Open Access

Key Points

The rationales in ASCSU Resolution 3376-19/FA list many reasons for a Green Open Access Policy. Besides these, we should also note the following.

• Without the protections of a Green OA policy, CSU faculty are currently at a disadvantage to faculties at the UCs and many other institutions. Those faculties have collectively retained copyright of the accepted versions of the journal articles they have written and reserved the legal right to archive and publicly distribute them immediately upon acceptance. This has resulted in a much larger readership and far greater impact for their work. By comparison, CSU faculty members lack such protections, must negotiate individually to retain copyright, and typically give away copyright to publishers. In turn, publishers put limitations on the archiving and/or distribution of journal articles to maximize profits.
• By securing legal licenses to archive the accepted version of journal articles, Green OA Policies also give universities more leverage in our negotiations over subscriptions with big journal publishers/vendors.
• Having consistent policies passed by most or all of the 23 CSU campus Academic Senates would ensure legal clarity and consistency, while also facilitating implementation in our shared system-wide institutional repository (ScholarWorks).

Timeline of Open Access Policy Efforts

• 2016 April 21 – CSU Fullerton Academic Senate Library committee passes “Resolution in Support of Open Access for Faculty Publications” to raise awareness and to call for the creation of an opt-in OA Policy.
• 2016 May 17 – CSUF Academic Senate (AS) passes above resolution (ASD 16-89).
• 2017 January – Bilby and University Librarian Scott Hewitt draft an opt-out Green OA Policy for CSUF.
• 2017 February 8 – Pollak Library hosts What’s Brewing, keynoted by Chris Kelty, instrumental in the UC system passing an opt-out Green OA Policy. President García, Provost Puri, and Academic Senators attend.
• 2017 February – Bilby works with CSUF Senator Bruschke to reframe the policy. Instead of calling it a "Green Open Access Policy," it is changed to a "Retention of Faculty Rights to Deposit and Disseminate Their Scholarly Articles: A Green Open Access Policy."
• 2017 March 20 – CSUF Academic Senate Library Committee passes the first opt-out Green Open Access Policy in the CSU. (The Open Access Policy passed by CSUN in 2013 was an opt-in policy designed to encourage faculty to archive in OA repositories and publish in OA journals. It does not retain legal protections.)
• 2017 May 18 – With the Green OA Policy (ASD 17-57) on the Senate agenda, Bilby presents on the policy at the invitation of AS Chair Emily Bonney. Time expires before a vote can be cast at the EOY Senate meeting.
• 2017 September 18 – CSUF AS Library Committee again passes a Green OA policy.
• 2017 October 5 – At the invitation of AS Chair Steve Stambough, Satoko Kakihara (Chair of the AS Library Committee) and Bilby give a presentation on the Green OA Policy to the Senate. Academic Senators raise legal questions about the policy, eventually leading to the tabling of a plenary Senate vote.
• 2018 November 5 – CSUF AS Library Committee again passes a Green OA policy.
• 2019 February 11 – Legal questions persist. As members of the AS Library Committee, AS Chair Mark Stohs and Library Dean Emily Bonney recommend bringing this matter to the statewide Academic Senate of the California State University (ASCSU) to consider making a formal referral to the Chancellor’s Office and its Office of General Counsel. Later that day, using the CSUF Green OA policy as a template, Bilby creates a draft Green OA resolution for the ASCSU.
• 2019 March 1-12 – Bilby requests and obtains letters from legal counsels/experts at Harvard, the UC, and KU. As an ASCSU Senator, Stohs brings to ASCSU the Green OA Resolution, which is routed to ASCSU Faculty Affairs (FA).
• 2019 March 13 – At the ASCSU Faculty Affairs Committee, CSUF/ASCSU Senator Jon Bruschke speaks for the Green OA Resolution and brings the above letters of support. The resolution is revised and then passes.
• 2019 March 15 – The Resolution has its first reading in ASCSU plenary. Bruschke sponsors, and Stohs also speaks in favor.
• 2019 May 15 – The Green OA Resolution is revised by ASCSU Faculty Affairs, attended and advised by Bilby.
• 2019 May 17 – The Green OA Resolution has its second reading in ASCSU plenary. Bruschke sponsors, and Janousek (CSULB) also speaks in favor. The resolution is unanimously passed (AS-3376-19/FA).
• 2019 July 1 – The CSU Office of the Chancellor formally responds to the resolution and calls for an "ad hoc committee" to be formed to consider and advise on a CSU-wide OA policy.
• 2019 September 18 –  At invitation of ASCSU FA chair Filling, Bilby attends and advises the committee, who voice strong support for a systemwide Green OA policy and decide to have ASCSU chair Nelson broach the topic informally with the Office of the Chancellor before the committee takes further action.

Green OA Policy Info for CSUF Senators and Faculty

On Dec 14, 2020 (and previously on November 5, 2018, September 18, 2017, and March 20, 2017), the Academic Senate University Library Committee unanimously passed an Open Access policy (fully entitled, “Retention of Faculty Rights to Deposit and Disseminate Their Scholarly Articles: An Open Access Policy”). Academic Senators and the general Faculty can get a good, quick overview of the Open Access policy by reading pages 2-7 of this packet. Those wishing to investigate further can find supplemental material in the appendices.

What's Brewing? A Green OA Policy!

Pollak Library devoted its second What's Brewing event on February 8, 2017, to considering a Green Open Access Journal Article Archiving policy for Cal State Fullerton. Chris Kelty of UCLA, a key proponent in passing the UC system's Open Access policy, keynoted the event, followed by a panel of CSUF faculty.

Green Open Access Journal Article Archiving Policy: Myth v. Fact

Mark Bilby and Karen Vasquez created the Green Open Access Policy Infographic below. A full transcription of this Green Open Access Policy Infographic is also available, and it has the same content as the infographic slides linked below.

Good Practices for Faculty OA Policies

For those interested in the nuts and bolts of a Green Open Access policy, Stuart Shieber and Peter Suber of Harvard have assembled a widely endorsed, online guide to good practices for University faculties who want to pass and implement Green Open Access policies.