Content area
Academic libraries provide much needed functions for a diverse learning environment on college campuses. Academic libraries help establish positive student identity and validation, which in turn leads to socially equitable outcomes such as lifelong learning, multicultural competencies and academic success. Unfortunately, academic libraries are under duress from many angles, including budget reductions, misperceptions from administrators and policy makers, and their own internal historical problems. The library dean must navigate these challenges thoughtfully and strategically to position the academic library as the premiere partner in student success. This qualitative study utilizes the multicontextual model for diverse learning environments to analyze the perceptions and strategies of the library dean in the California State University system. The questions this research seeks to answer are (1) How the library dean perceives the value of the academic library; (2) How the library dean uses strategic resources to fulfill those values of the library; and (3) How the library dean communicates the value of the library to the campus community. Research findings produced a profile of the library as a dynamic, collaborative, and people-forward organization, but one that was under-resourced. The research also illustrated a profile of a library dean as having to operate in a liminal space of maintaining core values while systemic pressures required deviation from those values. The implications of this study create a tenuous position for campuses whose mission of social equity could be improved by providing academic libraries with more resources. The recommendations relate to establishing better minimum staffing standards at the policy level, and also recommend how library deans can better utilize their current staffing to amplify value of the academic library. Further research is recommended to both broaden the scope, but also narrow it to address specific campus needs.