home Gateway Carousel, Gateway Carousel Zalk Veterinary Medical Library, J. Otto Lottes Health Sciences Library, Resources and Services Celebrate Open Access Week: Retaining Your Author Rights

Celebrate Open Access Week: Retaining Your Author Rights

By Rachel Alexander Posted in Gateway Carousel Gateway Carousel Zalk Veterinary Medical Library J. Otto Lottes Health Sciences Library Resources and Services

Posted on October 21, 2025October 20, 2025

This year’s Open Access Week asks an important question: Who owns our knowledge? At the Mizzou Libraries, we encourage you to think carefully about the ownership of your manuscripts before you publish.

Don’t Sign Away Your Rights!

Many traditional publishing agreements require authors to transfer copyright to the publisher, which limits how you can use, share and preserve your own work.

The most important step is to read your copyright transfer agreement.

Don’t like what it says? You can amend the agreements to retain the rights you need to make copies of your work and to share it with others.

Examine your publishers’ agreements

What is the publisher requiring of you? Those agreements that require you to transfer all your rights limit what you can do with your own work—that is, you are no longer the copyright holder.

If your publisher agreement reads something like: “the undersigned authors transfer ownership of copyright, including the right to publish and distribute the work by any means, method, or process whether now known or to be development in the future, to the Publisher,” consider amending the agreement.

Agreements that let you retain control of your work often have phrases like: “I grant the journal a non-exclusive license to publish my work”; “I understand that no rights are transferred to the Journal”; or “I understand that a Creative Commons license will be applied to my work.”

Modify your agreements when needed

Publishing agreements are negotiable. Know your rights and consider using the SPARC author addendum to modify your agreement.

Want to learn more? Explore our resources on retaining your rights and making your research open.

home Cycle of Success, Gateway Carousel, J. Otto Lottes Health Sciences Library Cycle of Success: Medical Students Explore the Roots of Science at Ellis Library

Cycle of Success: Medical Students Explore the Roots of Science at Ellis Library

By Shannon Cary Posted in Cycle of Success Gateway Carousel J. Otto Lottes Health Sciences Library

Posted on October 20, 2025October 20, 2025

When Dr. Richard J. Barohn, executive vice chancellor for Health Affairs, joined a group of medical students at Ellis Library’s Special Collections, his goal was for his students to learn about the history of science. Guided by Dr. John Henry Adams, an instruction and research librarian, the students explored some of Mizzou’s antiquarian science books in the fourth-floor classroom.

“Isaac Newton once said, ‘We can see further because we are standing on the shoulders of giants,’” Barohn stated. “This visit gave our students the chance to quite literally meet those giants whose discoveries continue to shape their training.”

Students were invited to handle rare and historic volumes, a privilege once reserved for gloved hands but now safely done with clean, bare hands thanks to modern preservation practices. They began with a first edition of Galileo’s Dialogo (Florence, 1632), in which he used the newly invented telescope to confirm that the Earth revolves around the sun. They then examined two of Isaac Newton’s works: The mathematical principles of natural philosophy (London, 1729) and Opticks (London, 1730).”

The journey continued into the realm of medicine. Students read an early edition of Thomas Willis’s Practice of physick (Long, 1684), an anatomy book, where he described the intricate blood vessels of the brain—now known as the “Circle of Willis.” They also explored a first edition of Charles Bell’s The Nervous System of the Human Body (Washington, 1883), detailing the anatomy of the facial nerve and the clinical features of facial paralysis, now universally known as “Bell’s Palsy.”

Marian Toledo Candelaria, the head of Special Collections, stated, “The books that the School of Medicine students explored are some of the foundational texts of modern scientific thought. Designing relevant experiential learning opportunities is at the heart of what Special Collections offers to the Mizzou community, and students had the opportunity to touch, view, and discuss the books that contributed to making the medical field what it is today. We are thankful to Dr. Barohn and his students for championing Special Collections as an important partner in supporting STEM education at Mizzou.”

Barohn extended his thanks to the Mizzou Libraries, especially the Special Collections librarians, for making the experience possible. “Their stewardship of these collections ensures that our students can connect with the history of science and medicine in ways that inspire learning for generations to come.”

home Gateway Carousel, J. Otto Lottes Health Sciences Library, Resources and Services Royal Society of Chemistry Added to Open Access Publishing Agreements Available to MU Authors

Royal Society of Chemistry Added to Open Access Publishing Agreements Available to MU Authors

By Shannon Cary Posted in Gateway Carousel J. Otto Lottes Health Sciences Library Resources and Services

Posted on October 15, 2025October 16, 2025

Publishing open access is a great way to keep research open and retain your copyright. We do understand that publishing open access comes with a financial commitment that you wouldn’t necessarily have with traditional publishing.

To help offset costs, Mizzou Libraries has agreements with several publishers to offer discounts and author processing charge support for the following journals.

Want to lean more? Talk with your Subject Specialist about open access in your area.

NEW AGREEMENT: Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)
The MU Libraries now has a Read & Publish agreement with the Royal Society of Chemistry, starting in 2024 and continuing through 2025. All charges for publishing in Hybrid, Gold and RSC Advances journals are covered for MU corresponding authors. Articles published open access in RSC journals are downloaded more often, which helps raise the visibility of your work Here is a complete RSC Journal list. Find out more.

American Chemical Society (ACS) Journals
The American Chemical Society offers a discounted open access fee to MU affiliates since MU is a Subscribing Institution. Members of ACS receive an additional discount. ACS Open Access Fee Chart

Astronomy & Astrophysics: A European Journal
Starting in 2022, the EDP Sciences journal Astronomy & Astrophysics will be published under the Subscribe to Open (S20) model. MU affiliated corresponding authors can publish their articles Open Access without paying APC’s (article processing charges) as long as the University of Missouri Libraries continue to subscribe to this title.

BMJ Case Reports
The Health Sciences Library subscription to BMJ Case Reports includes a waiver of the individual membership fee of £273 normally required to publish cases. Submission instructions.

Cambridge University Press Journals
MU Libraries has entered into a transformational “Read and Publish” agreement with Cambridge University Press. This agreement greatly expands electronic access to Cambridge University Press journals and provides 10 APC waivers for MU corresponding authors to publish their work OA.

Because of the limited number of waivers available with this agreement, MU Libraries has decided to support authors on a first come, first served basis. If there are remaining waivers at the end of the year, MU Libraries can retroactively make other articles OA with the approval of the author. Read more about the agreement and see a list of eligible journals

Company of Biologists
From 2023 through 2025 MU is participating in the Company of Biologist’s Read & Publish Open Access Initiative. MU authors can publish OA at no charge. Some of the journals Company of Biologists publishes include Development, Journal of Cell Science, and Journal of Experimental Biology.

Electrochemical Society (ECS) Journals
MU is a subscriber to ECS Plus, an agreement that allows MU faculty to publish their articles in Electrochemical Society (ECS) journals (Journal of the Electrochemical Society and ECS Journal of Solid State Science and Technology) as Open Access with no charge to the author. There are no limits on the number of papers that can be published in any given subscription year. Find out more.

Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development
The University of Missouri has joined the shareholder consortium of the Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development. This open-access journal features interdisciplinary academic research and practice articles on all things food systems. The shareholder membership, good through April 2024, covers the University of Missouri-Columbia, including MU Extension. This membership waives the typical Article Processing Charge for publishing in this journal.

Proceedings of the National Academies of Science of the United States of America (PNAS)
MU researchers publishing articles in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) receive a discounted open access fee of $2,000, compared to the regular fee of $2,500, to make their papers immediately free online. Find out more.

home Cycle of Success Welcome to Dylan Martin

Welcome to Dylan Martin

By Shannon Cary Posted in Cycle of Success

Posted on October 14, 2025October 14, 2025

The Mizzou Libraries are pleased to welcome Dylan Martin as research and instruction librarian, supporting social sciences and cultural studies departments, and chairing the library’s copyright team. A passion for public service and education drives his commitment to libraries.

He began his library career as an intern at Ellis Library after earning a B.A. in English literature from Mizzou. He later completed his MLIS at the School of Information Science and Learning Technologies. He held a reference assistantship during graduate studies and completed internships focused on archives and community history.

Martin previously served as institutional repository librarian at Lincoln University of Missouri, where he supported STEM departments and led technology and media initiatives. From 2021 to 2025, he worked at Columbia’s community radio station KOPN 89.5FM, managing operations, leading a major relocation project, and eventually serving as general manager.

Now back at Mizzou Libraries, Martin brings a diverse background in librarianship, media, and community engagement. His research interests include copyright, intellectual freedom, and community history archives.

Outside of work, Martin enjoys kayaking, mountain biking, exploring new cuisines, and amateur radio (Technician Class – KE0YNK). He also enjoys tinkering with musical instruments, electronics, and mechanical devices.

home Cycle of Success, Gateway Carousel Cycle of Success: Resource Sharing Team Navigates International Law to Support Faculty Research

Cycle of Success: Resource Sharing Team Navigates International Law to Support Faculty Research

By Shannon Cary Posted in Cycle of Success Gateway Carousel

Posted on October 14, 2025October 16, 2025

When a faculty member requested a rare academic title available only in a few libraries in Germany, the Mizzou Libraries’ Resource Sharing team sprang into action. The title was not held by any U.S. libraries, and only two German institutions participating in OCLC’s International Interlibrary Loan (ILL) service had it in their collections. Ordinarily, these libraries reliably fulfill our requests. But this time, both declined. The reason? A surprising consequence of international trade policy.

Ivy Hui, a senior library specialist in Access Services, stated, “We were informed that beginning on August 22 of this year, the Deutsche Post/DHL will not ship packages to the US due to new rules in place between the US and the EU where packages of under $800 in value are no longer exempt from duty.”

Despite the setback, the Resource Sharing team didn’t give up. They worked closely with the faculty member to identify the most critical sections of the book. With the help of the German libraries, they obtained the table of contents and secured scans of two key chapters. These were delivered to the faculty member using a different software platform, in full compliance with German copyright law.

This story is a powerful reminder of the value of the Resource Sharing/Interlibrary Loan (ILL) service. Even when traditional borrowing isn’t possible, our team finds creative solutions to connect researchers with the materials they need.

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