Vision

Tulane University Special Collections (TUSC) inspires actions that transform our world by creating pathways to evolving understandings of the past and present. 

Mission

In service to Tulanians, New Orleanians, and our global community, our staff works together to facilitate the broadest possible access to the resources in our care. Guided by professional best practices, standards, and ethics, we use our expertise to:

• Select and acquire unique or rare materials essential to the study of New Orleans and its surrounding areas, including books, archives, university records, architectural drawings, audio and visual recordings, and ephemera;
• Provide care for our holdings through preservation, description, digitization, and management;
• Investigate and employ technology to increase accessibility and facilitate use;
• Engage with the Tulane community, as well as the larger research community, through reference, instruction, workshops, and one-on-one consultations;
• Curate and design physical and digital exhibitions, develop public programming, and create digital content to promote our resources;
• Collaborate with our local, national, and international colleagues and partners to increase awareness of how archives and special collections, and the professionals that care for them, are integral to education in all its forms;
• Create space for critical inquiry, creativity, interdisciplinary conversation, and communal discovery.