University of Maryland Policy for Equitable Access to Scholarly Articles Authored by University Faculty

The University of Maryland (“the University”) is committed to disseminating its knowledge and research as widely as possible. In furtherance of its land-grant mission of teaching, research, and public service, the University adopts this policy of Equitable Access to Scholarly Articles Authored by University Faculty (“this Policy”) to increase the visibility, readership, and impact of the University of Maryland’s Scholarly Articles, and to ensure that the Scholarly Articles are permanently available in the University’s digital repository to readers and researchers worldwide.

1. “University Faculty Member” means individual(s) who receive a salary or other consideration from the University for performance of services on a benefits-eligible basis and who also hold faculty rank, including tenured/tenure-track, permanent-status/permanent-status-track, and professional track (PTK) faculty.
2. “Scholarly Article” means a work that describes the fruits of University Faculty Members’ scholarship and research; is deemed a form of “Traditional Works of Scholarship” in the University of Maryland Intellectual Property Policy (IV-3.20[A]); and is given to the world for the sake of inquiry and knowledge by the University Faculty Member without expectation of payment. Such articles are typically presented in peer-reviewed scholarly journals and conference proceedings.
3. “Author Accepted Manuscript (AAM)” means the version of a Scholarly Article that has undergone peer review and has been accepted for publication by the publisher.
4. “University Libraries” means the unit charged with ensuring that the Scholarly Articles addressed in this Policy are collected, organized, provided, and preserved. The University Libraries administers and manages the University’s digital repository, which enables discoverability of and equitable access to the Scholarly Articles.
5. “Equitable Access” means the removal of permission and cost barriers related to the open discoverability, retrieval, and use of UMD’s Scholarly Articles.

1. Equitable Access License
   1. Equitable Access to Scholarly Articles will be achieved by an Equitable Access License.
   2. Each University Faculty Member grants permission to the University of Maryland to make available their Scholarly Articles to the public. Specifically, each University Faculty Member grants an irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, nonexclusive license to exercise any and all rights under copyright relating to each of their Scholarly Articles, in any medium now known or later developed, and to authorize others to do the same for the purpose of making Scholarly Articles widely available to the public (“Equitable Access License”), provided that the articles are not sold for a profit.
   3. This Policy does not transfer copyright ownership of Scholarly Articles to the University. Copyright ownership remains with University Faculty Member as described in the University of Maryland Intellectual Property Policy (IV-3.20[A]), subject to the Equitable Access License.
2. Scope
   This Policy applies to all Scholarly Articles authored or co-authored by a University Faculty Member, except for any articles completed before the adoption of this Policy and any articles for which the University Faculty Member entered into an incompatible licensing or assignment agreement before the adoption of this Policy. See Section III.D below for information about opting-out, waivers, and embargoes related to this Policy.
3. Deposit
   1. No later than the date of publication for a Scholarly Article, the University Faculty Member will provide an electronic copy of the University Faculty Member’s Author Accepted Manuscript to the University Libraries, at no charge, in an appropriate format, such as PDF.
   2. Questions about deposit should be referred to the University Libraries.
   3. The University will make the Scholarly Article available to the public in an open access repository.
4. Opt-Out/Waiver/Embargo
   1. Upon written direction by a University Faculty Member, submitted to the University Libraries, the Equitable Access License will be waived by the University for a specific Scholarly Article.
   2. Upon written direction by a University Faculty Member submitted to the University Libraries, access to a Scholarly Article covered under this Policy will be removed, delayed, or embargoed for a specified period of time.
5. Policy Interpretation/Changes
   The Office of the Senior Vice President and Provost will be responsible for interpreting this Policy, resolving disputes concerning its interpretation and application, and recommending policy changes as needed.