On 8 April 2025, the professional development program for library staff “Innovative Strategies for Development of University Libraries within Digital Transformation and Social Challenges” was started. It will last till 18 April.

This is a pilot project implemented at the initiative of the Alliance of Ukrainian Universities Library Cooperation Group. It is currently coordinated by Olha KRYTSKA (director of the SumDU Library) in partnership with the SumDU Center for Human Resource Development.

Librarians from leading institutions that are members of the Alliance of Ukrainian Universities participate in the professional development program. Such members are Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, National Technical University “Dnipro Polytechnic”, National University of Water and Environmental Engineering, Sumy State University, Ukrainian Catholic University, Alfred Nobel University, Yurii Fedkovych National University of Chernivtsi.

The program is aimed at improving professional competencies of librarians in innovative development strategies. It will help participants master modern approaches to librarianship and effective work within digital transformation. One will be able to implement innovative solutions.

The program will cover the following key topics:

• Strategic library management as a vector of development;
• Copyright and intellectual property;
• Digital library and its importance for education, science and culture;
• Information and library support of university research activities;
• Evaluation of scientific data for compliance with FAIR principles;
• Accreditation of educational programs via library roles;
• Library performance in social networks;
• Artificial intelligence in library practice;
• Mental health in the world of information (tools of a modern librarian).

The program lecturers are library managers, specialists and scientists. There are experts in copyright, open science, digital technologies, artificial intelligence, information management, and communications: Olha KRYTSKA (director of the SumDU Library); Serhii HAVENKO (UCU legal advisor, attorney); Oleksandra YARUCHYK (head of projects and programs at the UCU Library); Victoriia HARBUZOVA (professor, head of the SumDU Department of Physiology and Pathophysiology with the medical biology course, certified trainer in adult learning and education, certified tutor of problem-based learning under the Tempus grant program, and mindfulness fitness trainer); Svitlana CHERHYNETS (director of the Library of the Alfred Nobel University); Oleksandr SHEVCHUK (leading bibliographer of the research sector of the Scientific and Methodological Department of the Mykhailo Maksymovych Scientific Library of the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv); Oleh SHYLIUK (deputy director for information technology of the Scientific Library of the Yurii Fedkovych National University).

There are two representatives of SumDU among the program lecturers. This once again proves the high level of training of our specialists.

The organizers hope that the training program will provide librarians with not only new knowledge but also inspiration for new ideas and projects that will ensure the successful development of university libraries.