Day/Time: Wednesday, May 18, 1:30pm – 2:30pm
Presenters
- Johanna Meetz, The Ohio State University
- Ellen Dubinsky, University of Arizona
Description
Assessment of library publishing programs can take many forms. It can be formal or informal, internally motivated or externally requested. In our presentation we share our experience with two different approaches to the assessment of library publishing programs at Ohio State University and the University of Arizona.
At Ohio State University, our assessment was internally motivated. In 2020, the department was fully staffed for the first time in many years, so it was a good time to gather information and reflect on our current practices in order to move forward in an informed and purposeful way. We talked with some of our journal editors, with our internal collaborators (IT department, subject librarians, and copyright services department), and internally among the staff of our department. This assessment enforced the importance of communication, highlighted the services stakeholders value the most, and allowed us to rethink our workflows to create more standardized and sustainable practices. It also resulted in additional collaboration and created new connections across the Libraries.
Library publishing at the University of Arizona had grown haphazardly over the years since the service began in 1994. The 2019 assessment was driven by an immediate need to identify alternative hosting options to replace a locally hosted, though out-of-date, version of OJS. However, as the service had never been formally evaluated, we took the opportunity to look at the history and scope of the service, with the intention to identify a sustainable service plan. The evaluation process resulted in a major restructuring of the service, migration of content to two hosting platforms, alignment of the publishing service goals with those of the Libraries, and an articulated plan of action to remedy gaps in best practices for library publishing.