Previewing the 2022 AUPresses Annual Meeting, June 18-20
The Association of University Presses (AUPresses) looks forward to convening an in-person conference this summer, after a 2-year hiatus imposed by the COVID pandemic.
Honoring the opportunity to gather again in person, the 2022 Annual Meeting Program Committee has organized sessions and social events to celebrate and foster the collaborative spirit for which this community of mission-driven publishers is known. Co-chaired by Natalie Eidenier (Journals Manager, Michigan State University Press) and Joeth Zucco (Senior Project Editor, University of Washington Press), the committee has planned collaboration labs, “birds of a feather” gatherings, networking breaks, and meals that will allow attendees to share ideas, reconnect, and build new relationships. In addition, the inaugural Committee Fair will provide the opportunity for attendees to meet current AUPresses Committee members to learn more about getting involved in the work of the Association.
This year’s program also draws inspiration from host city Washington, DC. Highlights will include the opening reception at the Library of Congress’s iconic Thomas Jefferson Building and members’ walking tours near the conference hotel, exploring the city’s historic neighborhoods, diverse communities, and unique role in the history of civil rights.
Attendees will observe Juneteenth together with a special banquet featuring culinary journalist and community activist Toni Tipton-Martin. The author of the James Beard Award-winning The Jemima Code: Two Centuries of African American Cookbooks (University of Texas Press, 2015) and Jubilee: Recipes from Two Centuries of African American Cooking (Clarkson Potter, 2019), Tipton-Martin will speak on her research and the future of food writing; the banquet menu will be inspired by recipes in her books.
Other plenary speakers will offer vital perspectives on issues of concern and deep interest to this professional community:
- AUPresses General Counsel Linda Steinman will address the surge of book banning that the US is currently witnessing, offering historical and legal background. A partner with Davis Wright Tremaine LLP in New York, she has more than 30 years of litigation and counseling experience in First Amendment and intellectual property law.
- And Anjali Vats will speak on the structural and historical racism underlying modern copyright and intellectual property law and suggest ways that publishers can examine and undo harm in their own practices. Vats is an associate professor of law at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, with a secondary appointment in that university’s Communication Department, and the author of The Color of Creatorship: Intellectual Property, Race and the Making of Americans (Stanford University Press, 2020).
Overarching themes for concurrent sessions include a continuing focus on equity, justice, and inclusion (EJI), as well as open access topics and navigating career pathways. Sessions such as “The Library of Congress CIP Program: How It Works and What’s New,” “Born-Digital Journals,” “Onboarding New Editors,” and “A Year of Marketing Innovation” will allow participants to explore best practices and common ground. Other sessions will provide updates on AUPresses projects such as the EJI Demographic Survey Pilot, the revision of the peer review handbook, and a new joint task force (with the Society for Scholarly Publishing) on career progression.
A preliminary program for this flagship event is available on line and registration is now open.
During the conference, the AUPresses community also will celebrate the 2022 Book, Jacket, and Journal Show. This annual juried competition honors the design and production teams whose work furthers a long tradition of excellence in university press publication design; this year’s competition received nearly 500 entries.
Providing professional education opportunities to members is core to the Association’s mission. A free registration for the smallest presses; newcomer, early career, and diversity grants; a cross-pollination waiver grant for librarians (in cooperation with the Library Publishing Coalition); and discounted registration rates for nonprofits and libraries are all offered to support this essential mission at the Washington, DC, meeting. In these ways, the Association works to assist all in taking advantage of the unique professional development and networking opportunity that is the Annual Meeting.
Future AUPresses Annual Meetings will alternate yearly between an in-person event and a virtual one. By creating an Annual Meeting schedule that embraces both the energy of an in-person conference and the accessibility of virtual programming, the Association envisions a series of complementary events that will enhance the collaborative, educational, and professional networking opportunities available to all members and the wider network of community partners.
About the Association of University Presses
AUPresses is an organization of 160 international nonprofit scholarly publishers. Since 1937, the Association of University Presses advances the essential role of a global community of publishers whose mission is to ensure academic excellence and cultivate knowledge. The Association holds intellectual freedom, integrity, stewardship, and equity and inclusion as core values. AUPresses members are active across many scholarly disciplines, including the humanities, arts, and sciences, publish significant regional and literary work, and are innovators in the world of digital publishing.