Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library

What it reported doing in 2024

Established in 1982, the Atlanta University Center (AUC) Robert W. Woodruff Library serves more than 9,300 undergraduate and graduate students from three Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs): Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, and Spelman College. The Library is committed to delivering exceptional information management, instructional support, research consultation, and access to globally curated resources that foster academic achievement and faculty excellence. The Library maintains an extensive holding of volumes, serials, periodicals, microfilm, and electronic databases, including special collections and archives rich in African American and African Diaspora materials. Principle activities include reference and research consultation services; curriculum-centric-instruction; acquisition, organization, arrangement, dissemination, and preservation of information in all formats; and interlibrary loan services. In FY25, the Library held approximately 105,000 repository records through the modernization of the Repository of AUC Digital Collections, Archives, and Research (RADAR). The Library is responsible for the provision of information technology services, including network and website management, hardware and software acquisition, desktop support, and the ongoing upgrade and maintenance of the wireless footprint throughout the building and designated perimeter areas. In addition, the Library supports teaching and learning, scholarship, and cultural preservation through a range of services, including facilities and maintenance, human and resource management, security, and shuttle transportation between the three AUC campuses, the Library, and designated locations. The AUC Woodruff Library completed Phase II Renovation Project: Brawley Greenscape and Pedestrian Parkway, which transformed the grassy lot across from its main entrance into an outdoor learning space, which included adding an outdoor dining area for the Library's Woodi Caf. The AUC Woodruff Library provides the Bloomberg Finance Lab, which supports the teaching and learning activities of students and faculty in business, economics and finance-related programs. In 2025, the Library completed the renovation its 10,000 square-ft Virginia Lacy Jones Exhibition Hall to facilitate active learning and for student and faculty collaborative engagement with diverse content and a range of learning technologies. As part of the Archives Renovation Project, some existing spaces were re-purposed for archival storage, adding more than 13,500 linear feet of archival storage space for future growth of archive collections. The AUC Woodruff Library also houses the Archives Research Center, renowned for its extensive collection of materials related to the African American experience. This includes the John Henrik Clarke Africana and African American Collection, the Henry P. Slaughter and Countee Cullen Memorial Collection, and the Southern Education Foundation Collection. Additionally, at the request of Morehouse College, the Library serves as the custodian of the Morehouse College Martin Luther King, Jr. Collection, as well as the Joseph Echols Lowery and Evelyn Gibson Lowery Collection.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 74%; rating input score 74
• Program expense ratio: 81.1%; rating input score 81
• Fundraising efficiency: $3.12 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
  • Compensation committee: Pass
  • Independent consultant: Pass
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
  • Written employment contract: Pass
  • Compensation survey or study: Pass
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 6.4%; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.82; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.1; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 5%; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 3.2% per year; rating input score 100; 28th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 2.7% per year; rating input score 100; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: -0.5% per year; rating input score 0; 9th percentile among comparable filings