Penn State University Libraries have finalized new open-access publishing agreements with the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and the American Chemical Society (ACS), effective January 2026.
These contracts are designed to ensure that peer-reviewed research by Penn State authors, published through ACM and ACS, will be freely available to both authors and readers. This initiative aligns with Penn State's January 2020 policy, which aims to make its scholarly research accessible globally.
John Meier, head of STEM libraries at Penn State University Park, noted that these agreements address increasing open-access requirements by federal funding agencies. The University Libraries have previously established similar agreements with other STEM publishers, such as Springer Nature, to remove financial barriers for Penn State researchers and the broader research community.
ACM Agreement Details
ACM is transitioning to a fully open-access publishing model in 2026. Penn State's new "read and publish" agreement with ACM will eliminate author publishing charges for its researchers. ACM's publications include over 75 journals, seven magazines, and proceedings from approximately 170 conferences. Penn State researchers have contributed nearly 100 articles annually to ACM publications in recent years.
ACS Agreement Details
The Partnership for Academic Library Collaboration and Innovation (PALCI), of which Penn State is a member, has reached a renewable three-year agreement with ACS. This agreement also removes author publishing charges for Penn State researchers. ACS publishes more than 90 journals, with two new titles scheduled for addition in 2026. Penn State researchers publish over 100 peer-reviewed articles annually in ACS publications.
Scope and Benefits
Both agreements encompass research from a wide range of fields, including statistics and medicine. They facilitate Penn State's adherence to its institutional open-access policy and comply with mandates from federal funding agencies, such as the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. National Science Foundation. Unlike some open-access agreements that cap the number of applicable articles, both of these new agreements are unlimited. Additionally, Penn State students and researchers will retain access to all ACS and ACM journals.