Celebrating University Press Week 2024
In the summer of 1978, US President Jimmy Carter proclaimed a University Press Week “in recognition of the impact, both here and abroad, of American university presses on culture and scholarship.”
This year we are reflecting on what what we do to #StepUP and support our university press colleagues with their digital publishing needs. We built Fulcrum to address the need for a flexible, robust platform that can handle multimedia and Open Access content in ways traditional publishing cannot. This platform isn’t only for University of Michigan Press content, but for any scholarly press with a desire to disseminate their research in both traditional and interactive formats, with a focus on accessibility and demonstrable impact.
Perhaps the most rewarding part of running Fulcrum is the close working relationships we have developed with the presses who publish with us. Each has different disciplinary emphases, but all believe in the value of shared infrastructure for the UP community. We’ve had the chance to work closely with Lever Press to bring the richly multimodal La Princesse de Clèves to the classroom, to help Amherst College Press publish the first Spanish grammar guidebook with non-binary and gender-neutral language, and (through a journal hosting partnership with our colleagues at Janeway) give the Open Access books and journals from University of Westminster Press and Aberdeen University Press greater reach and more measurable impact.
Whether through digital monographs enhanced with video and audio, OA textbooks designed to reach a global audience, or interactive maps that bring research data to life, Fulcrum makes it possible for presses to publish beyond the printed page. We’re proud to help university presses everywhere #StepUP to meet the scholarly community's evolving needs, amplify voices, and create more accessible content for UP readers.
Additional resources
Learn more about Fulcrum here.
Browse OA collections from our partner University Presses here.
Learn more about University Press Week here.
