This project was originally defined to explore the potential for ARL libraries to provide support to small, print-only publishers in order to ensure long-term digital access to their content. Research library publishing programs vary widely, from posting PDFs in an institutional repository to full-fledged publishing operations. During the life of…

America's university presses are situated within a network of over one hundred universities, learned societies, and scholarly associations. According to a pamphlet put out by the American Association of University Presses, these presses "make available to the broader public the full range and value of research generated by university faculty."…

At age 500, the Oxford University Press just keeps rollin' along. (Editor/RK)

The blurb is a paratextual element which has not previously been subjected to systematic analysis. We describe the nature and purpose of this publishing epiphenomenon, highlight some of the related marketing issues and ethical concerns and provide a statistical analysis of almost 2000 blurbs identified in a sample of 450 non-fiction books.…

Discusses the nature, functions, goals, and responsibilities of university presses and their relationships to trade publishers, parent universities, and the academic community as a whole; and concludes that the biggest problem confronting university presses today is uncertainty about where financial support is going to come from. (JPF)

Discusses new directions in university press publishing (publication of fiction, poetry, art, photography, museum catalogs, regional material) and cites reasons for changes taking place (presses occupy unique position in academic world and book publishing industry, publication of scholarly books requires financing by sources in addition to book…

The University of Chicago Press is the largest university press in the country. As a nonprofit organization with its primary concern its contribution to scholarship, the press can invest time on projects it deems worthy even though some might take decades to complete. (MLW)

Presented herein are papers presented at a session entitled "Crises and Opportunities: The Future of Scholarly Publishing," from the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) Annual Meeting, May 10, 2003. Four speakers approached this topic from different standpoints: as leaders of learned societies, as senior university officials, from the…

Historical information on university presses and their problems are considered. University presses in the United States have their roots in 15th century England when the Oxford University Press was established in 1478. The first U.S. press to use the term "university press" was Cornell University; the press operated from 1869 until it…

Columbia University Press's current and future solvency rests on a complex balance of reference, scholarly, and trade titles as well as an innovative collaboration with the library to help guarantee the house's preeminence in the academic community. The Press's strategic approach is described. (Author)

Describes issues discussed at the Association of American University Presses, June 1986 meeting, as being divided between those interested in using the techniques of commercial publishers and those committed to publishing what is worthy. Chandler Grannis describes "New Directions for University Presses" and Doug Armato "The Power of…

The economic and social factors affecting the publication of scholarly and scientific/technical material throughout the world following World War II are identified and discussed. An outline of the state of scholarly publishing immediately following the war precedes considerations of the role of university press in scholarly and technical…

Unique constraints on the publishing practices of university presses, practices in scholarly publishing, and new technological challenges and options combine to create a difficult situation for many academic presses. The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation is experimenting with uses of technology in scholarly communication, finding that collaboration…

This memoir describes August Fruge's 32 years as head of the University of California Press. Early chapters describe Berkeley, where the press is located, in the 1940s, conflicts with the Printing Department, the role of the faculty-run editorial committee, and setting new directions for the press. Three chapters describe looking for titles to…

This paper comments on three presentations (Janet Fisher, Malcolm Getz, and Bill Regier) at the Scholarly Communication and Technology Conference; it focuses on publisher costs, and also discusses the electronic publishing efforts undertaken at the University of Chicago Press. Janet Fisher, from MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Press,…