The future of academic libraries is intertwined with private philanthropy

In order to survive and preserve their status as the information center of their academic institution, academic libraries will have to continue to “adapt and improvise in order to overcome” the financial difficulties and the budgetary constraints that they are being subjected to in today’s economic and technological environments. Their senior administrators need to take active roles in fund-raising and development initiatives, and their parent institutions need to see the value of their library operations and strive to provide the adequate support that these operations need in order to continue delivering the services and programs that are expected from them. Academic libraries must continue to reinvent themselves as they embrace the new technologies and continue to provide the services that their clientele expect. For this to happen it will be necessary for academic libraries to put in place appropriate development and fund-raising initiatives to support their services, programs and evolution.