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A dark green geometric envelope opens to reveal a scattering of small golden, green, and light green squares.Scholarly Communications Newsletter

Spring 2026

Explore the inaugural issue of PALNI’s Scholarly Communications Newsletter to see how our community is advancing open publishing, affordable learning, and collaborative approaches to scholarly work!

Message From the Scholarly Communications Director

Amand Hurford Headshot square-1

Welcome to the inaugural issue!

We created this newsletter to keep our community informed and connected on the latest developments across open publishing, affordable learning, repositories, and researcher support. It has been an exciting start to 2026, and we hope this snapshot of recent news and initiatives reflects the creativity and collaboration that define our programs. We welcome your feedback as we continue to grow this resource — thank you for reading!

—Amanda Hurford

Explore Scholarly Communications at PALNI

What's New

Pictured is Emily HeltonIntroducing Emily Helton

PALNI is pleased to announce that Emily Helton has joined us as Affordable Learning Program Manager, supporting PALSave. Since starting January 20, Emily has been working with PALNI libraries and campus partners to expand access to zero-cost instructional materials across the consortium.

Meet Emily

 

Graphic design of Polaroid photo that reads Library Publishing Showcase 2026 in block lettering with a blue and black backgroundLibrary Publishing Showcase Week

Three PALNI Open Press projects were featured among nearly 40 highlighted by the Library Publishing Coalition (LPC) during the inaugural Library Publishing Showcase Week, held February 23–27, 2026. The week-long celebration showcased the creativity, innovation, and impact of library publishing programs. 

See featured publications

 

A PALSave green and gold logo with graduation cap sits at the top of a graphic design that includes a wavy green shape and a photo of a tablet sitting in the middle of a row of colorful books.Textbook Creation Grants awarded

PALNI has awarded PALSave Textbook Creation Grants to faculty authors from four of its supported institutions. These grants will allow educators to develop open textbooks that are freely available online, supporting a statewide effort to reduce course material costs for college students. 

See the funded projects

 

A blue human figurine stands out from a group of gray figurines, symbolizing leadership or uniqueness.Community co-investment for Hyku

A new community initiative is underway to improve the Bulkrax importer for Hyrax and Hyku repositories — led through a co-investment model between PALNI, PALCI, Notch8, and the Samvera community, and supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Sustaining Hyku grant.

Read about the project

 

The logo for HYKU for Consortia, featuring abstract blue and green geometric shapes next to green text.Hyku 7.0 release

The Hyku community is proud to announce the release of Hyku 7.0. This milestone represents the continued collaboration of developers, institutions, and service providers across the Samvera ecosystem.

Read about the release

Feature: Saint Mary's College Cushwa-Leighton Library

Saint Marys square

Research Skills Workshop

Saint Mary's College is advancing undergraduate research through its Library Research Workshops program. Students Peer Mentors lead sessions featuring socially assistive robots — originally funded by a PALNI Innovation Grant — supporting research in fields such as nursing, education, and social work. The robots are available for loan to other PALNI libraries. Students also developed an original workshop on AI and Environmental Sustainability. Looking ahead, the library is planning recorded sessions, new workshop topics, and an Open Educational Resource built from student-created materials. For more information, contact the Saint Mary's College Cushwa-Leighton Library Scholarly Communications Librarian Sue Wiegand.

Resource Spotlight

Open pedagogy

Looking to explore open pedagogy in your teaching practice? Open pedagogy is an approach to teaching and learning that emphasizes openness, collaboration, and student empowerment. PALNI's Open Pedagogy Learning Guide is a freely available resource that introduces educators to these principles. PALSave offers a related $500 stipend opportunity.

What we're working on

  • A series of infographics for ScholComm services
  • A faculty survey of professional development needs
  • Peer review recruitment for the PALNI Open Press: Complete this short interest form to join the pool and be matched to projects in your area of expertise.
  • Coming this summer: a new tiered stipend to help you revise, adapt, and remix OER, while making the most of flexible open licensing.
  • Kicking off the Archives Working Group
  • Remedation and new workflows for digital accessibility of OER

PALNI Scholarly Communications by the Numbers

A snapshot of what our shared scholarly communications work looks like at scale:

Hyku Commons Repository

  • Total works: 75,000

  • Views: 1.3 million

  • Visitors: 638,200

  • 34 Live Repositories

Learn about Hyku

PALNI Open Press

  • 48 Books

  • 4 Journals

  • 4 Exhibits

Learn about the Press

PALSave Program

  • Dollars Saved: $4,755,627.29

  • 765 Courses Transformed

  • 557 Textbook Reviews Submitted

  • Enrollment in transformed courses: 74,002

Learn about PALSave

Archives

  • 5 Active Instances of ArchivesSpace

  • 14 Working Group Members

 

Learn about Archives Consulting

Learn more about our services!

Visit the PALNI Scholarly Communications webpage for details, or reach out to the PALNI staff for opportunities to get involved in ScholComm initiatives.

students group working on school project together on tablet computer at modern university

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