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What is the Repository of Open Access Research (RoOAR)?

As the University of North Alabama’s open access repository of intellectual and creative work, RoOAR serves as an online collection of select works by members of the University community. Collier Library and Information Services manages RoOAR and is a part of their commitment to open and equitable participation in scholarly communication.

Who is allowed to become a registered user and submit content to RoOAR?

All UNA community members with valid email accounts may register as institutional users of RoOAR. Registration will allow access to content that is restricted to institutional users only and will permit users to submit content for inclusion in RoOAR.

Individuals without a valid UNA email account may not register as users of RoOAR, and are not able to directly submit content to RoOAR. A co-creator/owner of content with a valid UNA email account must submit content on their behalf.

The only exceptions made are for UNA alumni, emeritus faculty, and honored staff retirees who do not maintain UNA email accounts. In these cases, UNA affiliation will be verified with the Registrar or Human Resources prior to account approval.

Interested in creating new collections? Contact your liaison librarian or RoOAR administrator jpate1@una.edu to discuss your idea.

Why deposit work in RoOAR?

Discoverability. Works in RoOAR are discoverable by major search engines which increases the visibility of your work. Content creators who opt to share their work through RoOAR can view how often their work has been viewed and downloaded.

Advancing Equity through Open Access. Making your research freely available to anyone with internet access reduces financial barriers to information. This is particularly true with previously published scholarship often locked behind paywall, rental, or subscription fees. Moreover, legal deposits of previously published work to open access repositories like RoOAR help address some of the legal and political mechanisms that favor corporations at the expense of scholars.

Where does RoOAR work appear?

The contents of RoOAR are indexed by major search engines and open access tools.

Why can't I access a file in RoOAR?

As an open access repository of scholarly and creative work, RoOAR aims to make information as open as possible. RoOAR respects creators' rights and responsibilities to decide how open they want to make their work which means that not all information will be accessible/downloadable. If you are interested in a particular work, contact jpate1@una.edu or Collier Library and Information Services to explore your options.

Want to know more?

Our full RoOAR policy document contains all the information on author rights, submission criteria, content removal, and more. You can also contact the repository administrator with any questions jpate1@una.edu.