ACRL Presidents’ Program:

The findings of these interviews are consistent with—but more extensive than— Beverly Lynch’s face-to-face study of the president and provost of 6 academic institutions that included a question about “Who and What Influences Decisions about The Library.”1 What do they want from their libraries? Overall most of the CAOs interviewed are aware of and think highly of their librarian and library’s role. [...] In most of these institutions the library budget tends to be limited to a certain percentage of the overall institutional budget; but many CAOs have supplemental funds they routinely allocate to the library. [...] Even in institutions in which the library is seen as fully central and tied closely to the strategic plans of the institution, library funding is available for the needs not wants of the library staff. [...] Several mentioned the coffee shop in their information commons; a few said that they will send their librarian out as a spokesperson for the university and for the library; but the group of individuals interviewed for this study rarely considered important such activities as grant writing, fund raising and any other activities initiated to bring in additional revenues to the library. [...] I would like to ask you about the relationships between the library and your institution with particular reference to resource allocation and the ways in which the library communicates to you, the chief budget officer.