Scholarly Communications

Fall 2012 Faculty Luncheon Series: The Future of Scholarly Publishing

A July article in US News and World Report posed the question “is the academic publishing industry on the verge of disruption?” The past year has produced numerous illustrations to prompt such a question. In April, Harvard’s Faculty Advisory Council called the current scholarly publishing system “financially untenable” and called on their faculty to actively change their publishing practices. Two distinctly oppositional pieces of federal legislation, the Research Works Act and the Federal Research Public Access Act, argued the point of federally funded research being made openly accessible to the public. And faculty at many universities and colleges are debating the worth and value of new forms of digital scholarship, as well as how that scholarship is disseminated, particularly in light of traditional tenure and promotion requirements. Abounding throughout are strong opinions, deep investments (financial and institutional), fraught misinformation and qualified misgivings. 

Florida State University has joined this conversation by adopting a resolution supporting the principle of open access to scholarly literature, and amending its tenure and promotion guidelines to allow “digitally published scholarship to be counted… subject to the same criteria as print journals.” Partnerships are building between University Libraries, the Office of Research, the Office of the Vice President for Faculty Development and Advancement, the College of Medicine, the College of Law and various departments from the arts, humanities, sciences and social sciences, all to explore the digital future of scholarship at FSU.

In response to these evolutions in the scholarly publishing industry and in the academy, the Faculty Luncheon Series will introduce a variety of insights on the topic from our own faculty. Representing a range of perspectives and positions across the university, the speakers will follow the US News prompt, “Is the academic publishing industry on the verge of disruption?,” and contextualize that discussion for the unique scholarly culture at Florida State.

Schedule:

Sept. 11th

The University Library and its Role in Digital Scholarship

Katie McCormick, Associate Dean of Special Collections and Archives.
Introduced by Dean of University Libraries, Julia Zimmerman.

Oct. 9th

The Scholarly Monograph Unbound

Paul Fyfe, Assistant Professor in English.
Introduced by Eric Walker, Professor and Chair in English.

Nov. 6th

The Broadening Definition of “Scholarship”

Owen Mundy, Assistant Professor in Art
Introduced by Sally McRorie, Vice President for Faculty Development and Advancement.

Dec. 11th

"The Evolving World of Academic Publishing, the Need for Change and its Future Impact"

Mark Riley, Professor and Chair in Physics.
Introduced by Kirby Kemper, Vice President for Research and a Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor.

LUNCH BEGINS AT 12:15 P.M.,
PROGRAM BEGINS AT 12:40 P.M.

 

PRESBYTERIAN UNIVERSITY CENTER

548 W. PARK AVE.

TALLAHASSEE, FLA.

Faculty Luncheon Series events are open to the public; however, reservations are required, as a catered hot lunch will be provided at a cost of $10 for one luncheon, or $40 for the series. Reservation requests may be mailed to the Presbyterian University Center, 548 W. Park Ave., Tallahassee, FL 32301, with a check made out to the Presbyterian University Center and clearly marked “Faculty Luncheon Series.” Alternatively, reservations may be made by calling the center at (850) 222-6320 or sending an e-mail to floridastatepuc@gmail.com. Payment may then be made at the door. All reservations must be made by the Thursday before each luncheon.

Parking adjacent to the building will be available, courtesy of the Presbyterian University Center.

For those who are unable to attend the luncheon, WFSU-TV will broadcast the presentation at a later date on Comcast Cable Channel 4, the 4FSU Channel.

For more information, email the Presbyterian University Center at floridastatepuc@gmail.com.