Campus
explores crisis in scholarly communication
Emerging
technologies among alternatives
By Carolyn
Gonzales
 |
| Library
Dean Camila Alire and UNM Press director Luther Wilson discuss
scholarly communication options for UNM. Photo by Carolyn
Gonzales. |
The UNM
General Library recently hosted “Scholarly Communications and
the Common Good,” a symposium designed to assess and address
the crisis libraries face in providing journals that continue
to skyrocket in cost.
Alternatives
to purchasing expensive journals include developing partnerships
between professional societies, libraries, publishers and universities,
said national expert Alan Covich, professor, College of Natural
Resources, Colorado State University.
Another
idea, put forth to the group of faculty and administrators,
is that because research is funded with public dollars it is
a “public good.” Disseminating research findings should also
be considered a public good; therefore it should be required
by law that all journal articles arising from federally funded
research must be made freely available to the public six months
after initial publication, said David Shulenburger, provost
and executive vice chancellor of the University of Kansas.
“Because
of emerging technologies in electronic publishing as well as
other alternatives currently available or becoming available
for the scholar to share his/her work, now is the time for UNM
faculty to start the dialogue about what alternatives we can
or should consider at UNM. Within that dialogue, we also need
to deal with the challenges these alternatives would bring,”
said Camila Alire, UNM General Library dean.
The library
received feedback from symposium participants. They want more
dialogue and discussions on this topic to take place at the
university. “Continued conversations within the academy is one
of the outcomes we are hoping for. We all need to pursue that,”
Alire said.