Publication Date
2023
Journal or Book Title
Portal: Libraries and the Academy
Abstract
Academic libraries are fundamental in promoting equitable access to education but are often overlooked and underfunded. The COVID-19 pandemic amplified these inequities. This study investigates how 39 library deans and directors perceived decision-making by university administration during COVID-19’s onset. Open-ended survey questions were sent to deans and directors asking them to describe their experiences working with university administration to adjust library services during the crisis. Some library leaders reported that working closely with other departments strengthened their campus connections. Others commented that disagreement between library personnel and university administration caused discord. Some deans and directors were forced to cut staff funding or felt pressured to reopen, while others were trusted to choose their budget and service priorities. The authors recommend that library leaders be more consistently relied upon for their expertise during university decision-making.
ISSN
1530-7131
Author ORCID Identifier
Fitzgerald: 0000-0002-7988-7040
DOI
http://doi.org/10.1353/pla.2023.0008
Pages
45-65
Volume
23
Issue
1
License
UMass Amherst Open Access Policy
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Funder
This project was supported by the Boston Library Consortium
Recommended Citation
Fitzgerald, Sarah Rose; Hutton, Sarah; Reznik-Zellen, Rebecca; Barlow, Charlie; and Oldham, Will, "Decision-Making by and for Academic Libraries during Covid-19" (2023). Portal: Libraries and the Academy. 106.
http://doi.org/10.1353/pla.2023.0008
