Open Journal Systems: Journal Proposals

Eligibility and Scope

Fondren Library supports the creation of scholarly works and encourages the Rice community to explore new economic models for scholarly publishing activities. In our efforts to operate within the bounds of our principles, we do not support standard monetary-based publishing models, nor do we engage in author publication charge (APC) business models.

We currently publish open access (OA) scholarly journals and conference proceedings without charge (however, we do not support some production costs, such as graphic design, copyediting, etc.).

Any Rice faculty, staff, student, or organization is eligible to apply for the library's journal publishing services. The library also supports the publication of materials that are edited or sponsored by Rice affiliated departments, research units, faculty members, staff, and students.

Because many members of the Rice community are members of scholarly associations/societies and are engaged in their work, we will also support nonprofit, society-stewarded publications if a Rice affiliate has close ties to the society and publication at the onset of the relationship and the society is committed to ongoing collaboration with the library. University-stewarded publications have priority status.

Those interested in publishing with the library must complete a journal proposal form, which provides the library general information about the project. Proposals are accepted on a rolling basis and will be reviewed by a staff review committee.

Fondren will not support OJS publishing of departmental newsletters, websites, or other content better served through Rice Central IT or other groups on campus. Student-run publications must have a Rice faculty, staff, department, or center sponsorship (when appropriate, the library can serve this role).

The Library's Publishing Memorandum of Understanding will be used to outline the responsibilities and terms of agreement between the libraries and the steward of the publication, when applicable.

Services

As part of its journal publishing services, Fondren Library will provide:

• Set up and provide access to OJS software and establish a unique account to allow the journal to manage (i.e., submit, edit, and publish) journal content.
• OJS training to journal staff, upon request.
• Strive, in the absence of unforeseen technical difficulties and routine maintenance, to provide--in partnership with the hosting service--24/7 access to the journal and its contents.
• Provide and maintain DOIs for journal content.
• Troubleshoot reported problems and respond to questions in a timely manner.
• Digitally archive all journal content  produced under this agreement.
• Submit content to the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), if appropriate, and other relevant sources for indexing in collaboration with journal representatives.
• Assign a library employee to assist editors with operational requirements (e.g., training, troubleshooting, verification of citations, maintaining schedules, etc.) and to advise on strategies to maximize the journal's visibility to the online community of researchers.

The library can provide consultation/referral but will not provide the following services:

• Peer review
• Copyediting
• Proofreading
• Layout and typesetting
• Print proofs
• Graphic and web design [Note: Fondren cannot support custom web design beyond the templates available in  OJS]
• Print-run or print-on-demand

Application Requirements and Review Criteria

Required proposal elements:

• Principal contact
• Journal Title
• Sponsoring Organization(s)
• Sources of financial support (if applicable)
• Current state of project (e.g., new, migration of existing publication)
  • If migration of existing publication:
    • Format(s) of current publication (e.g., print, electronic)
    • URL of electronic version
    • Copyright holder of published content
    • Current publisher
• Proposal narrative: Please provide a narrative of no more than 750 words describing your proposed publication. As appropriate, include these elements:
  • Stated purpose and area of focus of the publication
  • Expected publication frequency
  • Potential impact and value/importance to the field or discipline
  • Expected audience
  • Peer review process or other review criteria applied to publication content

Consultation

Upon receipt of a proposal, applicants will be expected to meet with members of the journal review committee. This will help applicants to better understand the requirements for library support and provide the committee any additional information needed to help make its decision.

Selection Criteria

Proposals will be reviewed by a staff review committee. Proposals will be reviewed on the following factors:

• Quality and variety: Is the proposal representative of the excellent and diverse scholarship the University produces?
• Community and support: Does the proposal align with the University's strategic goals, offer unique value to a field or discipline, and offer value to the wider community?
• Are journal editors/staff prepared to work with the library to set up and manage the journal in OJS?
• Capacity and complexity: The library will consider the complexity of the project against available resources.