---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Thu, 11 May 2000 09:32:53 -0400
From: Jessica Rigdon <jer@mail.press.jhu.edu>
Subject: Press Release

For Immediate Release
May 11, 2000

New Journal for Librarians to Be Published by The Johns Hopkins University
Press

Baltimore, MD -- The Johns Hopkins University Press is pleased to announce
the launch of Portal: Libraries and the Academy, an exciting new quarterly
journal, in January 2001.  Portal is a bold new move by academic
librarians to disseminate scholarship in all aspects of librarianship
within higher education.  This scholarly journal will also explore how
technology is affecting librarianship and scholarship, as well as the role
of libraries in meeting institutional missions.

The information revolution has presented numerous challenges to librarians
and administrators in several areas including archiving, copyright, and
distance learning.  Portal will cover these topics, and many others, as
they relate to the rapidly changing needs of academics and the roles of
libraries and librarians.  Through the highest-quality research and news
about librarianship in higher education institutions, Portal will provide
a much needed, fresh perspective.  Each issue will include peer-reviewed
articles on subjects such as library administration, information
technology, and information policy.  Reviews of newly published books in
areas of librarianship and higher education, as well as reviews of
computer and database resources will also be featured.  Regular columns
will address policy and strategic planning, technological issues, and
management and personnel issues.

Following the acquisition of the Journal of Academic Librarianship (JAL)
in 1998 by a large European publisher, most members of JAL*s editorial
board tendered their resignations in protest and sought out a publisher
that was recognized for its support of libraries.  Brought together again
at The Johns Hopkins University Press, a publisher that shares their
commitment to serve the library community, these individuals now compose
large part of Portal's editorial board.  However, the editors will not
simply recreate JAL under a different name.  The editors bring their
experience and skills to a new journal that will go against the grain by
addressing such controversies as the relative value of STM journals and
their effect on research libraries.  Portal will provide an unbiased
outlet for issues that scholars have been unable or unwilling to address
in other venues.

The actions of Portal's editorial board have drawn praise from the library
and academic communities, including endorsements of the journal from the
Association of Research Libraries and SPARC (the Scholarly Publishing and
Academic Resources Coalition).  Rick Johnson, Enterprise Director of
SPARC, said, "Portal is a community built around the diverse information
needs of its members.  It offers a superior alternative to commercial
journals in this field, and is the kind of initiative academic librarians
everywhere should support."

Led by three well-known and respected librarians, Portal*s editorial board
is comprised of leading scholars, administrators, and practitioners in
library science.  Charles B. Lowry and Susan Martin serve as Executive
Editors.  Dr.  Lowry is Dean of Libraries at the University of Maryland,
College Park and served as column editor for JAL.  He was the founding
associate editor of Library Administration and Management, the magazine of
the Library Administration and Management Association established in 1987.
Dr. Martin is University Librarian at Georgetown University and has served
as editor of the Journal of Library Automation and as a column editor for
JAL.  Managing Editor Gloriana St. Clair is University Librarian at
Carnegie Mellon University.  She served as an editor of JAL for three
years and had previously been editor of College and Research Libraries.

Dr. St. Clair, who will be managing the article refereeing, noted that
"Portal wants to be active in helping authors to achieve publication.  In
addition to its regular refereeing, the Board will also recruit a cadre of
interested professionals who can help aspiring authors design their
research projects, handle their statistical problems, and write their
results effectively.  We will not measure our success by a high rejection
rate but by our ability to help authors convey their research to other
academic librarians."  St. Clair urged individuals to submit their
scholarly work to her electronically at gstclair@andrew.cmu.edu or to her
attention at Hunt Library, Carnegie Mellon University, 4909 Frew Street,
Pittsburgh, PA 15213.  Because the journal is new, early submissions will
benefit from quick review and publication.

The Johns Hopkins University Press will begin publishing Portal: Libraries
and the Academy in January 2001.
Portal will also be available on the World Wide Web as part of the Project
MUSE® collection of online journals.  Visit muse.jhu.edu for more
information.

A reception to celebrate the Portal's launch will be held during the
annual conference of the American Library Association in Chicago on July 8
from 6 * 8 P.M. at the Museum of Contemporary Art.  All academic
librarians are invited to attend.

The Johns Hopkins University Press has one of the largest not-for-profit
journals publishing programs in America, with more than 55 journals in
print and online.  The Press publishes journals in the humanities,
medicine, and the social sciences.  Its innovative publishing program
embraces both traditional and newer modes of scholarly communication.

For more information, please contact The Johns Hopkins University Press,
Journals Division, 2715 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21218-4363,
U.S.A.  Fax: 410-516-6968.  Toll-Free: 1-800-548-1784.  Email:
jlorder@jhupress.jhu.edu.  Web site: www.press.jhu.edu.