Libraries and the University Press: Partners in Scholarly Communication

The University Press of Kansas is the scholarly publisher representing the six state universities of Kansas. The Press publishes monographs in a variety of academic disciplines by authors from all over the world, while also maintaining firm regional roots by publishing scholarship on the history and natural environment of Kansas, the Great Plains, and the Midwest. This article will discuss the University Press’s role in the scholarly communications ecosystem and how its mission of producing and disseminating research complements academic libraries’ efforts toward research and learning. The article will also highlight the Press’s efforts to become more engaged with its consortium schools and the Kansas academic community in general through outreach efforts and collaborative initiatives with university libraries. These include providing publishing instruction and guidance to faculty, collaborating on a joint grant application for the Humanities Open Book Program, arranging programming opportunities with Press authors, and offering publishing services not only to the six public universities but also to smaller institutions throughout the state.