Researchers advance understanding of a topic by publishing their work. Ideally, other researchers doing similar investigations would be able to easily access the new findings. To facilitate this, some journals are open access—freely available to anyone with internet access rather than being funded by subscriptions. However, researchers often face article processing charges (APCs) of $3,000 or more to publish their work.
Publishing possibilities
To support University of Dayton researchers facing this financial barrier, the UD Libraries’ Open Access Publishing Fund provides up to $1,000 per article to offset open access journal or book publishing fees. Since 2024, 22 researchers — students and faculty — have used the fund to publish their work in open access journals.
Mariela Gantchoff, assistant professor of biology, applied for funding in 2025 to support the publication of “Mapping Potential Habitat for Naturally Recolonizing Cougars (Puma concolor) in Missouri, USA,” a study written in collaboration with a graduate student.
“My first Master of Science student was hoping to publish her first thesis chapter to improve job prospects after graduation,” Gantchoff said. “We applied for funding to help with the publication costs, and it made a huge difference, covering more than half of the expenses.”
Faculty mentorship and experiential learning are pillars of a UD education, and the student received both in writing and publishing the paper. “This was my first paper with a graduate student and a big collaboration project with a state agency, so it meant a lot to me to see it finally published,” Gantchoff added.
Christina Beis, associate professor and director of collections strategies and services in the University Libraries, oversees open access publishing funding, education and outreach. “The Libraries’ Open Access Publishing Fund has a direct positive impact on UD authors sharing their work,” she said. “However, demand is high, and resources are limited. In 2025, the year's funding was made available on July 1 and was fully committed by Sept. 25.”
Statewide publishing perks
UD researchers also benefit from another open access initiative through OhioLINK, the state’s academic library consortium, part of the Ohio Department of Higher Education. OhioLINK has negotiated “read-and-publish” agreements with six major publishers, allowing authors from member institutions to publish open access without paying fees. These agreements also provide UD scholars with access to a broad range of high-quality research articles from these publishers. Since 2022, 126 papers by UD researchers have been published through these agreements, resulting in $442,947 in avoided fees.
Adding opportunity
In January 2026, OhioLINK established a new open access read-and-publish agreement with the American Chemical Society (ACS). Erick S. Vasquez-Guardado, associate professor in the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, was the first UD researcher to publish through this new agreement.
“I first learned of the OhioLINK agreement with ACS through communications from our engineering librarian and the Office of Academic Research,” he said. “ACS publications maintain a gold standard in the field, and the opportunity to publish our research open access is invaluable for ensuring our results are disseminated widely and efficiently.”
Without a financial barrier to entry, his study, “Self-Assembly Interactions in Magnetite-Coated Cellulose Nanocrystals: Implications for Magnetic Hyperthermia Applications,” was accepted for publication. “These agreements ensure that the ability to publish open access depends on the quality of research, not the size of a specific lab’s discretionary budget,” Vasquez-Guardado said. “Given the seamless experience, I look forward to utilizing this service frequently in the future.”
The University Libraries and OhioLINK recognize that financial support and collaboration are essential to ensuring research is accessible to all. This initiative represents a move from theory to action — dedicating financial and staff resources to expanding the reach of open access scholarship.
Photo by Surya Deip Reddy Kesaram ’25.