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University of South Carolina Press Launches Open Carolina Platform

University of South Carolina Press Launches Open Carolina Platform

September 2023

From the Announcement

“Open access has always been premised on openness and equity of reading, but it’s always, also, set up barriers to access for creators,” says Michael J. McGandy, director of the University Press. “Someone needs to provide a reasonable amount of financial support to cover the publishing costs that are involved in creating and then disseminating scholarly communication. In many fields, that burden has fallen largely on individual researchers, many of whom do not have the institutional resources to fund open access publication.”

That’s where University Libraries enters the picture. Many ventures into open scholarly resources are planned as temporary pilot operations because they are funded by time-limited grant pools. Thanks to consistent funding from the Libraries, Open Carolina has a sustainable model that will allow scholars with limited publishing funds to share their research via the platform, partially or totally foregoing associated fees. In its inaugural year, the Libraries aim to fund four full-length books and support is in place to make the program sustainable for years to come and allow Open Carolina to grow steadily.

Open Carolina will offer opportunities to a wide range of scholars and researchers regardless of university affiliation. Proposed works will undergo the same intensive peer review and editorial processes as traditionally published books and articles, allowing the university to maintain high standards and join the conversation with other Research 1 institutions that prioritize equitable, open access publishing.

Beyond diversifying the base of authors who can publish open scholarly resources, particularly those without access to institutional subsidies, Open Carolina provides the opportunity to widen the readership of these scholars and researchers. 

Additional information about the intentions for Open Carolina may be found here.