Hesburgh Libraries

Mission

Hesburgh Libraries cultivates curiosity and discovery as a hub for intellectual life. We advance the University’s research, teaching, and learning goals while fostering Notre Dame’s engagement with the global scholarly community.

Vision

Hesburgh Libraries will be a collaborative, diverse, and inclusive community that advances human flourishing. Collectively, we will shift the paradigm on how research libraries further the creation, understanding, and use of knowledge.

Tradition of Academic Excellence

Nearly 60 years ago, President Emeritus Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C., dreamed of a new library building that would become the academic heart of the University. It would serve—along with the Main Building and the Basilica of the Sacred Heart—as one of a trilogy of iconic buildings that would define the Notre Dame campus. These three buildings still define the Notre Dame skyline today.

The daily work of the Hesburgh Libraries faculty and staff is anchored in the original vision and the words of our institutional leaders, both past and present. Their words have been immortalized on our walls and are echoed in our daily commitment to service and partnership across the academy.

“I wanted in 1963, and still desire today, for the Memorial Library literally to stand for the future of Notre Dame as a place of unmatched intellectual achievement, free inquiry, and providential contributions to mankind. Let the Library be a place on this campus where that hunger for truth will keep getting stronger, supporting freedom and justice around the world, inspiring excellence, and prodding us to bigger dreams.”
– Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C.

“The University is proud to carry the legacy of the Hesburgh Library forward… to create a leading research library for the 21st century. Given the ever-changing environment of the digital age, now is the time to make a transformational leap and keep the Hesburgh Library a centerpiece of Notre Dame’s intellectual pursuits and an enduring symbol of our academic excellence. Our renewed vision will revolutionize how we work together to advance teaching and research, … and create new knowledge and global solutions that contribute to a world in need.”
– Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C.