Duquesne University announced plans to close its press in February, explaining that it could no longer justify the annual subsidy of more than $200,000. After an outpouring of concern by academics, the university suggested that it would be willing to listen to proposals to keep the press open.
On Wednesday, however, any remaining hope was dashed when Duquesne confirmed that it had turned down multiple proposals to keep the 90-year-old press open, and that the closure would go ahead as planned.
In a statement, the university said that the press’s “persistent deficits could not be alleviated without sacrificing the high quality for which the press has been known.”
Continuing to operate the press “would take away funds necessary for programs that directly benefit Duquesne students and other academic programs,” the statement added. “Therefore, keeping the press open is not a viable option.”
Susan Wadsworth-Booth, the press’s director, had submitted a proposal to save it and said she disagreed that continuing it would have resulted in reduced quality. She said she had worked with the Association of American University Presses, heads of other university presses that had streamlined their operations, and faculty members at Duquesne, to develop “a very workable proposal that reduced our university subsidy by two-thirds.”
“We felt we could successfully carry this forward without any sacrifice in quality,” she said, “especially since our authors and editors expressed such willingness to step up to the challenge.”
Erik Garrett, an associate professor of communication and rhetorical studies and a member of the press’s advisory board, said he was disappointed at the decision. “We thought there was a chance to save the press,” he said, “but today’s announcement makes us think that there was never a chance at all.”
Though Duquesne University Press is small, with just three full-time staff members publishing around 10 books each year, the impact of its closure is likely to be widely felt, particularly by scholars of the 17th-century poet John Milton. (The press has also specialized in works on medieval and Renaissance literature, theology, and philosophy.)
Susanne Woods, a Miltonist and interim vice president at Westminster College, in Pennsylvania, who has been published by the press, described Duquesne as “arguably the best press in the U.S. for Milton studies, and “second-best in the world” after the Cambridge University Press.
Peter C. Herman, a professor of English literature at San Diego State University, called Duquesne “the go-to press for the Milton establishment.”
Milton at Risk
Of particular concern to Milton scholars is the fate of Milton Studies, the press’s highly regarded annual scholarly journal. “Milton Studies is the major journal for the latest and most influential work in the field,” said Ms. Woods in an email. “I hope it will find another home if Duquesne University is really so foolish to shut down their prize-winning press. Perhaps another publisher will be smart enough to pick up the whole list.”
Laura Knoppers, editor of Milton Studies, said the journal receives around 40 submissions a year and has healthy readership numbers, with “a print run of about 750, plus a significant digital presence.”
She said she was confident that it will find a home elsewhere, but that such a move would set “a very bad precedent.”
“For a press that has tailored itself so beautifully to the mission of its own university to be cut purely for monetary reasons would be a shame,” said Ms. Knoppers, a professor of English at the University of Notre Dame. “I feel very strongly that university presses play a crucial role in furthering the mission of their university, both in terms of supporting research and disseminating knowledge.”
Elizabeth Sauer, president of the Milton Society of America, said via email that the closure of any press has special relevance for Miltonists, who “champion freedom of the press and freedom of expression, as Milton himself vehemently did.”
University presses have been put under considerable strain in recent years by tightened university budgets and dwindling sales, but actual closures have been rare, although high-profile presses, like the University of Missouri’s, have publicly weighed the idea of closing.
Duquesne University noted in its statement said that it was “actively pursuing” proposals to preserve the availability of some of the titles published by the press. Ms. Wadsworth-Booth, director of the press, told The Chronicle in an email that it’s unclear “whether and how many of our titles and/or series can be made available.”
“I would hope that we can place key publications and series with other presses that can give them the same attention and care that we have,” she said.
