Libraries

Libraries

The Libraries of the Big Ten Academic Alliance are aligned in the vision of uniting our separate collections into one collection, shared and fully networked: the BIG Collection. By this phrase we mean a holistic and comprehensive understanding of what a library "collection" is: not simply the things we hold, but our services; our people; our expertise; our technology; and our infrastructure.

In advancing this future of interdependence and excellence, we are guided by our North Star in everything that we do:

In order to advance a just, trustworthy, scalable & sustainable open knowledge ecosystem, make open, more equitable scholarship our lead purpose.

On these pages, you'll find more about the services, programs, and community that are advancing this vision in a principles-centered, mission-driven, values-aligned way.

Academy Owned Scholarly Publishing Landscape Report
Launched in the fall of 2022, the Big Ten Academic Alliance [BTAA] landscape assessment of academy owned scholarly publishing activities explores the shared challenges and opportunities facing publishing programs and operations within the Big Ten institutions.
big ten open books
Big Ten Open Books
Big Ten Open Books connects readers everywhere to fully accessible, trusted books from leading university presses. Established as a new model for open-access publishing focused on equity and inclusion, we invite you to explore our Gender and Sexuality studies collection.
BIG Collection: Resource Access Policy Harmonization Report
The Resource Access Policy Harmonization pilot team is pleased to share their final report. Aspirational in nature, the report includes the new BTAA Resource Sharing Agreement plus Scanning Standards; reaffirms the Principles and Protocols for Sharing Special Collections within the Big Ten; and articulates important next steps for future pilot projects and working group investigations.

Library News

The Big Ten Academic Alliance announces support for the LYRASIS Open Access Community Investment Program

Jun 8, 2022, 07:00 AM

The fifteen libraries of the Big Ten Academic Alliance have made a collective investment of $45,000 to support the LYRASIS Open Access Community Investment Program (OACIP) general fund that finances open access content

oacip lyrasis logo

The fifteen libraries of the Big Ten Academic Alliance have made a collective investment of $45,000 to support the LYRASIS Open Access Community Investment Program (OACIP) general fund that finances open access content including

  • Algebraic Combinatorics (ALCO), a peer-reviewed mathematics journal owned by mathematicians, dedicated to free dissemination of research, and committed to non-APC Open Access publishing, with no fees for authors or readers.
  • History of Media Studies (HMS), a new, peer-reviewed, scholar-run, diamond OA journal founded to augment understanding of the ways that media have been conceived, investigated, and studied around the world.
  • Journal of Librarianship and Scholarly Communication (JLSC), a peer-reviewed, open access journal with no article processing charges. JLSC is particularly interested in the intersection of librarianship and publishing and the resulting role of libraries in both content dissemination and content creation. 

Maurice York, Director of Library Initiatives at the Big Ten Academic Alliance stated, “We are pleased to be able to partner with LYRASIS and the broader academic community to collectively fund this open access content initiative.  Advancing the growth of open scholarship is a central goal of BTAA libraries and investing in the alternative forms of open publishing is a key part of creating a thriving open knowledge ecosystem. Programs such as this move the community closer to a more equitable and sustainable future.”

“Big Ten Academic Alliance’s increasing investment in open initiatives is a testament of their commitment to create something even more impactful than the combined effort of their individual members. Their collective support of the Open Access Community Investment Program is a significant move toward supporting an important and rich part of scholarly communication – community-driven, non-APC, OA Diamond journals,” said Celeste Feather, Senior Director of Content and Scholarly Communication Initiatives at LYRASIS.

About the Big Ten Academic Alliance

The Big Ten Academic Alliance is the nation’s preeminent model for effective collaboration among research universities. For more than half a century, these world-class institutions have advanced their academic missions, generated unique opportunities for students and faculty, and served the common good by sharing expertise, leveraging campus resources, and collaborating on innovative programs. Governed and funded by the provosts of the member universities, Big Ten Academic Alliance mandates are coordinated by a staff from its Champaign, Illinois headquarters. The fifteen world-class libraries of the Big Ten Academic Alliance members include Indiana University, Michigan State University, Northwestern University, Ohio State University, Pennsylvania State University, Purdue University, Rutgers University–New Brunswick, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, University of Iowa, University of Maryland, University of Michigan, University of Minnesota, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, University of Wisconsin–Madison, and the University of Chicago.

About LYRASIS

LYRASIS is a global, non-profit membership organization whose mission is to support enduring access to the world’s shared academic, scientific, and cultural heritage through leadership in open technologies, content services, digital solutions, and collaboration with archives, libraries, museums, and knowledge communities worldwide. LYRASIS organizational and staff values are communication, respect, collaboration, impact, and service.