Faculty members from liberal arts schools now have a
new and easier way to publish research material. Lever Press, an initiative
from liberal arts colleges that make up the Oberlin Group, was launched to
provide scholars who feel “disenfranchised” by large publishing firms with an
outlet to make their work available.
“This is all about libraries thinking about scholarly
communication in a new way and putting their money where their mouths are,”
Charles T. Watkinson, director of the University of Michigan Press and
associate university librarian for publishing, said in an article for Inside Higher Education.
The Lever Initiative conducted a faculty survey in 2013
that showed little satisfaction with options in the publishing market. That
information led the Oberlin Group to begin work on establishing the publishing
enterprise.
Amherst College Press was selected for the project
because of its expertise as a digital-first, open-access publisher and will
head the editorial side of the venture. Michigan Publishing, a division of the
University of Michigan Library, was selected for its knowledge in distribution,
publishing platforms, and other technical areas.
Nearly half of the 80 members that make up the Oberlin
Group have pledged more than $1 million to fund the press, which plans to
publish 60 titles over the next five years.
“Those
of us who are supporting this would like to see a serious systemwide
transformation of scholarly publishing,” said Bryn I. Geffert, librarian at
Amherst College. “If liberal arts institutions are serious about that, they
have to put some skin in the game.”