Opponents of the University of Missouri's decision to revamp its academic publishing business plan to meet to discuss their next steps.
Organizers of Tuesday's meeting say the school's plans to replace the press with a digital publishing operation that will rely largely on student workers will provide a poor substitute for the traditional university press model. Some members of the Columbia campus chapter of the American Association of University Professors are scheduled to meet with university system president Tim Wolfe later Tuesday.
Wolfe decided in May to shut down the 54-year-old academic press in part to put the business' $400,000 annual university subsidy to better use. The decision has generated significant nationwide criticism in the publishing industry, and several authors want the school to return their publishing rights.