Great River Regional Library (GRRL) announces its new mission and vision statements within the 2026-2030 Strategic Plan.
GRRL’s mission is to serve all Central Minnesotans with library collections and services, and GRRL’s vision is to foster the spirit of exploration, knowledge, and connection for all ages and cultures.
Before, GRRL’s mission was just “Explore. Learn. Connect.” The new mission shows why the library is here and who it helps. The vision is about helping everyone explore, learn, and connect. These new mission and vision statements are part of the library’s new plan.
Great River Regional Library’s Board of Trustees approved the 2026-2030 Strategic Plan on November 18, 2025. The preparation of the plan, however, began back in January with the formation of a Steering Committee comprising management and front-line staff, as well as Board of Trustees members. Subcommittees were also created to provide insights from across GRRL’s 32 staffed libraries.
The plan's preparation was thorough and mindful of many stakeholder voices. The Executive Director at the time, Karen Pundsack, sought insights from our cities and counties we serve. She met with Mayors and City Administrators from Long Prairie, Little Falls, Foley, St. Michael, Monticello, Buffalo, Elk River, Becker, St. Joseph, St. Cloud, Waite Park, and Sartell. Plus, she received community visioning feedback from Delano. Through meetings with these city partners, she learned about their communities’ needs, growth, visions, challenges, and opportunities, helping us better inform our next strategic plan and ensure we are working together on complementary goals.
In April 2025, the GRRL Board of Trustees held a work session that expanded beyond the Steering Committee. We also invited the Library Youth Advisory Council to attend and share their input. Small table groups were formed and tasked with areas of the strategic plan to dig deeper into. One of which was the update to the mission and vision statements. Focusing in, we determined four strategic directions: support learning, share our story, welcome all, and grow partnerships. Each of these directions is linked to goals, objectives, and a desired outcome.
The committee then made sure the goals could really happen. Supporting learning means teaching reading and other skills. Sharing our story means letting more people know about the library. Welcoming all means making sure nothing stops people from using the library. Growing partnerships means teaming up with non-profits and businesses to do more together.
Our core values of exceptional service, forward thinking, and community focus are unchanged. Ultimately, we want the library to be the place where people in our communities can find and use the trusted information they need to thrive. With this new plan, we are ready for the future.