U Virginia Digital Imprint

[Ann Okerson <ann.okerson@yale.edu>]

Of possible interest.

From:

Humanist Discussion Group, Vol. 15, No. 320.
Centre for Computing in the Humanities, King's College London
<http://www.princeton.edu/~mccarty/humanist/>
<http://www.kcl.ac.uk/humanities/cch/humanist/>

[1] From: John Unsworth <jmu2m@virginia.edu> (58)
Subject: electronic imprint

October 22, 2001

UNIVERSITY PRESS OF VIRGINIA APPOINTS MANAGER FOR NEW ELECTRONIC IMPRINT

The University Press of Virginia has announced the appointment of Mick
Gusinde-Duffy, an editor with wide-ranging experience in print and
Internet publishing, to head its new electronic publishing program.

The program, supported by a $635,000 grant by the Andrew W. Mellon
Foundation and a matching amount from the University of Virginia, will
create the first electronic imprint devoted exclusively to publishing
original, peer-reviewed digital scholarship in the humanities.
Gusinde-Duffy, formerly director of publishing at netLibrary, a startup
Internet business in Boulder, Colo., "brings a wealth of accomplishments
and experience as an editor and manager," said Penelope Kaiserlian,
director of the Virginia Press. "We look forward to having him join the
press Nov. 1 and get the electronic imprint off to a running start. We
have already learned of a number of innovative projects that might be
considered for publication."

The new electronic enterprise will publish large-scale scholarly projects
that involve computerized humanities research and are created in digital
format, not simply electronic versions of print books. Such digital
projects exceed the capabilities of print and are able to include full
archives of original source material and images in multimedia formats,
offering further avenues of research. A well known example is the
award-winning "Valley of the Shadow" Civil War history project directed by
U.Va. historian and Arts and Sciences dean Edward L. Ayers and recently
published on digital disks by W.W. Norton.

In addition to netLibrary, Gusinde-Duffy has worked as an associate
acquisitions editor at Westview Press in Boulder, an acquisitions editor
at the University of Utah Press and an acquisitions manager at 29th Street
Press in Loveland, Colo. He holds an M.A. in English, with a concentration
in publication management, from Colorado State University and a B.A. in
humanities and American Studies from Middlesex Polytechnic in London. John
Unsworth, director of U.Va.'s Institute for Advanced Technology in the
Humanities and chair of the search committee that recommended
Gusinde-Duffy, said that "he will be a great addition to the humanities
computing community at the University. The active involvement of the
University Press in that community will bring an important new perspective
to bear on the digital humanities M.A. program and on the digital library
programs here."

Consulting with experts from the Darden graduate business school to
develop the best business and cost-recovery models for the new enterprise,
the press will aim to publish its first electronic work by spring 2003,
Kaiserlian said. The press expects to publish several electronic projects
a year in American history, American and British literature, archaeology
and architecture, all areas it excels in. The electronic publications
could be made available either on the Web or digital disks, or both, and
could be in conjunction with a print book.

Gusinde-Duffy said he will look nationally and internationally for
pioneering digital work that emphasizes both creative scholarship and
innovative technology. Each project published will be approved by the
press's editorial board and will receive extensive peer review just as
print publications do.

"With the wonderful technology resources within the University, this
program offers the opportunity to explore the potential of electronic
publishing more fully," Gusinde-Duffy said. "We will learn as we go. The
goal is to bring to digital scholarship the imprimatur of quality that a
university press represents."

--end of excerpt--