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Browsing by Author "Alexander, F. King"

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    Examining the Financial Health of Libraries at Research Universities
    (University of Alabama Libraries, 2024) Daugherty, Patricia Alice; Katsinas, Stephen G.
    This three-article dissertation investigates the impact of revenues from research universities on the budgets of research libraries, highlighting the essential role academic libraries have in supporting the mission of research universities. The research assesses the mix of revenues between 107 publicly funded and 39 private doctoral-granting universities with very high research activity (R1) and the allocations provided to make up their library budgets. The findings indicate a decline in the average percentage of university operating budgets allocated to fund library budgets for all 146 research libraries.For the second article, a comparative quantitative assessment of the financial status of these research libraries reveals differences in revenues and major components of research library expenditures, including staffing, materials, and operations and maintenance expenses. The study also examines library differences based on institutional type and size, library collections and scope, and per-student library expenditures. The most disadvantaged research libraries are those at the 28 smaller research universities, as identified by the Mission-Driven Classification System, which experienced a 29 percent decline in library budgets over ten years. The second article advocates for federal funding from the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) to increase support for these libraries.Additionally, the last article explores how federal legislation has historically shaped the funding and growth of libraries, focusing on key legislative acts such as the Library Services Act of 1956 and Title II of the Higher Education Act of 1965. The trends in authorized and enacted federal appropriations for libraries from 1957 to 2023 are explored, emphasizing the need for increased general knowledge of federal library legislation among library leaders and a call to action for federal efforts to increase support for libraries.
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    The Widening College Access Gap: Pell Grant Disinvestment and Declining Student Enrollment in the South
    (Education Policy Center, 2025) Katsinas, Stephen G.; Keeney, Noel E.; Bray, Nathaniel J.; Alexander, F. King; Till, Garrett; Ogunnarin, Moses; Kelly, Patrick J.
    This policy and research brief — produced by The University of Alabama’s Education Policy Center (UA-EPC) for the Southern Education Foundation (SEF) — addresses the impact of inconsistent funding for Pell Grants and their power as a tool for supporting students to and through college. Federal and state policymakers should push for higher levels and steadier Pell Grant funding. Policymakers in the South should especially make consistent and reliable Pell Grant funding a top priority in the federal budget, with an eye toward a better-prepared and more skilled workforce to keep the region and nation economically competitive.