College & Research Libraries Authorial Name Change Policy (2022)
College & Research Libraries is committed to supporting requests for author name and/or pronoun changes. Name changes and pronoun changes are available upon request by contacting the editor directly at ktotleben@library.rochester.edu, and approved without documentation. All requests will be handled with confidentiality and as quickly as possible. C&RL based its best practices on the five guiding principles noted in “A Vision for a More Trans-Inclusive Publishing World” shared by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).
Authorial name changes to previously published articles may be requested by an author for any reason, including name changes due to marriage or divorce; non-Western naming structures; or gender identity. Trans and gender diverse authors who wish to request a change to a previous publication are particularly encouraged to contact the editors. Authors will not be asked to provide official or legal documentation of the name change, and all requests will be kept confidential by the editors.
Any request for a name change will result in removal of the earlier name from any and all publication repositories. This extends to both the metadata of the article, as well as the PDF of the article itself. If applicable, any pronoun changes (as in a biographical entry) may be requested at the same time. Although some publication flows may be out of the scope of C&RL, the editors will make every effort to ensure that name changes are reflected in reprints and downstream publications.
In order to maintain the author’s privacy, name changes will not be announced, nor will any notices be published that draw attention to the changes. Co-authors will not be notified of the change.
Once received, requests will be processed in an expedient manner and will not require deliberation by the editorial board.
The C&RL Editor will verify citations and bibliographies in future submissions to ensure that the earlier name is not included in any new articles published in C&RL.
