Across the Great Divide: Findings and Possibilities for Action from the 2016 Summit Meeting of Academic Libraries and University Presses with Administrative Relationships (P2L)

Authors

Mary Rose Muccie, Temple University PressFollow
Joe Lucia, Temple University LibrariesFollow
Elliott Shore, Association of Research LibrariesFollow
Clifford Lynch, Coalition for Networked InformationFollow
Peter Berkery, Association of American University PressesFollow

Date of this Version

12-2016

Document Type

Article

Citation

White paper, released December 6, 2016

Comments

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License

Abstract

The library-press relationship explored in P2L allows for transformative approaches in support and dissemination of scholarship. Effective exploitation of these partnerships is in the early stages and there is an opportunity to influence the outcomes to ensure they are as broadly applicable and scalable as possible. As Cliff Lynch (CNI) noted in his summary of the day’s conversation, we must do more exploration of both intra-institutional (library and press) and cross-institutional collaborations. He provided several compelling suggestions for partnerships, including new ways to promote and leverage library special collections as well as ideas for increasing discoverability of press content. (See Appendix 5 for the full text of his remarks.) Addressing the challenges around implementing the ideas and recommendations resulting from P2L and moving toward the library and press futures that participants and speakers envision requires broader and deeper investigation. Building on the success of P2L, a subsequent summit (P2L2) will continue the collaborative conversation, tackle the issues raised as well as others facing library-press partnerships, and delve deeply into the recommendations from this meeting as well as those proposed in other contexts. Open to a wider audience, P2L2 will be structured to allow more time for moderated discussion. Sessions focused on collaboration, both intra- and inter-institutional, would be paramount. Examples could include creating and leveraging shared skills, sharing support for data within the university and in the press author pool, and partnering on scalable scholarly communication and library publishing programs. P2L2 would focus on strategies to reinforce the library and press joint mission and advance the shared goal of promulgating scholarship.