Frequently Asked Questions

  1. Who can use the Academic Commons? -  Answer

    Formally recognized academic units of the University, such as departments, centers, institutes and programs, are encouraged to establish Academic Commons collections. Please note that the Academic Commons is for materials that require long-term access and preservation. It is not designed to meet short-term personal, classroom or group needs.

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  2. How do I start a collection in the Academic Commons? -  Answer

    Contact the Academic Commons Coordinator or other staff. They can quickly evaluate your proposed collection to determine whether it meets our collection criteria and how you (or we) can most effectively manage the content. Academic Commons staff can help you get started with your collection, and even load content for you when that makes more sense.

    As you think about your collection, be sure to consider your audience, the content you want to become part of the Academic Commons, special requirements for your collection and the amount of time you or your department can invest in maintaining the collection.

    In some cases, a project offers a chance to partner with library staff to create a collection of special interest to the university and outside audiences. Such projects can sometimes provide valuable learning experiences by offering students a chance to engage hands-on in digital scholarship.

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  3. Are collections in the Academic Commons available to the public or is access restricted to Willamette University only? -  Answer

    The answer is both. Collections can be restricted to Willamette University users. They can be open access and available to everyone. Collections can even be restricted to a small group of individuals or even in rare cases a single individual, something we fondly refer to as a "dark archive."

    The majority of departmental collections in the Academic Commons are restricted to Willamette University students, staff and faculty. University collections maintained by the archives, library or museum are usually open to the public.

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  4. How do I submit my senior thesis? -  Answer

    Submitting your thesis is is easy!

    Just follow simple instructions for formatting your document and naming the file. Then complete a brief online form. Instructions can be found here. Be sure to watch the video.

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  5. As a student, do I need to agree to anything before submitting my thesis to the Academic Commons? -  Answer

    When you submit your thesis, you will be asked to agree to a Student Distribution License. The license grants the university the right to keep and distribute your thesis through the Academic Commons. You will also be asked to certify that you own copyright to the work and that no part of your work is owned by another.

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  6. Who owns the works that are added to the Academic Commons? -  Answer

    An author who submits work to the Academic Commons grants the right to make that work available to an audience. In the case of departmental collections, the author controls who is in the audience and how long the item remains in the repository. He or she can request access restrictions or removal. Likewise, the university may also limit access or choose to remove the work at any time.

    Willamette University has a larger stake in collections or digital objects that have been professionally created, curated, published or enhanced using university resources and will exercise greater ownership over such materials. Before undertaking a collection or publishing project, Academic Commons staff will work with the content owner to reach a simple, fair and mutually beneficial licensing arrangement. At the moment, there is no university-wide policy on intellectual property.

    For more information, see our Copyright page.

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  7. How long are files kept in the Academic Commons? -  Answer

    A goal of the Academic Commons is to preserve digital content for future use. That means that files must be regularly backed up, monitored for deterioration (or "bit rot") and migrated to new formats as technologies change.

    Dealing with changing formats is the greatest challenge, since not all file formats will survive the test of time. We recommend standard formats as a hedge against obsolesence and promise reasonable efforts to migrate these file formats to new formats in the future. See our Preservation Policy for more information.

    It may be necessary to remove files from the Academic Commons for a variety of reasons, including revisions by the author, factual inaccuracy, copyright infringement, cost of storage or changes in collection policies. See our Withdrawal Policy for a full description of how this will be done.

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  8. What if I want to remove my work from the Academic Commons? -  Answer

    In the case of departmental and thesis collections, items will be removed immediately at the request of the author. See our Withdrawal Policy for more information.

    If a work is part of a university collection that was created, curated and enhanced using university resources, removal will be subject to prior terms of agreement between the author and the Academic Commons. See our page on Copyright Information

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  9. Should I include the Academic Commons in my data management plan for an NSF grant? -  Answer

    You should consider it! The Academic Commons is an excellent way to manage and publish your data. Before mentioning the Academic Commons, be sure to discuss your proposal with us. The Academic Commons is not the best solution for every data management need. For more information, see our NSF Data Management Plan page.

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  10. Why do some Academic Commons collections look different than others? -  Answer

    Not all collections are the same. We try to match the collection with respository software that fits best.

    Also, the Willamette University Archives and the Hallie Ford Museum have their own web sites. When you search these collections, it makes sense to leave the Academic Commons context.

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  11. How can I get a copy of my own thesis? -  Answer

    You will want to use the request a copy form found here.

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