Chapter V.-Facilities

In addition to the organization of commerce and business, including the management of faculty personnel, buildings and equipment are important as mechanisms for meeting the needs of higher business education. The questionnaire contained several items on this point. Twenty-one institutions replied that they were using one building or a part of one building with the total capacity of the buildings ranging from 11 to 80 rooms. Seven institutions replied that they were using two or more buildings with the total capacity of the buildings ranging from 20 to 216 rooms. Commerce and business except in seven or eight institutions where there are special commerce buildings share quarters with other departments. Another way to determine the building space devoted to commerce and business is to study the number of rooms devoted exclusively to commerce and business.

Sixteen institutions devote from 1 to 5 rooms exclusively to commerce and business; 11 institutions from 6 to 11 rooms; and 7 institutions 12 rooms or more. Among the latter, 1 institution reports 53 rooms and another reports 71 rooms used exclusively by commerce and business.

Twenty-five land-grant institutions report 203 lecture and recitation classrooms utilized exclusively for commerce and business. Twenty-one institutions report 178 lecture and recitation classrooms utilized both for commerce and business and for instruction in other classes. Table 41 gives the rating of lecture and recitation classrooms utilized for commerce and business.

TABLE 41.-Rating of lecture and recitation classrooms utilized for commerce and business

It may readily be seen that many institutions report each of these factors either as excellent or good. There are, however, also many institutions reporting on each factor as fair.

Table 42 provides data on the size and value of equipment and furniture of commercial laboratories, conferences, and special rooms other than offices.

TABLE 42.-Size and value of equipment and furniture of commercial laboratories, conference, and special rooms other than offices

It will be seen that 20 institutions report accounting and and statistical laboratories with total student capacity of 1,648. Fourteen of these twenty institutions reported an appraised value of these laboratories of $31,896.

The average capacity of accounting and statistical laboratories is 82.2 students. The average capacity for typewriting, shorthand, and office devices rooms is 88 students. The average capacity for seminar and library rooms is 32 students. The average capacity for conferences and assembly rooms is 262.5 students.

Thirty-six institutions report the use of offices by commerce and business staff members. They report a total of 188 offices, or 5.2 offices per institution. Eighteen institutions checked office space for each staff member as satisfactory; 17 checked office space for each staff member as unsatisfactory; 7 institutions checked office equipment excellent; 21 institutions satisfactory; and 8 unsatisfactory. Fifteen institutions checked the convenience of location of offices and their proximity to classrooms as excellent, 11 good, 8 fair, and 1 poor. The land-grant institutions were asked to report on the outstanding needs of commerce and business for buildings.

Eight institutions reported definitely the need for new buildings especially adapted to and equipped for commerce and business. One institution reports the need for completing and equipping a special commerce building already constructed. Six institutions report needs for library, reading, and seminar rooms. Eight institutions report needs for better and more adequate accounting and statistical laboratories. Fourteen institutions exclusive of those reporting the need for a new building report a need for more and better-equipped lecture and recitation rooms. One institution reports the need for student club quarters. Five institutions report the need for assembly and conference

rooms, and five institutions report the need for additional office space. Practically all the institutions reporting indicate need of equipment of one type or another.

Library facilities are very important in connection with the facilities for commerce and business. The questionnaire on commerce and business included items concerning magazine and bulletin. services only. Table 43 provides information as to the periodical and bulletin services in economics.

TABLE 43.-Magazine and bulletin services in economics available for commerce and business courses in general or divisional libraries

The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science.
Yale Review.

1922-23

1927-28

26

26

24

26

From 1922-23 to 1927-28 there has been an appreciable increase in the number of institutions taking the various economic journals. For example, in 1922-23 only 26 institutions were regular subscribers to the American Economic Review. In 1927-28, 35 institutions were regular subscribers. The same is true with regard to the Quarterly Journal of Economics. The other journals show more or less similar increases. Few land-grant institutions are regular subscribers to foreign economic periodicals.

Table 44 includes information concerning periodical and bulletin services in statistics. Again, there is an appreciable increase from 1922-23 to 1927-28 in the number of institutions regularly subscribing for these periodicals and services.

TABLE 44.-Magazine and bulletin services in statistics available for commerce and business courses in general or divisional libraries

Table 45 gives data on periodicals and bulletin services in banking and finance. Again there is an appreciable increase from 1922–23 to 1927-28 in the number of institutions subscribing to banking and finance periodical and bulletin services. It is rather interesting to observe that more institutions in 1927-28 were regular subscribers to the Commercial and Financial Chronicle and the Bankers' Magazine than any other periodical. The magazine with the next largest number of subscriptions in 1927-28 was the Analist. Only 10 institutions subscribe to Bradstreet.

TABLE 45.-Magazines and bulletin services in banking and finance available for commerce and business courses in general or divisional libraries

Table 46 gives the same information concerning industry and commerce. The various institutions have made the same sort of progress in this field from 1922-23 to 1927-28 as in the preceding fields.

TABLE 46.-Magazine and bulletin services in industry and commerce available for commerce and business courses in general of divisional libraries

Both in 1922-23 and in 1927-28 more institutions were subscribers to the Commerce Reports, the Magazine of Business, The Nation's Business, Harvard Business Review, and Reports and Decisions of Interstate Commerce Commission than to any other periodicals or services listed.

Table 47 contains facts as to periodical and bulletin services in advertising, accounting, and trade and labor. Progress in each of these fields is seen from 1922-23 to 1927–28.

TABLE 47.-Magazine and bulletin services in advertising, accounting, trade and labor, available for commerce and business courses in general or divisional libraries

More institutions subscribed to Printers' Ink in the field of advertising, and more institutions subscribed to the Journal of Accountancy in the field of accounting, and more institutions subscribed to the Monthly Labor Review and publications of the American Association for Labor Legislation in the field of labor than any of the other services or periodicals.

Table 48 contains data on the annual budget of the divisions of commerce and business in land-grant institutions for the years 1923 to 1928. As may be observed there are three major items in the table: Salaries and wages, operation and maintenance, and capital outlay. The table is almost self-explanatory.

Average salaries and wages have increased from $31,224 to $37,835, or an increase of 21.9 per cent. Funds for operation and maintenance have increased from an average of $28,074 to $81,080, or an increase of 188 per cent. Average funds have increased from $33,256 in 1923-24 to $42,081 in 1927-28, or an increase of 30.4 per

cent.