Towson University Pressbooks Policies & Guidelines
- The Towson University Pressbooks platform is intended for the creation of open educational resources and other open access materials, including, but not limited to, books, manuscripts, or learning objects.
- Current TU affiliates are eligible to apply for a Pressbooks slot. There are a limited number of books we can host, and these will be allocated via an application process. Applications will be assessed for their originality, reach, use of open licenses, and publication readiness, although no one aspect on its own will qualify or disqualify an application.
- Authors grant Cook Library the non-exclusive rights to reproduce and distribute content published on Pressbooks.
- Authors grant the Library the non-exclusive right to digitally archive content perpetually and, in any format, to ensure long-term preservation and access.
- All authors agree to upload and publish content owned only by them, or third-party content that they have permission to reuse, is in the public domain, is available for reuse via a Creative Commons or other open license, or that is otherwise free of copyright restrictions.
- Authors are permitted to choose any license for their work, but it is recommended to adopt a Creative Commons or other open license.
- We strongly encourage choosing a license type that is as inclusive as possible and allows for derivatives.
- Before publishing a book, authors will be required to attend a workshop or consultation on Pressbooks and/or open licensing.
- We require authors to follow accessibility best practices and to be compliant with WCAG 2.1 standards. Pressbooks provides resources on ensuring your book’s accessibility.
- Cook Library may make certain publishing-related services available for books that will be used in Towson University courses, which can include:
- Assignment of an ISBN
- Preservation in Scholarworks@Towson
- Listing and/or indexing on campus Pressbooks site
- Authors are responsible for managing their own Pressbooks accounts. Users who leave Towson University and wish to retain access must notify our Pressbooks administrators as soon as possible. Works may not be withdrawn when leaving Towson University.
Please contact Miranda Phair, Publishing and Open Scholarship Librarian, at mphair@towson.edu to schedule a consultation.
Adapted from “UC Berkeley Pressbooks Guidelines” by Office of Scholarly Communication Services, UC Berkeley, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License