• Open Access
• Overview of Fund to Mission Model
• How to Purchase
• How We Open Content
• Our Library Supporters
• Library Partner Group

Open Access

In the humanities, the monograph acts as the lab where scholars experiment and engage with other thinkers. Despite the valuable ideas emerging from these fields, the academic community has struggled to find sustainable ways to make humanities monographs open access. Grant money and other funding are often less available to these scholars than to their counterparts in the sciences. As a result, the academic and publishing communities have had to explore new ways to make the turn to open. Fund to Mission from the University of Michigan Press is one such project to open up the best humanities scholarship to the global community.

The endeavor of opening humanities content to the world is a vital one. As the core places where work in these fields is done, monographs have the potential to be spaces that inspire dialogues and connections. When monographs exist only behind paywalls, there is less of an opportunity for global collaborations to happen. However, when these monographs become open access, new opportunities for interdisciplinary exchange emerge.

The University of Michigan Press has moved towards open access for its monographs precisely to provide these new opportunities for exploration. Ensuring that everyone has access to this scholarship, no matter where they are located or what their institutional affiliation is, can only strengthen the humanities.

Overview of Fund to Mission Open Access Model

Working with LYRASIS, the University of Michigan has been taking steps to develop a publishing program that aligns with our mission and commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. In the spring of 2021, the Press announced its transition to an open-access monograph model termed Fund to Mission.

Fund to Mission demonstrates a return to the origins of the university press movement and moves toward a more open, sustainable infrastructure for the humanities and social sciences. Our goal is to convert our new monographs program so that in 2023 at least 75% of the U-M Press monographs published that year are open access, without any author ever having to pay. Learn more about the model's progress and impact in the following video:

The Funding Model

Libraries are invited to continue to participate in the University of Michigan Press Ebook Collection (UMP EBC) by way of our current fair pricing. However, rather than only funding a paywalled collection, an increasing percentage of titles become open access. By committing to purchase one of the UMP EBC packages (listed under "Investment Options"), libraries:

• Support the conversion of 75% (~60) of University of Michigan Press scholarly monographs a year;
• Receive perpetual access to the remaining restricted frontlist titles and term access to the backlist (~2,000 titles), which will otherwise remain closed to non-purchasers;
• Support authors’ ability to publish innovative, digital scholarship leveraging the next-generation, open-source Fulcrum platform.

The Mission

With Fund to Mission, we are asking for shared investment in strengthening humanities and social sciences infrastructure and scholarship. Through a transparent model that fits with existing library workflows and provides unique benefits to supporters, we hope to:

• Expand inclusive, equitable access to high-quality humanities and qualitative social science scholarship for diverse, global audiences;
• Increase the number of accessible, open learning resources for students that are instantly available, downloadable, and free of DRM restrictions;
• Expand the demonstrated opportunity for increased visibility and impact that open access provides to all authors, without the inequities of “pay to publish”;
• Demonstrate support for a non-profit infrastructure and sustainable business model, on a platform that already hosts other university press content;
• Inspire the leaders of parent institutions to financially support their presses in more sustainable and open approaches to monograph publishing.

What We Do With the Money

In 2020 we worked with consultant Kimberly Schmelzinger to do a detailed analysis of the cost of just the Press’s specialist monograph program. The total cost of producing 80 books a year came to $1,650,000, which meant that to make those titles open access, we would need to find that amount of financial support. With Fund to Mission, that money comes from three main pools: the University of Michigan Provost, library investments, and authors' funding supporters. We anticipate that some print sales will still occur regardless of a monograph’s open access status, and this will help fill in the funding gap.

Our current goal is to receive $450,000 in continuing support from libraries for Fund to Mission. The money given to the Fund to Mission program goes to support the transition of the monograph program at the University of Michigan Press to open access.

• Approximately 15% of the money from the Fund to Mission program goes to the non-profit incubator LYRASIS to support their efforts in publicizing and managing the institutional side of the program.
• Another 15% of the funding goes to pay for Fulcrum, our hosting platform.
• Because some monographs in the collection remain restricted access, royalties must be paid on those titles.
• The rest of the money goes back into the program for editing, production, design work, and marketing.

We share a regular breakdown of how the money was spent with our Library Partner Group.

How to Purchase

Libraries interested in supporting Fund to Mission can request a quote from LYRASIS, our sales partner, here:

Request a Quote

Libraries that are members of Jisc can find details of the Jisc offer in the License subscriptions manager.

With additional questions, please email ump-ebc-info@umich.edu. View our complete title list here:

Complete Title List

Investment Options

2025-2027 Sustaining Collection

Commitment to purchase the 2025, 2026, and 2027 frontlists (aiming for 75% open access each year). Libraries will own the restricted titles in perpetuity as they become available and will have term access to the backlist through end of 2027. Upfront or annual billing allowed. The prices shown below for the Sustaining Collection includes an embedded 15% discount off the total price of buying each year separately (assuming a 2.5% annual increase).

Tier	Carnegie Classification	CRKN Bands	Price
5	15	Bands 12, 13	$16,778
4	16-18	Bands 11, 10	$12,582
3	19-21	Bands 9, 8	$8,384
2	22-23	Bands 7, 6, 5	$4,193
1	1-14	Bands 4, 3, 2, 1	$2,013

Frontlist 2025 Pricing

Purchase of the individual frontlist year (minimum of 80 titles, the OA percentage of which is targeted to be 75% in 2025). Libraries will own the restricted access titles in perpetuity and have term access to the backlist through the publishing year purchased. Term access to backlist is provided on a calendar year annual basis, with a 90-day grace period January - March of the following year to give clients time to renew.

Seasonal discounts were awarded to early adopters of the collection in its pilot phase. The pricing below reflects the stable, year-round cost to support based on institutional tier.

Tier	Carnegie Classification	CRKN Bands	Price
5	15	Bands 12, 13	$6,418
4	16-18	Bands 11, 10	$4,813
3	19-21	Bands 9, 8	$3,207
2	22-23	Bands 7, 6, 5	$1,604
1	1-14	Bands 4, 3, 2, 1	$770

Backlist Bundle Pricing

Upfront perpetual purchase of the current complete backlist (years 2012-2024) with term access to the growing archive of pre-2012 titles.

Tier	Carnegie Classification	CRKN Bands	Price
5	15	Bands 12, 13	$60,295
4	16-18	Bands 11, 10	$45,219
3	19-21	Bands 9, 8	$30,149
2	22-23	Bands 7, 6, 5	$15,075
1	1-14	Bands 4, 3, 2, 1	$7,232

International Pricing

Pricing for institutions outside the US, Canada, and UK is based on national income level, as determined by the World Bank, and the highest degree offered. The pricing below exemplifies how pricing is calculated for 2025 frontlist.

Tier	High Income	Upper Middle Income (25%)	Lower Middle Income (50%)	Low Income (75%)
Doctoral	$6,418	$4,814	$3,209	$1,605
Master's	$4,813	$3,610	$2,407	$1,203
Baccalaureate	$1,604	$1,203	$802	$401
Associates	$770	$578	$385	$193

How We Open Content

The following chart shows what percentage of titles in the University of Michigan Press Ebook Collection we aim to make open access in their respective collection years.

Collection Year	Open Access Goal
2021 Collection	~20% - achieved
2022 Collection	~50% - achieved
2023 Collection	~75% - achieved
2024 Collection	~75% - achieved
2025 Collection	~75% - targeted

Those percentages mean that, at least in the near future, some monographs will be restricted access. The decision of which titles to open and which to restrict is based on multiple considerations.

• When determining whether or not a title will be open access we first appraise the potential impact of the scholarship and the benefit to broader society of making it widely and freely available. Issues regarding diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility are cornerstones in our strategic mission and play a role in our decision-making process. We also use our knowledge of the subject area of a given title. How friendly is the field to open access? Will publishing the title open access make it ineligible for the major reviews and awards in the field?
• Our next step involves having a conversation with the author. We share information about how making monographs open access increases their readership and impact globally, and we discuss concerns the author may have, including their own perception of OA in their field, whether or not tenure standards at their institution consider OA material to be qualifying scholarly contributions, their relationship to royalties, and numerous other factors.
• If we think that a title is a good candidate for open access and the author agrees with us, then we move forward with our standard monograph peer review, editorial, production, and marketing processes. We believe that opening scholarship does not mean decreasing publication standards. Rather, open access is simply a different, more equitable, funding model that deepens global conversations and enables monographs to have a larger impact.

By opening our content and showing that monographs increase their usage, reach, and accolades by being open, we hope to encourage more scholars to pursue open access scholarship in the future.

Our Library Supporters

• Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
• Agnes Scott College
• Albany State University
• Albany Technical College
• Algoma University
• Andrew College
• Athens Technical College
• Atlanta Metropolitan State College
• Atlanta Technical College
• Atlanta University Center
• Augusta Technical College
• Augusta University
• Bates College
• Berry College
• Beulah Heights University
• Blue Ridge Community College
• Bowdoin College
• Brenau University
• Brewton-Parker College
• Brightpoint Community College
• Brock University
• Broward College
• Bucknell University
• Cardiff University
• Carleton University
• Central Georgia Technical College
• Central Virginia Community College
• Chattahoochee Technical College
• The Claremont Colleges Library
• Clark Atlanta University
• Clayton State University
• Coastal Pines Technical College
• Colby College
• College of Coastal Georgia
• College of William & Mary
• Columbia Theological Seminary
• Columbia University
• Columbus State University
• Columbus Technical College
• Cornell University
• Covenant College
• Dalton State College
• Danville Community College
• Dartmouth College
• Denison University
• Drake University
• Duke University
• Duquesne University
• East Georgia State College
• Eastern Shore Community College
• Emmanuel College
• Emory University
• Fort Valley State University
• Franklin & Marshall College
• George Mason University
• George Washington University
• Georgia Central University
• Georgia College & State University
• Georgia Gwinnett College
• Georgia Highlands College
• Georgia Institute of Technology
• Georgia Military College
• Georgia Northwestern Technical College
• Georgia Piedmont Technical College
• Georgia Southern University
• Georgia Southwestern State University
• Georgia State University
• Germanna Community College
• Gordon State College
• Grinnell College
• Gwinnett Technical College
• Harvard University
• Haverford College
• Heritage Bible College
• Indiana University
• Interdenominational Theological Center
• Iowa State University
• J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College
• James Madison University
• Johns Hopkins University
• John Marshall Law School
• Kennesaw State University
• Kenyon College
• KU Leuven
• Lafayette College
• LaGrange College
• Lanier Technical College
• Laurel Ridge Community College
• Liberty University
• Life University
• Longwood University
• Luther College
• Luther Rice College & Seminary
• Macalester College
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• McGill University
• McMaster University
• Mercer University
• Mercer University Law School
• Mercer University Medical School
• Michigan State University
• Middle Georgia State University
• Middlebury College
• Morehouse College
• Morehouse School of Medicine
• Mountain Empire Community College
• Mountain Gateway Community College
• New College of Florida
• New River Community College
• Norfolk State University
• North Georgia Technical College
• Northeastern University
• Northern Virginia Community College
• Northwest Florida State College
• Northwestern University
• NYU
• Oconee Fall Line Technical College
• Ogeechee Technical College
• Oglethorpe University
• The Ohio State University
• Old Dominion University
• Pacific College of Technology
• Paine College
• Patrick & Henry Community College
• Paul D. Camp Community College
• Pennsylvania State University
• Piedmont University
• Piedmont Virginia Community College
• Point University
• Princeton University
• Purdue University
• Queen's University of Belfast
• Radford University
• Rappahannock Community College
• Reinhardt University
• Richard Bland College
• Richmont Graduate University
• Rowan University
• Rutgers University
• Savannah State University
• Savannah Technical College
• Shorter University
• Simon Fraser University
• South Georgia State College
• South Georgia Technical College
• Southeastern Technical College
• Southern Crescent Technical College
• Southern Illinois University Carbondale
• Southern Methodist University
• Southern Regional Technical College
• Southside Virginia Community College
• Southwest Virginia Community College
• Spellman College
• Stanford University
• Swarthmore College
• Syracuse University
• Temple University
• Texas A&M University Libraries
• Thomas University
• Tidewater Community College
• Toccoa Falls College
• Trent University
• Truett McConnell University
• Underwood University
• University of Alberta
• University of Arizona
• University of British Columbia
• University of California Berkeley
• University of California Davis
• University of California Irvine
• University of California Los Angeles
• University of California Merced
• University of California Riverside
• University of California San Diego
• University of California Santa Barbara
• University of California Santa Cruz
• University of Chicago
• University College London
• University of Connecticut
• University of Delaware
• University of Edinburgh
• University of Florida
• University of Georgia
• University of Guelph
• University of Illinois
• University of Iowa
• University of Kansas
• University of Manchester
• University of Mary Washington
• University of Maryland
• University of Massachusetts, Amherst
• University of Michigan
• University of Minnesota
• University of Nebraska
• University of North Georgia
• University of Notre Dame
• UNC Chapel Hill
• UNC Greensboro
• University of Oklahoma
• University of Oregon
• University of Ottawa
• University of Pennsylvania
• University of Pittsburgh
• University of Rhode Island
• University of Richmond
• University of Rochester
• University of San Francisco
• University of Saskatchewan
• University of Sheffield
• University of St. Andrews
• University of Tennessee Knoxville
• University of Texas San Antonio
• University of Toronto
• University of Utah
• University of Virginia
• University of Virginia's College at Wise
• University of Washington
• University of West Georgia
• University of Wisconsin
• Valdosta State University
• Vancouver Island University
• Vanderbilt University
• Vassar College
• Virginia Commonwealth University
• Virginia Highlands Community College
• Virginia Military Institute
• Virginia Peninsula Community College
• Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
• Virginia State University
• Virginia Western Community College
• Washington & Lee University
• West Virginia University
• Wesleyan College
• West Georgia Technical College
• Wiregrass Georgia Technical College
• Wytheville Community College
• Yale University
• York University
• Young-Harris College
• Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA)
• California Digital Library (CDL)
• Canadian Research Knowledge Network (CRKN)
• Georgia Library Learning Online (GALILEO)
• Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC)
• Ontario Council of University Libraries (OCUL)
• Statewide California Electronic Library Consortium (SCELC)
• Virginia's Academic Library Consortium (VIVA)

Library Partner Group

The University of Michigan Press has created a Library Partner Group as part of our efforts to engage with the needs of the library community and the complexity of the open access landscape.

The purpose of the Library Partner Group is to provide the University of Michigan Press with feedback and advice regarding product strategy and the advancement of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. We see this as a Community of Practice more than the traditional Advisory Group.

We hope to receive feedback on all aspects of the open access lifecycle, from technical and metadata concerns to the difficulties of access and how to ensure that our approach to open access reflects our commitment to DEIA. In particular, we want to use the input from this group to continue to improve our approach to opening humanities and social sciences books with Fund to Mission.

The group is made up of UMP library supporters. The Library Partner Group is led by the Library Relations Manager for U-M Press, who maintains the group email listserv, develops meeting agendas, leads discussions, and outlines group action items in an effort to help drive development.

How the group works

With the exception of University of Michigan Press staff, the group will be limited to library staff members of supporting institutions of the University of Michigan Press Ebook collection.

Library Partner Group members commit to attending as many meetings as possible, via Zoom. Meetings will be held twice a year. The time and date will be determined by the facilitator via Doodle Poll. Members are welcome to invite colleagues to join Partner Group meetings.

Notes and a recording will be circulated by the facilitator after each call, and any members who were unable to attend a call are asked to ensure they read these and take note of any action items.

The facilitator will also maintain a listserv group. The listserv will be used to communicate information about meetings and will also be used to share updates and engage with more immediate topics or questions in between the bi-annual meetings.

If you have questions, please email ump-ebc-info@umich.edu.