Ithaka S+R is a not-for-profit service that helps the academic community navigate economic and technological change.

Our work–offering research and strategic guidance–has been instrumental in helping leaders in education know what is coming next, learn from rigorous and well-designed research studies, and adapt to new realities and opportunities. Our aim is to broaden access to higher education by reducing costs while also improving student outcomes.

We approach this goal with a legacy of working with universities and colleges as well as the institutions that support teaching and research—libraries, publishing organizations, cultural institutions, and scholarly societies.

Headed by Deanna Marcum, Ithaka S+R is organized into two program areas: Educational Transformation and Libraries & Scholarly Communication.

Educational Transformation

The Educational Transformation program identifies, analyzes, and assists in the deployment of innovative strategies for improving learning outcomes and containing costs in higher education. Our team designs and carries out qualitative and quantitative studies of promising initiatives in technology-enhanced education, governance, student-learning assessment, and other areas that further these goals. We help partner organizations develop and implement evidence-based strategies that emerge from this research.

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Libraries & Scholarly Communication

Through our research and services, the Libraries & Scholarly Communication program guides libraries, publishers, and scholarly societies as they transition to the technological and economic context of the 21st century. We help partner organizations better support scholarship, instruction, and student success, by empowering them to gather evidence to drive their strategic planning and service offerings. Our team has methodological expertise in survey research, ethnography, and participatory design.

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