Pop! The Open Scholarship Commons

"Higher education in the United States is in crisis. We see this in the reduction of state funding to public universities totalling US $9 billion over the past decade.1 We see this in the continuation of proposed funding cuts to the government agencies that are key to making new discoveries possible.23 Broadly, we see a continuing decline of the public’s confidence in higher education.4 It is clear that steps must be taken to restore the public’s faith in the academy and to demonstrate the value of research and education for the public good. But where do we start and what role can the library play? This paper will outline how we believe the design of a new physical and virtual space, an Open Scholarship Commons (OSC), can help advance research and education for the public good. In what follows, we will outline why we need an OSC in the library, walk through our visioning (or ideation) process for this space, share the vision and values for the space, and discuss our implementation process...."