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More News July 24, 2025

IOP Publishing (IOPP) and the University of California (UC) recently announced a new transformative open access agreement that will accelerate publishing and expand access to high-quality research in physics and related disciplines. 

The three-year agreement will make it easier and more affordable for UC researchers to publish open access articles in all of IOPP's owned journals and most of its partner journals, a total of 77 titles, and will advance the university’s efforts to empower more of its authors to share their research freely with the world.

“As a global leader in open access, this new agreement enables UC to continue advancing equitable access to scientific knowledge,” said Mark Hanna, Associate Professor of History at UC San Diego and chair of the UC faculty Academic Senate’s systemwide committee on library and scholarly communication. “This agreement not only supports researchers in physics and related areas but also reinforces UC’s commitment to maximizing the visibility and impact of the world-class research conducted across our campuses.”

Under the agreement, the UC Libraries will automatically cover the full cost of publishing open access for corresponding authors at all 10 campuses and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory who choose to publish in IOPP’s full open access and hybrid journals, as well as most partner journals. To maximize the number of UC researchers who can benefit from the newly signed agreement, authors of qualifying articles published since January 1, 2025, will be given the opportunity to retrospectively convert their article to open access, with the open access fees fully covered. Authors who have already published open access since January 1 will be offered refunds for open access fees already paid.

Authors can use the IOPP Journal Finder to easily verify if the IOPP journal they wish to publish in meets their funder requirements or is covered by a transformative agreement. UC authors can also use UC’s Journal Open Access Lookup Tool (JOLT) to search for journals covered by any of UC's systemwide open access agreements (including IOPP's).

Julian Wilson, Chief Sales Officer at IOP Publishing, commented: “In a time of great uncertainty around funding for US researchers, we stand firm in our support of independent, open science. As well as removing the administrative burden of dealing with invoices for article publication charges and supporting researchers, this agreement also offers authors greater visibility and impact for their research. Our open access articles typically receive 70% higher downloads and 15% higher citations when compared with non-open access articles in the same journal, underscoring the value of this initiative.”

This new agreement adds to UC’s and IOPP’s rapidly growing portfolios of transformative open access agreements. The university has active open access partnerships with 22 of the largest publishers of UC research. IOPP’s partnerships now include over 1,000 institutions across 40 countries, reinforcing IOPP’s commitment to advancing open science and global access to academic research. 

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If you have questions, please view the agreement FAQ page. You can also contact UCR STEM Collection Strategist Michele Potter about this agreement or general questions about open access publishing options at UCR.
 

More News December 09, 2016

On Tuesday, November 29, 2016, students of the Music Department’s debut course “Genealogy of Hip-Hop” became the first to use UCR Library’s new Dexter Thomas Japanese Hip-Hop Collection.

Dani Brecher Cook, Director of Teaching & Learning at UCR Library, collaborated with Dr. Liz Przybylski, Assistant Professor of Ethnomusicology to make this new archive available for student research.

“It was a new and exciting class that was offered by the Music Department to music majors and non-majors,” Dr. Przybylski said. The course examined hip-hop’s global spread and specific case-studies in the global hip-hop scene.

Dr. Przybylski felt that her collaboration with Dani and the library was productive. “Dani helped the students to interact with some of the materials, which helped them to understand what an archive is and how they can use it,” Dr. Przybylski explained. “The students enjoyed themselves, and it’s great to see what can happen when we have someone like Dani, who has the skill and experience to translate collections into student learning.”

Dani agreed that the collaboration was a terrific experience, stating, “Liz was a librarian’s dream to work with. She had a clear sense of what she wanted the students to walk away with, regarding how distinctive collections can deepen their understanding, beyond or in addition to what a YouTube video or streaming music might.”

Student groups participated in an open-ended listening activity, with each group assigned to one artist, based on what the library had available in the collection. Dani felt that this experience demonstrated the importance of physical collections and how material objects can enhance our understanding of topics in unexpected ways. “The students closely examined each part of the CD, ranging from the artwork on the liner notes and how that correlated (or didn’t!) with the music that they heard on the tracks, picking out the range of influences that informed the music, and tracking how artists evolved over time.”

“Students who don’t have a history of working with a physical product just don’t understand what kind of information it’s possible to encounter when you’re looking at an actual album or all the ways you can interact with an album, other than just hearing the songs that are on it,” Dr. Przybylski explained. “The physical CDs helped to tune the students in to the artist’s trajectory. They were reading CD liner notes to see more than just the lyrics of the songs. One group put all the CDs in order by year and looked at how the images changed over time, what label are the artists on now versus the label they used to be on. It was so much more immediate and accessible with the music in their hands.”

Dr. Przybylski sees great potential for future collaborations between the Music Department and UCR Library, using this archive. She hopes to see the “Genealogy of Hip-Hop” class run each year, and integrate the Dexter Thomas Japanese Hip-Hop Collection more robustly into the course curriculum. She would also like to incorporate it into her graduate seminar in hip-hop so that students could research the collection in-depth.

“It’s exciting to see students discover new things and create new knowledge for themselves using our distinctive collections,” Dani explained. “I’m looking forward to having the whole collection available next time, and seeing how that will help to build new connections and facilitate different thought processes and discoveries.”

“Some students seemed surprised that they really enjoyed the music even if they didn’t understand the lyrics,” Dr. Przybylski mused. She found only one drawback to the experience: “Having someone fluent in Japanese to translate the materials would enable us to extract even more information from them.” Perhaps this need could inspire a future collaboration between the library and the Asian Studies department.

Students also expressed interest in who the collector was and how he put this material together, Dr. Przybylski explained, because they resonated with and were inspired by the success that he had achieved post-UCR. Dexter Thomas graduated from UC Riverside in 2006 with a major in English and is now a PhD candidate in East Asian Studies at Cornell University. While at UCR, Thomas served as the Student Director of Programming at KUCR-FM, and after graduation he became a correspondent for the HBO show Vice News Tonight. Thomas won a Pulitzer Prize for his work at the Los Angeles Times on the 2015 San Bernardino shooting. He is currently writing a book about Japanese hip-hop.

More News September 14, 2023

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More News May 10, 2017

UCR Library is delighted to announce that Brianna Marshall joined our team as the Director of Research Services.

Brianna earned her BA in Rhetoric and Composition from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, and her MLS/MIS from Indiana University, Bloomington.

Most recently, Brianna served as the Digital Curation Coordinator for the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She brings demonstrated leadership in research services, especially in data services, including building successful services and navigating a large and complex research library environment.

Brianna also has experience with project management methodologies and design thinking, which will be critical skills in developing our new Research Services department.

More News February 25, 2025

The UCR Library recently acquired full access to the Press-Enterprise historical newspaper in digital format, via NewsBank.

The Press-Enterprise digital collection contains full access to the newspaper from 1878 to today, including important local and regional historic information, and includes photographs, images, and advertisements. UCR students, faculty, staff, and researchers can access the digital collection here. 

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ICYMI: You no longer need to use the Campus VPN to access our e-resources (like the Press-Enterprise Digital Collection) from off-campus. We've implemented OpenAthens and as a result, you can access the UCR Library’s licensed resources with our Central Authentication Service (CAS), using just your UCR NetID and password—no extra steps needed. Find out more about OpenAthens here. 

More News July 05, 2023

The UCR Library is thrilled to announce Zhiwu Xie as our new Assistant University Librarian for Research and Technology beginning Monday, June 26, 2023.

Zhiwu brings with him a wealth of experience and expertise, as well as a deep commitment to advancing research and technology in academia. 

Currently the Chief Strategy Officer at Virginia Tech’s University Libraries, Zhiwu’s motivation to apply for this leadership position at UCR lies in the exciting prospect of shaping the library's role in supporting research and technology, ensuring its relevance for years to come. 

"The unique portfolio of this position integrates the library's strategic roles in advancing campus research and technology development.” Zhiwu explained. “It provides me with an extraordinary opportunity to leverage my expertise and experience to help build a future-proof academic library." 

Zhiwu's accomplishments at Virginia Tech demonstrate his dedication to innovation and growth, like taking advantage of the faculty status that librarians have at Virginia Tech.   

“I am the first librarian in my current institution to have reached $1 million in external grant funding as PI and co-PI, and over the years, I have kept up with research and publications,” Zhiwu explained. His commitment to research not only elevated his own profile but also encouraged and empowered his peers to actively engage in research and technology development. 

Zhiwu stumbled into librarianship by accident. With a background in mechanical engineering and a postdoc in computer science under his belt, Zhiwu found himself at a crossroads in 2005 when the NASA-funded program he was working on — launching a superfluidity experimental rig to the Earth's orbit — faced an unexpected cancellation. It was a library that offered him an assistantship position that provided him an opportunity to remain in academia. He found the field fascinating and decided to stay.  

With his diverse background, including an M.B.A., an M.S. in Electrical Engineering, and a Ph.D. in Turbomachinery, Zhiwu possesses a unique set of skills that bridge the gap between research, technology, and library services. 

Please join us in extending a warm welcome to Zhiwu Xie as the Assistant University Librarian for Research and Technology at the UCR Library. With his vast experience, innovative mindset, and passion for advancing the academic library, we are excited to see the positive impact he will bring to the UCR community. 

More News April 19, 2016

The UCR Library’s 3D printer was featured with demonstrations for over 140 honors students during “Geek Week” in early January. This event launched a new collaborative program between the Library and University Honors (UH) to foster curiosity and exploration, build a sustainable peer resource program, and increase student collaboration with interdisciplinary projects.

The UH Peer Researcher Fellowship and Innovation Program has two components. The fellowship program pairs students with a librarian mentor to learn advance research skills and experience co-teaching library workshops. We hope to build a strong learning community of peer instructors to share skills, experiences, and knowledge through this experiential learning opportunity.

17 fellows from a variety of disciplines and stages of academic career were selected for the pilot program. UH students Raymond Tran and Mary Michaels serve as program advisers, assisting the librarian team to develop future programming and curriculum. The pilot program will be assessed through student, staff, and faculty feedback.

Engaging students through innovative and entrepreneurial forums or project laboratories is another program focus. Guest speakers from a range of professional backgrounds will host discussions on crowdfunding, multimedia production, and small business development. Project laboratories will provide space, tools, and hands-on instruction for experimenting and “making” with open-source electronic platforms such as Raspberry Pi and MakeyMakey.

Through this enriched programming we hope to inspire UH students, and to spark early exploration and design of their capstone projects.

More News October 30, 2024

We’re excited to announce the addition of two digital collections available for research and study.

 

Allison V. Armour Expedition to Yucatán, Mexico Photograph Album

This collection showcases the 1895 research expedition led by curators from the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. The photo album captures views of Mayan ruins, with additional photographs of local scenery and the expedition group.

Explore the collection on Calisphere.

Pico Rivera News (UCR Access Only)

Dive into LA County history with the Pico Rivera News, a newspaper chronicling life in Pico Rivera, California and the surrounding area in 1931 and 1932. While mostly in English, some issues do feature a page of news in Spanish. This archive is a valuable resource for members of the UCR community researching journalism, Southern California history, and even Hispanic culture.

Access the collection through UC Library Search.

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These new digital collections highlight our commitment to preserving and providing access to historical resources. We invite you to explore these collections and unlock stories from the past!