Judy Verses, the President of Academic and Government Markets at Elsevier, gives the Digital Commons North American Conference Keynote Address.

In the past 20 years, institutional repository initiatives have gone from being deemed a total failure to occupying a central position in any successful scholarly communications initiative –how and why have they evolved into such a necessary investment? More importantly, what future challenges are on the horizon for which repositories can be a key solution? And how will IRs need to evolve to meet those future challenges?

In this opening panel, Digital Commons IR All-Stars will share their perspectives on how the environment has changed, what challenges still exist, and what they see for the future.

In this session, customers share how they are using Digital Commons NOW to achieve their IR goals at their institutions followed by an update of new enhancements that are coming up NEXT. The session wraps with a sneak-peek of the FUTURE roadmap of IR.

Your institution holds a wealth of treasures, many of which are probably already in your institutional repository -- how can you tell their stories in exciting, compelling ways to provide even more visibility and access?

In this presentation, Courtenay McLeland and Alice Sherwood will discuss how they’ve leveraged Digital Commons Exhibits (DCX) to expand the audience of their institution’s valuable content by building curated showcases of institutional history, archival materials, and a variety of other collections.

This session will include an update on new enhancements for Digital Commons journals, followed by a moderated panel discussion with leading editors and publishing experts focusing on new advances in peer-review: building international reviewer networks, fostering a constructive review culture, and finding effective tools to help improve review quality.

A Redesign of Emory Law Scholarly Commons by Andrea Quinn

Challenges to Building an Open Educational Resource Collection in the University of Memphis Digital Commons by Kenneth Haggerty

Ready, Set, Blast-Off with the Digital Collections of Retired Astronaut Thomas P. Stafford by Phillip Fitzsimmons

Tips and Tricks for Customizing Exhibits in DCX by Tabitha Samuel

In this showcase session, Digital Commons community members share innovative strategies for developing successful Institutional Repository programs. We will hear about building and displaying unique collections, strategies for engaging campus and stakeholders, tips for effective workflows, and more!

At the first in-person Digital Commons North American Conference we announce and honor this year's Institutional Repository All-Stars.