Digital Publishing at Penn: Digital Journals and Open Access

Penn Libraries supports the creation, discovery, and preservation of open access journals in the digital publishing platform, Manifold, by Penn affiliates. Through this platform, the library aims to expand open access publishing options for open access journals not published by university presses, as well as those that leverage multimodal and interdisciplinary research, implement media-rich approaches, and bring diverse and traditionally underrepresented voices into dialogue by hosting open access journals. 

Penn’s Manifold site is managed by the Center for Research Data and Digital Scholarship (RDDS) in the Penn Libraries. To propose an open access journal contact RDDS for more information: libraryrdds@pobox.upenn.edu

Any Penn-affiliated student, faculty member, or librarian, or any department or research center associated with University of Pennsylvania or its affiliates can propose an open access journal partnership with Penn Libraries. 

Journal partnership proposals should be no longer than one page and include a brief description of the journal scope (150-200 w.), including intended audience(s), and discipline(s). In the proposal, please include the journal publication frequency and note if the journal intends to accept submissions that include multimodal (media, video, audio) resources and what kind, as well as a description of the existing or proposed editorial board. 

Partnership Steps: 

1. Prospective journals submit brief proposal to RDDS/digital publishing specialist;

2. Meeting with RDDS/digital publishing specialist to discuss journal support needs and create a plan for onboarding to Manifold, publication, preservation, and discovery;

3. Journals complete a Manifold onboarding checklist (discussed with RDDS) including preparing preliminary content, in order to set up the journal homepage and prepare for launching the first issue

NB: Journals should have an editorial board in place or plans for establishing an editorial board and managing Manifold (training and uploading content) before launching the journal. 

For more information on proposing a journal partnership with Penn Libraries, please email: libraryrdds@pobox.upenn.edu

Digital Journals currently on the Penn Manifold site:

• Bibliotheca Dantesca: Journal of Dante Studies (The Graduate Program in Italian, SAS)
• The International Journal for Water Equity and Justice (The Water Center at Penn)
• Social Grammars of Virtuality (Annenberg School for Communication)