WVU Press
A university press is an extension of its parent institution, charged with serving the public good by publishing works of scholarly, intellectual, and creative merit. West Virginia University Press’s primary goal is to find, develop, select, and publish scholarship and creative works of highest quality and enduring value. Through the publication of all such works, WVU Press helps to fulfill West Virginia University’s land-grant mission.
A Brief History
Founded in the mid-1960s by the Dean of Libraries, Dr. Robert Munn, to publish a small group of important bibliographies and regional histories, West Virginia University Press was reinvigorated in 1999 and has in the past decade become a well-respected publisher of regional, national, and international scholarly and literary books, garnering reviews in major regional and global outlets, as well as major national awards.
In 1999, the Press was relocated to within the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences, and Dr. Patrick Conner accepted the challenge of directing the Press. Dr. Conner, along with others, was determined to both reinvigorate the Press and establish it among the foremost university presses in the country. In 2008, Carrie Mullen was hired as the director, where she led the Press according to its mission. In 2014, Derek Krissoff, previously editor in chief at the University of Nebraska Press, began his tenure as director, which ended in 2023. Than Saffel, formerly the Art Director and Production Manager, is the current director.
We are the only university press—and the largest publisher of any kind—in the state of West Virginia. We strive to serve the public good and extend and enhance the reputation of WVU as a major research institution by publishing the very best work in our areas of specialization. Our particular emphases on Appalachian studies, history, higher education, social sciences, and interdisciplinary books about energy, environment, and resources complement the university’s areas of strength, including our highly regarded works of fiction and creative nonfiction, helping to fulfill the university’s land-grant mission.
Our authors represent a range of voices across disciplines, ethnic backgrounds, socioeconomic statuses, and genders, and we seek to provide an outlet for and access to overlooked histories and marginalized stories, many of which complicate standard, tired narratives about the state and region. Our Teaching and Learning in Higher Education series is especially focused on advancing educational practices to reflect new research and the needs and challenges of today’s students and faculty.
Fields of Publication
Appalachian Studies
Art
Creative Nonfiction
Energy and Environment
Fiction
Geography
Higher Education
History
Medieval Studies
Music
Natural History
Race
Sociology
Sports
West Virginia
Series
Borderless
Central Appalachian Natural History
Energy and Society
Gender, Feminism, and Geography
Histories of Capitalism and the Environment
In Place
Radical Natures
Regenerations
Rural Studies
Salvaging the Anthropocene
Sounding Appalachia
Teaching and Learning in Higher Education
West Virginia and Appalachia
West Virginia Classics