ACRL Board Virtual Action – Friends Funds Projects
Discussion period: 3/26/-4/2/2013
Revised 4/2/2013
Voting Period: 4/3-4/10/2013
Association of College & Research Libraries
50 E. Huron St. Chicago, IL 60611
800-545-2433, ext. 2523
acrl@ala.org, http://www.acrl.org
Board of Directors Action Form
To:
ACRL Board of Directors
Subject:
Friends Fund Disbursement Request
Submitted by:
Mary Jane Petrowski, ACRL Associate Director
Date submitted:
March 11, 2013, (revised April 2, 3013)
BACKGROUND:
At the 2013 ALA Midwinter Meeting the ACRL Board of Directors voted to dissolve the
two subcommittees of the Budget and Finance Committee (Friends Fund Committee and Friends Fund
Disbursement Committee) effective at the close of Annual Conference 2013. Prior to this decision, the Friends
Fund Disbursement Committee would recommend disbursements from the Friends Funds for approval by the
Friends Fund Committee.
Recognizing that ACRL needed to continue to diversify its revenue streams, the Board also approved a
decision to change the way the Friends funds are recognized in the budget. In response to discussion at the
joint session of Board and Budget and Finance Committee, the ACRL staff will record donated funds and show
them as revenue in the operating budget beginning in FY14. Prior to this decision, donations were placed into
a restricted account and not recognized in the operating budget. This decision supports ongoing changes in
the organization of the Friends of ACRL program, enabling the division to use the funding to better support
strategic initiatives while honoring donor intent. Staff will maintain careful records of Friends Fund donations to
ensure that donations are spent only on specific projects in accordance with donor intent.
The Board also agreed to assume responsibility for disbursing Friends Funds (other than those dedicated to
professional development, which will be disbursed by the Budget & Finance Committee) to more directly
support the Plan for Excellence. Historically, most Friends donations have been used to support scholarships.
While scholarships are a worthy initiative, ACRL Friends have given for many other purposes. Because there
will be a Friends thank-you reception at the ACRL 2013 Conference it would be prudent to demonstrate how
Friends donations have been used to support a wide range of initiatives. Given the short time period between
this action and ACRL 2013 Appendix A includes a list of projects already planned and included in the FY13
budget that the Board might choose to fund from the Friends Funds on hand. As of February 28, 2013, the
balance in the Friends funds was $42,770. This amount excludes $10,610 in the Professional Development
Fund and $4,010 in the RBMS Scholarships Fund, which will be disbursed by the Budget & Finance
Committee and RBMS, respectively.
The ACRL Budget and Finance Committee discussed the proposed Friends Fund projects via ALA Connect
between March 13 and 18, 2013. The Committee’s comments were appended underneath each project
description and shared with the Board during discussion period which was held March 26 through April 2,
Electronic submission is preferred for all Board actions. If electronic submission of the entire document is not possible, please send
the Action Form to ACRL Program Officer Lindsay Bosch electronically at lbosch@ala.org and the remainder in hard copy.
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ACRL Board Virtual Action – Friends Funds Projects
Discussion period: 3/26/-4/2/2013
Revised 4/2/2013
Voting Period: 4/3-4/10/2013
2013. The Budget & Finance Committee clearly favored funding some projects and not funding others. B&F
supported fully funding two projects (Spectrum and Scholarly Communications Workshop) and partially
funding another (Survey Reporting), was divided on one (Assessment in Action), and did not support funding
two (C&RL and Copyright Alliance). B&F also expressed interest in retaining a percentage of the Friends Fund
donations to fund projects next year. The Board may consider the advice of Budget & Finance as it considers
disbursements but may make its own decisions about the projects. Projects approved by the Board would be
announced at a special event thanking the Friends Fund donors in Indianapolis on April12.
During the Board’s online discussion period there was feedback by approximately half of the members on
varied projects. Based on this feedback, as well as suggestion by the ACRL Presidents, five recommendations will
be posed to the Board for approval in separate votes. A revised version of Appendix A, included with this Action
Form, includes details regarding each of the five projects and also outlines the alignment of each recommendation
with donor intent and the Plan for Excellence goals and objectives. Approval of all five recommendations would
disburse $32,967 of the current $42,770 Friends Fund balance, allowing reserve balance of $9,803 (23%). (It should
be noted that March 2013 was a productive month for Friends Funds contributions. It is anticipated that the reserve
balance after disbursement would be approximately $12,000, once recent donations are fully processed.)
ACTION RECOMMENDED:
Taking into account online discussion held by the Budget & Finance Committee and the Board of Directors, the
following Friends Fund disbursement recommendations are proposed:
Recommendation 1: That the Board approve the disbursement of $6,500 in support of the ALA Spectrum
Scholars Initiative.
Recommendation 2: That the Board approve the disbursement of a $10,000 contribution towards the
cost of uploading C&RL back files to the journal’s online site at HighWire Press.
Recommendation 3: That the Board approve the disbursement of $4,167 to support the Library
Copyright Alliance Project.
Recommendation 4: That the Board approve the disbursement of $4,500 to support a Scholarly
Communication Workshop.
Recommendation 5: That the Board approve the disbursement of $7,800 to support consulting and
coaching of the “Assessment in Action” facilitation and design team.
IF PERTINENT: Have other stakeholders been consulted? The Budget and Finance Committee, the
ACRL Board, and the ACRL Presidents have discussed this issue formally at their 2013 ALA Midwinter Meetings and
on conference calls. At the request of the Presidents, the ACRL staff prepared a list of potential projects (see
Appendix A) which was reviewed by the Budget & Finance Committee prior to Board consideration.
STRATEGIC GOAL AREA SUPPORTED: Please add additional sheets as needed to explain. (Select the
goal area that will be affected most by this action.)
X Value of Academic Libraries
Goal: Academic libraries demonstrate alignment with and impact on institutional outcomes.
Electronic submission is preferred for all Board actions. If electronic submission of the entire document is not possible, please send
the Action Form to ACRL Program Officer Lindsay Bosch electronically at lbosch@ala.org and the remainder in hard copy.
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ACRL Board Virtual Action – Friends Funds Projects
Discussion period: 3/26/-4/2/2013
Revised 4/2/2013
Voting Period: 4/3-4/10/2013
X Student Learning
Goal: Librarians transform student learning, pedagogy, and instructional practices through creative and innovative
collaborations.
X Research and Scholarly Environment
Goal: Librarians accelerate the transition to a more open system of scholarship.
X Enabling Programs and Services
ACRL programs, services, and publications that target education, advocacy, and member engagement.
FISCAL AND STAFFING IMPACT: The FY13 budget deficit may be reduced depending on how many projects
are approved for funding. Minimal staff time is required to transfer funds and update budget projections.
MOTION:
Above recommendation moved
ACTION TAKEN:
Motion Approved
No motion made
Motion Defeated
Motion revised (see motion form)
Other: ___________________
Electronic submission is preferred for all Board actions. If electronic submission of the entire document is not possible, please send
the Action Form to ACRL Program Officer Lindsay Bosch electronically at lbosch@ala.org and the remainder in hard copy.
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