Resolution in Support of KU Libraries' Negotiations

Whereas the University of Kansas Libraries will be negotiating a new contract with the Elsevier corporation for access to scholarly journal titles,

Whereas the faculty of the University of Kansas have long been leaders in open access and other new approaches to the dissemination of scholarship,

Whereas the Libraries’ budget for scholarly content has remained flat for well over a decade, causing a sharp decline in buying power due to inflation,

Whereas KU’s subscription to Elsevier’s ScienceDirect collection costs $1.2 million in 2021, amounting to 16% of the Libraries’ total content budget,

Whereas the current subscription-based model for journal access, and especially the so-called Big Deal, is increasingly unsustainable,

Now, therefore, the Faculty Senate of the University of Kansas expresses its support for the KU Libraries in these negotiations. We acknowledge that due to the high costs involved, KU’s subscription package with Elsevier may need to be broken up into subscriptions limited to the most used journals. We know that library colleagues are committed to making these decisions in collaboration with faculty and departments, and that they plan to accommodate the remaining needs of faculty via inter-library loan, article-by-article purchase, or open access availability.

Unanimously adopted on November 18, 2021, by vote of the Faculty Senate.