A Model For Gathering Stakeholder Input For Setting Research Priorities At The Land-Grant University

Abstract

The American public is demanding higher accountability from land-grant universities as evidenced by declining financial support for higher education where the majority of agricultural research is conducted. Reasons for declining financial support may be a perception of disenfranchisement and concern by stakeholders that public dollars spent on research only benefits a narrow segment of the economy. In light of declining public support for publicly funded research, the 1998 Farm Bill (Public Law 105-185) stated that stakeholder input must be collected when setting research priorities. This paper advances a model for collecting and implementing stakeholder input into setting research priorities at land-grant universities that is grounded in Guba and Lincoln's Fourth Generation Evaluation theoretical model (1989). The proposed model describes a process that will streamline and facilitate gathering stakeholder input in a direct and user-friendly manner. This model should be tested and further refined at other land-grant institutions to meet the current and pressing need for greater public accountability. Implications of this study include a discussion of the importance of collecting stakeholder input and consequences of operating without community participation.