection, while the library's homepage provides access to thousands of electronic journals, e-books, and many of the world's most important databases and indexes.

Expert Staff Assistance

One-on-one research consulting appointments are available with the Science and Technology Information Center staff. Librarians at Helmke Library have specialized liaison relationships with each of IPFW's academic departments. Find Your Librarian provides an easy means to identify each librarian's areas of subject expertise. Ask a Librarian explains how to contact a librarian at Helmke Library by phone, e-mail, or IM. In addition to offering research consultations, the librarians publish Science and Technology Information Center newsletters periodically to alert IPFW faculty, staff, and students to new information resources and services available in their disciplines.

Information Literacy Training

Scholars, students, and professionals alike need to have their information literacy skills updated regularly, as well as have an opportunity for hands-on practice of new skills. Being able to develop an effective search strategy, select the proper tools for searching, retrieve resources and evaluate the quality of the information retrieved (especially when that information is delivered in a variety of electronic formats) are all skills that are lost if not frequently refreshed. The Electronic Information Training Center (EITC) provides a facility dedicated to teaching these information literacy skills. Our classroom-computer laboratory is equipped with 24 workstations, projection equipment, printers, and application software.

Through our Librarian-Faculty Information Literacy Partnership, those associated with IPFW's academic programs can receive individualized or group instruction in the use of the information systems provided by Helmke Library. Many hundreds of students, faculty, and staff have already benefitted from presentations by librarians and other trainers.

Opportunities for the Future

In addition to providing specialized collections and expert assistance, the Science and Technology Information Center also functions to plan and coordinate new initiatives.

Helmke Library librarians will work with groups and individuals to develop cooperative agreements for information services in collaboration with high-tech enterprises in northeastern Indiana. We envision forming partnerships that target representatives of IPFW's academic programs in health, science, and technology fields. We also aim to include school corporations and K-12 science educators, the Allen County Public Library, other public libraries and institutions of higher education in the region, area nonprofit organizations and museums, and the business, industrial, and biomedical communities.

In fulfilling our vision to be a visible community resource and a recognized campus center of excellence, the Science and Technology Information Center aligns itself with IPFW's mission and goal to advance the quality of life in Fort Wayne and the surrounding region. For background on some of our efforts to date, see the account of the Information Literacy Initiative at IPFW and the eight Information Literacy Proficiencies endorsed by the Senate Library Subcommittee and Helmke Library.

Opportunities abound for an information literacy initiative that reaches well beyond the walls of the library to involve the entire northeastern Indiana community. Our commitment is to help people make full use of available scientific and technical information to enrich their lives.

Based on its solid beginnings and range of innovative programs, we anticipate a bright future for Helmke Library's Science and Technology Information Center.