This study examines funding satisfaction, budget, donor-designated funds, funding predictability, long-term project funding, service reductions, grant-seeking, and the areas of special collections most affected by resource shortages.
The report is based on a sample of 26 academic institutions, including 18 public and 8 private institutions; 16 research universities and 10 other types of institutions. The central finding is that special collections funding is widely viewed as inadequate and often insufficiently predictable for long-term planning.
Only 19.23% of respondents are satisfied or very satisfied with current funding for special collections, while 50.00% are dissatisfied or very dissatisfied. Funding strain is especially severe among the largest institutions, where 66.67% of institutions with more than 40,000 FTE are very dissatisfied.
Special collections often receives a small or unclear share of institutional budgets. 38.46% of respondents are not sure what percentage of the total budget is dedicated to special collections, while 34.62% say it is under 10%. Only 3.85% report that special collections accounts for 40% or more of the total budget.
Donor-designated funds help but are not universal. 42.31% receive donor-designated funds for special collections, and another 19.23% do so sometimes. Institutions with 20,000–40,000 FTE are especially likely to receive such funds, with 85.71% answering yes.
Funding conditions have concrete service consequences. 38.46% say budget constraints have forced them to reduce services or programs, and another 26.92% say this has happened somewhat. Staffing is the dominant resource shortage: 57.69% rank staffing as the most severe shortage, far ahead of storage, digitization, preservation, technology, or outreach.
Grant-seeking is common but not intensive for most respondents. 23.08% pursue grants or external funding frequently, 38.46% occasionally, 23.08% rarely, and 7.69% never. Open-ended comments point to the need for stable budget lines, more full-time staff, stronger donor development, endowments, and better links between collection donations and financial support.