Student Assembly

Whereas, writing research papers is a requirement of many Cornell University courses, and

Whereas, such assignments require access to articles published in academic journals, and

Whereas, student access to scholarly literature is primarily provided by subscriptions through the Cornell University libraries, and

Whereas, the high cost of academic journals — in some fields, more than $20,000 per year for a single journal subscription — restricts access to knowledge, and

Whereas, the cost of these subscriptions has been accelerating at a rate greater than inflation for the past decades, and

Whereas, authors of scholarly articles are not paid for their work, with journal profits accruing solely to the publishers, and

Whereas, the majority of research funding comes from public sources, supported by taxpayers, and

Whereas, all students deserve access to the full body of published scholarly literature, and

Whereas, “open access” is an alternative to the traditional closed, subscription-access system of scholarly communication, and

Whereas, open access provides free online access to the results of scholarly research while maintaining quality controls, such as peer review, and

Whereas, several national and international student organizations and student governments have developed the Student Statement on the Right to Research to explain student interests in the scholarly communications system and to rally students in support of open access, and

Whereas, many of the graduate and professional sectors of universities have signed onto this movement, but no undergraduate colleges have yet to;

Be it therefore resolved, that the undergraduate students of Cornell University endorse the Student Statement on the Right to Research and open access to academic research, and

Be it further resolved that the students of the Cornell University laud the administration’s decision to support open access research and call on governments, research funders, researchers, and fellow students to support open access to academic research.

Be it finally resolved that a copy of this resolution will be sent to David Skorton, President of Cornell University; Kent Hubbell, Dean of Students; Alison Power; Senator Charles Schumer, New York; Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, New York and Representative Maurice Hinchey. New York 22nd District.

Respectfully submitted,
Roneal Desai
Freshman Representative to the Student Assembly