Witnessing all the damage caused by Sandy has me feeling a melancholy. I was born and raised in New Jersey and spent many summers “down the shore.” In recent summers I have taken my daughter to some of the same beaches I enjoyed as a kid. I’ve been a New Yorker since 1991 and am a regular visitor to Coney Island, and lived for a short time in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. It is quite devastating to see all the massive destruction done to our great city and state and to our neighbors in New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania. As I was preparing to write my post for University Press Week, I reflected on how university presses have bonded together in the past during times of tragedy to help us all understand what is happening at the moment and how we can move forward. “Books for Understanding” was developed by the Association of American University Presses (AAUP) soon after 9/11 to bring the latest and most valuable scholarship to readers in an easy to find and easy to use place. The AAUP instantly became a resource for people who wanted to know more and to find it from reliable sources—University Presses—the pillars of knowledge. The day after hurricane Sandy hit, a reporter from the Huffington Post contacted me about a Fordham University Press (FUP) author who wrote a history of the NYC subways. She wanted to interview him about the flooding of the tunnels and the mass transit shutdown. It is a prime example of how the media turns to university presses for expertise during times of crisis.

We emphasize scholarship by being witnesses to global events, detectives for finding the best authors, and sharers of critical information that has been researched and vetted. Combining efforts to make all of our books on a specific topic of current concern to citizens of the world is invaluable. There are several lists related to Hurricane Sandy, including one on Katrina. Knowing this, I’m not feeling as sad. Thank you AAUP! In preparation for University Press Week to celebrate the AAUP turning 75, Will Underwood, Director of Kent State University Press, asked fellow directors to gather some endorsements from key stakeholders. Happily, I got a great response from faculty and administrators on the Fordham campus as well as some FUP authors and friends. Here is what the Provost of Fordham University wrote:

“As the Association of American University Presses (AAUP) celebrates its 75th anniversary, Fordham University joins in honoring a rich history of committed leadership and collaborative service to the academy and to society. Fordham University Press has partnered with AAUP since 1938 to advance academic excellence in the full pursuit of truth and to enrich public discourse through the dissemination of scholarly research of the highest quality across the disciplines. We look forward to our work with the AAUP to engage evolving challenges and opportunities for university presses in the decades ahead. —Stephen Freedman, Provost, Fordham University

FUP celebrated its 100^th anniversary in 2007.  Established in 1907 to help Fordham faculty publish monographs based on their research, we now publish up to 70 books per year from faculty at institutions all over the globe. Not unlike the AAUP, FUP is a small organization with big ambitions. We have established ourselves as a leading academic press concentrating in history, literary theory, philosophy and religion. We also publish well established series in continental philosophy, American philosophy, medieval studies, World War II, and the Civil War among others and have created new series spanning a diversity of topics from Orthodox Christianity to Italian American studies. We have a long history publishing regional books focusing on New York City and the Hudson Valley. In 2010, we established the Empire State Editions imprint to better brand and market these titles.

To kick off the festivities of UP week, we hosted an open house for faculty showcasing their work as authors and series editors. Despite the previous evening’s nor’easter, we got a nice turnout and received positive feedback.  Here are a few shots.

On Veteran’s Day, FUP hosted a Veteran’s Day public program entitled Five Historians Reflect on World War II: What We Know, What We Still Need to Learn and What We May Never Know. It turned out to be a successful event with a lively engaged audience. Here are some pics.

Dr. Scott H. Bennett, author of Army GI, Pacifist CO: The World War II Letters of Frank and Albert Dietrich

Dr. G. Kurt Piehler, Dr. Scott H. Bennett, Dr. Sidney Pash, Dr. Ann Pfau, Dr. John Chambers, Dr. J. Garry Clifford

FUP is lean, resourceful, hardworking, and determined. I’d say that about captures the definition of a university press and the AAUP. I’m proud to be a member of this superb, caring, humane community. Happy birthday AAUP. Here’s to another 75 years.

I’ll end with a quote from a friend and a fan of university presses:

“What words to describe the university press? Patient, ambitious, demanding, sustaining, generous, utterly essential. Serious thinking is unimaginable without it.”
—William Germano, Dean of Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at the Cooper Union

Fredric Nachbaur (Twitter: @FNachbaur) is the Director of Fordham University Press.

Next stop:  Texas A&M University Press.

New York – Fordham University Press is delighted to announce the launch of its totally redesigned website. The new site provides users with a comprehensive and dynamic platform, functioning as an extended community and FUP store. Now visitors can not only easily find and buy books of interest but also be kept informed about resources, tips, news, awards and events. Along with a vastly expanded search functionality, FUP has added features like interactive catalogs and recommendations plus easy accessibility to other publishing initiatives and eBook Partners.

With intuitive navigation and far deeper social connectivity than its predecessor, the new website is a true resource for the greater FUP community including authors, professors, booksellers, librarians and contributors & academic collaborators.

 “The vastly improved website better represents Fordham University Press as a destination for publishing innovative, interdisciplinary scholarship in the humanities and social sciences. The new face of the press more accurately depicts who we are today. The fun design, the improved search functionality, and the integration with social media make it a fulfilling and beneficial experience for all of our constituents.”
                       —Fredric Nachbaur, Director

“One of our core goals was to create a site that serves our community; we wanted to be relevant and useful. We collaborated with Reitdesign and Guavabyte to design and develop our vision. Together they brought a smart, clean, and functional strategy that exceeded our expectations and have expanded our platform of offerings.”
                     —Kate O’Brien-Nicholson, Marketing Director

Press Mission + History:
Fordham University Press, which celebrated its centennial in 2007 and currently publishes sixty to seventy scholarly books annually, primarily in the humanities and

social sciences, has an outstanding reputation for producing award-winning studies in the fields of anthropology, classics, communications, the fine arts, history, literary studies, philosophy, political theory, religion, sociology, and theology, with a particular emphasis on creatively interdisciplinary work. Each year it publishes two books of poetry through the Poets Out Loud prize. Fordham University Press also has a long history of publishing books focusing on the New York region and in 2010 established the Empire State Editions imprint to better brand and market these popular regional books.

The Press, a member of the Association of American University Presses (AAUP) since 1938, was established in 1907 not only to represent and uphold the values and traditions of the University itself but also to further those values and traditions through the dissemination of scholarly research and ideas. The Press has achieved this mission by publishing 2,500 books and maintaining 1,000 active titles, including both print and electronic version.

To see the new website, please visit www.fordhampress.com.

Follow Us:

Our blog: FordhamImPRESSions.com

Facebook: Facebook.com/FordhamUP

Twitter: @FordhamPress

For additional information and general enquiries, please contact Kate O’Brien-Nicholson (@KateoNich) at bkaobrien@fordham.edu or 718/817-4782.

Fredric Nachbaur, Director, FUP

During the Association of American University Presses (AAUP) annual meeting that took place this past June in Chicago there were so many good sessions that I was hard pressed to choose the ones that would be most beneficial, especially if they were overlapping . One such session I attended was called “So You Want to Be a Director? Leadership Strategies for New and Aspiring Directors from the Director’s Tool Kit.” At first, I thought that I didn’t really need to go to this panel but after further reflection I decided that I could learn a thing or two. . . Good move! It was actually very useful and made me think about the offsite meeting I was planning for the staff of Fordham University Press.

Here are a few snippets from Cynthia Barnes, Associate Professor in the Master of Science in Organization Leadership (MSOL) Program, School of Management of Regis University, who kicked off the panel session:

• Micromanaging equals insecurity
• Managers should oversee climate control and obstacle removal – make staff want to come to work and make a contribution
• Acknowledge and recognize employees
• Managers should be comfortable in their own skin

Cynthia’s Five Tips for Managers:
1. Know the right questions to ask and whom to ask – a manager doesn’t have all the answers
2. It’s not about prestige and power – give people power
3. It’s not about control but empowerment – lead people to control themselves
4. Trust others as they are – gifted and talented human beings; find out what floats their boat and reinforce them for that
5. Match tasks with talents – be a door opener

I think those are good tips and a good message to share with my staff. I want them to be doing a job that they like and matches their talents. We should absolutely never say “I do it this way because that the way it’s always been done.” No! If something doesn’t work or needs updating, we should all feel empowered to suggest change. We are fortunate to have an administration that supports our mission and university press publishing. Let’s continue to make them as well as ourselves proud.

Here are brief summaries of the presentations by the directors of three university presses of different sizes:

Alison Mudditt/University of California Press
• People support what they help create
• Make some decisions on your own
• Don’t create an us versus them environment regarding administration
• Can’t run entire press – don’t have the time
• Create environment for success
• Hire and mentor right people
• Senior management team – bring in development program
• Manage external constituencies: Admin, faculty, media, advisory board
• Build Productive relationships with administration
• Realize that you are sending a message – every move and word scrutinized
• Be excited and energized by change; preparedness to make difficult decisions
• Set out expectations and create collaboration
• Hired an organizational consultant – press therapist; 50% paid by administration

Jane Hoehner, Wayne State Press
• Learning as you go
• Be yourself but adapt to your audience
• Talk to departments, students, rotary club
• Communicate
• Risk taker
• Transparencies with staff but keep some stuff back. Create a balance

Charles Watkinson, Purdue University Press
Solve problems together
1. All have the big picture
2. Take advantage of university and align with its mission
3. Manage up

Even though each of the above presses is different in size and publishing program, their challenges are the same. They each need to create an atmosphere that encourages productivity and pride and publish high quality scholarship that mirrors the mission of its parent university while contending with an ever-changing landscape. I’m glad to know that I’m not alone and that I have colleagues that I can turn to for sound advice. Academic publishing has its ups and downs but I’m proud to be part of it and looking forward to leading Fordham University Press into the next stage.

Fredric Nachbaur (Twitter: @FNachbaur) is the Director of Fordham University Press.

New York University
NYU Silver Center
Jurow Hall, 1st floor
100 Washington Square East
NYC

May 4-5,  9:30am-7:30pm

____________________________________________________________________________________

Conference sponsored by Fordham University’s Comparative Literature Program, New York University’s Comparative Literature Department, Fordham University Press and the consortium of presses participating in the Modern Language Initiative. Funding generously provided by the Mellon-funded Modern Language Initiative and Fordham University Arts & Sciences Deans.

For information, visit www.modernlanguageinitiative.com

When I received my certificate from the university’s Office of Multicultural Affairs for successfully completing training to be an ally of support for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Network, I felt very exultant. This seemed very cool to be happening at a Catholic university. After attending two half-day sessions with students, faculty, and other administrators, I received my button and plaque that I proudly display on the wall in my office. Along with my fellow trainees, I am available on campus to offer support to any students or community members who are feeling anxious, unsure, or unsafe about their sexual identity and how it affects their life at Fordham.

The Office of Multicultural Affairs created the network and training program to foster an environment of inclusiveness, awareness, understanding, and open-mindedness. During the sessions, we participated in role playing in which we acted out anonymous student stories confronting homophobia and other hostile situations; discussed LGBT terminology, stereotypes, and common language; and learned about campus and community resources for LGBT students. Guest speakers talked about how we can be good listeners and offer support when needed, and we heard from a student about his journey from closeted high school student to openly gay college student. It was an incredible experience and one that made me feel honored to be a member of the Fordham community.

Soon thereafter a rash of unsettling incidents occurred on campus that undermined the efforts of programs like the LGBT Network. Racial and homophobic slurs were found in the hallways of different buildings on campus both at Rose Hill (Bronx) and Lincoln Center (Manhattan).

Now that this news has hit the national media, as an administrator of the university and the director of Fordham University Press I felt compelled to express my feelings on the series of events. These atypical actions go against everything that Fordham stands for, which is to promote an understanding, acceptance, and appreciation of all our students that is rooted in the Jesuit tenet of Cura Personalis and the principle that all people should be treated with dignity and respect, which is explicit in Catholic teaching. The narrow-mindedness of the individual or group that made these slurs via graffiti should not overshadow the efforts that Fordham has made to work actively toward promoting an environment in which all members of the university community are welcomed and valued.

Fordham University Press has a commitment of mirroring the values and mission of the university that is evident in the types of books it publishes. On our current spring list are two lead titles that exemplify our appreciation of diversity, whether exploring LGBT issues or delving into the history of African Americans.

Hidden: Reflections on Gay Life, AIDS, and Spiritual Desire by Richard Giannone, professor emeritus at Fordham University,  is a deeply personal account of the author’s struggle of being gay, Catholic, and caretaker for his dying sister and mother. From Slave Ship to Harvard: Yarrow Mamout and the History of an African American Family by James H. Johnston is the true story of an African American family in Maryland over six generations.  A recent backlist title – Civil Rights in New York City: From World War II to the Giuliani Era edited by Clarence Taylor – addresses varying aspects of New York’s civil rights struggle and reaffirms their importance to the larger national fight for equality for Americans across racial lines. These are only three of the many books that represent our effort and desire to publish books that welcome and encourage an understanding and awareness of diversity in the world and that, we hope, will widen people’s understanding and appreciation of race and gender.

As an openly gay man who has recently married (thank you, New York) and is raising a child, it is important to me that I feel welcome on campus, which I do. I have never felt like an outsider and have always been encouraged to be proud of who I am. Fordham has always fostered this atmosphere, which is exemplified by the LGBT training that it offers; the resources available to LGBT students; the diversity of the students, faculty, and staff; and the books published by the university press. The ignorance represented by these recent slurs should not and will not undo all the understanding and awareness that exist at Fordham.

Photo by Bruce Gilbert

Last weekend, as we were driving out to get cat food, my husband commented that a friend’s wife, a psychoanalyst, had called him for help with one of her patients, who was trying to complete her first book but was completely blocked. Could my husband, who is a developmental editor, offer any advice?

“Well,” he reported replying, “I’m not very good at dealing with existential terror. But I’ll see what I can do.”

Our conversation immediately turned to how he might suggest ways to get the patient to view the project as a matter of work in the most positive sense . . . READ MORE

By Helen Tartar, Editorial Director, Fordham University Press
Fordham University, May 5, 2011

The McGannon Center welcomes proposals from researchers from any disciplinary background with an interest in communications policy.  For more information about the series and/or  submission guidelines, Click Here.

(Left to right: William Germano, Ph.D., Fredric Nachbaur (moderator), Niko Pfund, Emily Loose and Alan Most) Photo by Kathleen Sweeney