The past year saw the revival of the online Journal of Opinions, Ideas & Essays (JOIE), sponsored by UMRA. The open-access journal was established in 2013 as a venue for publishing articles on a variety of scholarly, artistic, educational, and civic issues written by members of the University community, both retired and employed. 

Seventeen submissions were published by the end of 2015. But in the following four years, only five additional articles were added, and the journal was placed on hiatus in 2020.

In early 2021, I volunteered to serve as editor-in-chief and JOIE was reopened for article submission. Other steps taken so far in the revival include:

• working with University Digital Conservancy (UDC) staff to update the JOIE collection page, adding downloadable instructions for authors 
• recruiting new members to the editorial committee, now consisting of five talented UMRA volunteers
• writing announcements to promote the renewed journal, both within UMRA and other University venues, including U of M Brief and the P&A Senate Newsletter
• preparing a JOIE operating “toolkit,” now archived on the UMRA website
• regularly updating the UMRA board and Communication & Outreach Committee

With eight new articles published in JOIE as of February 2022, the total collection is now up to 30. Please contact me at [email protected] if you have an article you would like to submit for publication.

—Kristine M. Bettin, JOIE editor-in-chief