7

Cases

Faculty positions

Abstract

Faculty positions are as important to the academic library in higher education as they are to any other department or unit across campus. Not only are faculty positions an avenue for lifelong funding, but the position itself becomes more prestigious through the naming. It highlights the gift of the donor and also increases the value of the position to the faculty member holding the position and thus affects any future recruitment for that position. As it also signifies an important area of research, a faculty position is a good case to take to a donor or prospective donor who is interested in research on a particular topic or specialized area of study.

Keywords

Endowment; Academic donors; Faculty chair; Proposal; Research; Higher education

Traditionally in higher education the named faculty chair was the most celebrated gift to a university (Thelin and Trollinger, 2014, p. 14). That seems to remain so within the university environment and for donors with a long philanthropic tradition in higher education. This case for giving may be less intuitive for those who are new to higher education philanthropy, but it can be positioned to interest donors if messaged properly.

Named faculty chairs are created through endowments. Because few scholarship opportunities make sense in the academic library (to be discussed in another chapter), these philanthropic gifts are an excellent option for donors who like the endowment structure. Thelin and Trollinger (2014) call endowments “…the hallmark and lifeblood of colleges and universities in the United States” (p. 95). Because of the status they have among higher education donors, this is a strong case for giving with alumni and friends who are interested in investing in the long-term success of the university.

There is no consistent fundraising structure for faculty chairs in higher education. We have even observed different structures between campuses in the same university system. In any structure, however, there are usually several ranks of faculty associated with different levels of giving. For example, a named professorship may require a $2M gift while an assistant professorship can be named for $1M. Another scenario emerging of late is the “rising star” opportunity which actually costs much less (say around $500K in some institutions), but expires after 5 years as opposed to a faculty chair that is named in perpetuity, utilizing the endowment to pay for the position. In the “rising star” scenario the funds are not held in an endowment. Rather, they are distributed over the course of the position and are more appropriate for a highly publicized visiting scholar or a professor completing work on a short-term, but groundbreaking, research project.

Donors interested in this type of gift often see themselves as investors. In the case of a named faculty chair, they are investing in the area of expertise, ensuring it will be around for years to come. This is a good case for giving for someone who has a specific interest or history in an area of research or has taught in it. The “rising star” is also an investment, but in an outcome, rather than the perpetuation of the position. The outcome can be the result of research or simply having a particular expert on campus for a specified period of time.

Not all academic libraries have faculty who are teaching and researching like the faculty in the other colleges. There are hybrid faculty positions where professors research but don't teach; in other cases there is no faculty structure at all for the academic library staff. Whatever the scenario, there are opportunities to have strategic positions named through a philanthropic gift that funds the position through an endowment. Depending on funding opportunities and the capacity of prospects, faculty chairs can be named at an amount that covers a portion of the cost for a faculty position, while the academic library covers the rest. At an even higher level, an endowment could pay for a faculty position as well as an assistant and possibly even a stipend for travel related to conference presentations and research. With the typical payout for an endowment at 5% per year, it's simple to calculate the funding required to generate the income needed each year for the position.

Providing the funds to endow a faculty position is not just about a donor attaching his or her name to something. When discussing the opportunity of an endowed chair, it is important to help the prospective donor understand what it means to faculty and what opportunity it provides for the academic library or any college or department as it relates to important research and prestige for the university and the academic library community.

In the academic world, a named position or, even better, a named faculty chair, is very prestigious. When working with prospects for faculty support, it is important to help them understand that one of the most valuable elements of the gift is that it will attract the best of the best to their university. Not all academic libraries offer faculty opportunities or named positions, but there is a lot of potential to get and keep the highest quality academic professionals to your library through the creation of an endowed chair.

Below are a few examples of named faculty chairs in an academic library:

■ Chair of University Archives (or even one particular archive or collection)

■ Chair of a particular library or division (eg, Chair of the Engineering Library)

■ Chair for a particular initiative (eg, Chair of Information Literacy)

■ Chair of a broad topic area (eg, Chair of Humanities or Chair of Science)

Success story

Dr. Sharon Weiner, EdD, MLS

Professor and W. Wayne Booker Chair in Information Literacy

Purdue University

Librarians are information experts who have the capability and drive to work with institutional stakeholders in addressing a vast range of information issues. This is an example of a donor's intense interest in solving a problem that libraries can address and willingness to donate personal funds for that purpose.

The Ford Motor Company and Purdue University have a long-established relationship. Ford has made financial donations to Purdue and has employed many Purdue graduates. In fact, more than 1000 alumni worked there in recent years.

An alumnus who had been Vice Chairman of Ford, W. Wayne Booker, identified a conundrum with new college graduates that the company hired. They were bright, motivated, and competent in their jobs. But he was not satisfied with their ability to think critically and to learn continually to stay current in their jobs. He investigated this dilemma and learned about the concept of “information literacy,” which is foundational to lifelong learning. It is the ability to find, evaluate, and synthesize the best information for a specific purpose; communicate it effectively to an intended audience; and use it for problem solving and decision making.

After discussions with the Purdue Libraries Dean, Jim Mullins, Booker made a substantial donation of $2.5 million to endow a position in the Libraries to ensure that there would always be someone who would focus intensively on information literacy. It is the first endowed chair of its kind in the world and immediately propelled Purdue to international leadership in information literacy. Having an endowed chair provided opportunities for many internal and external innovative programs and collaborations.

Success story

Samuel T. Huang

Curator, Rare Books Collection

Department of Special and Area Studies Collections

George A. Smathers Libraries

University of Florida

At the University of Florida, the minimum required amount for a collection endowment is $30,000, and endowing a library faculty position is at least $2 million (depending on the rank of the position). The George A. Smathers Libraries at the University of Florida had never had an endowed faculty position. I was able to persuade a major existing donor to endow the Director of the Health Science Center Library at the University of Florida.

During the Florida Tomorrow campus-wide campaign, I received support from the library dean to focus on establishing library endowments for various library campaign goals. In competing with other colleges and academic units, to endow a library faculty position requires support from the library dean, the librarians, and the University Foundation. During my tenure as Associate Dean for Library Development, I attended almost all the fundraising and social events sponsored by colleges, schools, and the University of Florida Foundation. At one of the University Foundation events, I met a retired physician who happened to be the keynote speaker at that event. In his speech, he mentioned that he chose Gainesville, Fla., to retire because the University of Florida has an excellent health science library. He also praised the librarians who assisted his ongoing research. His speech and comments gave me inspiration, and I knew I wanted to speak with him about the Health Science Center Library.

A fundraiser speaks to an academic librarian

AL: Faculty endowments are just as important in the academic library as they are in any other unit on campus.

FR: Before we started working together, I didn't even know that there was faculty in the library! And then when I found out, I had no idea they were doing research and teaching just like all the other faculty.

AL: All academic libraries are different and not all have faculty. But the ones with faculty really need to make donors aware of it and cultivate named chairs.

FR: They are really prestigious.

AL: One of the benefits of having named chairs is the credibility the library gains with their peer departments and units. It's easier to propose collaborations when faculty from other areas understand that they will be working with colleagues also engaged in research.

FR: A named chair helps recruit the best candidates for a position.

AL: Just having named chairs makes the library look better in reporting, but it is also great for the faculty member who holds it. The confidence that a position is funded in perpetuity allows them to take risks in research that may generate truly impactful results.

FR: It also looks great on a proposal, especially to a foundation.

AL: But first you have to find the donor to fund the endowed chair.

FR: So true. Who is a good candidate for this kind of gift?

AL: In our case, it turned out to be a long-term advisory council member. He spent years hearing about all the research into and the mission of information literacy. The idea to endow a chair to ensure that this mission would not only remain but become a priority was something that was cultivated once the dean and development officer realized how passionate he was about it.

FR: These gifts can be really fun to put together, too. They can have a lot of elements including a major gift and a planned gift combination.

AL: Yes, and often the pledge on a gift of this size can be paid off over several years.

FR: There is a little more flexibility here because very often the position is already budgeted, so the funds aren't needed immediately.

AL: You have done an interesting faculty funding gift called a Rising Star.

FR: Yes! These are great ways to recruit talent for short-term research projects that fit a particular strategy. They are current use funds that pay to host a researcher for a number of years to complete a project or, for example, get an invention or solution to market.

AL: There are also examples of awards that fund faculty research. We have one in our library that awards travel funds to faculty anywhere on campus who need to do research at a library or archive somewhere else in the world.

FR: Talk about collaboration. Those faculty members must be thrilled and surprised!

AL: I believe it is a pretty unique program, but it is a nice concept to present to donors.

References

Thelin J.R., Trollinger R.W. Philanthropy and American Higher Education. New York: St. Martin's/Palgrave Macmillan; 2014.

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