About Digital Commons at Pittsburg State University

Digital Commons@Pitt State is an open access digital collection whose purpose is to collect and disseminate the intellectual and creative output of the university’s faculty, staff and students. Contributions come from all over campus and include faculty research and publications, electronic theses, newsletters, university archives, research colloquium presentations, and other presentations and scholarship created by the university. The repository helps to expand the visibility and influence of Pittsburg State University to outside academic communities by making publications available on the open web.

Digital Commons also hosts digital collections from the University Archives and Special Collections. This includes mostly digitized manuscript collections and materials such as letters, newspapers, photographs and ledgers but also university publications and yearbooks. These digital collections mostly focus on the history of Pittsburg State University, Southeast Kansas and neighboring regions in adjacent states. Some content is also provided by community partners in Kansas who have worked with Axe Library to ensure their preservation and long-term access through the archives and the digital repository.

For historical questions or donations to special collections, please contact Special Collections & University Archives: | (620) 235-4883

For technical inquiries regarding Digital Commons@Pitt State, please contact the institutional repository manager:



Policies and Standards

Equity Statement for Archival and Special Collections

Library Services at Pittsburg State University is committed to addressing biased or racist language and the erasure of marginalized individuals and communities in the archival and bibliographic description or exhibition of our collections. We try to describe library materials and their creators respectfully, accurately, and with understanding for the communities who use or are represented in the materials. We acknowledge the need for the critical examination of descriptive and bibliographic practices, and that to identify, correct, or contextualize problematic language and expressions is an ongoing and iterative process universal to all libraries and archives.

We recognize that language and cultural expressions evolve. We further recognize archival materials held and exhibited by the Leonard H. Axe Library may contain historic language and images that are considered offensive and/or which marginalize various individuals and communities. Despite the discomfort or pain it might cause, it is important to retain and acknowledge the original biases and societal imbalances inherent in our archival materials. Archival in this context refers to archival collections and rare or unique materials found in a variety of formats, including analog prints, personal papers, photographs, audiovisual recordings, three dimensional objects, and digital materials – both digitized and born-digital.

Application for Permission to Publish, Quote, Broadcast, or Exhibit Items from the Special Collections & University Archives

Information and reproductions are provided for reference use only. Permission to publish, exhibit or broadcast must be obtained from Special Collections and University Archives, Leonard H. Axe Library, Pittsburg State University, Pittsburg, KS 66762. Fill out this application form and email it to digitalcommons@pittstate.edu. Please see the Special Collections & University Archives web page here for all policies.

Takedown Policy

Notice to users: These materials are made available for educational and scholarly use. Leonard H. Axe Library at Pittsburg State University makes effort to ensure that it has appropriate rights to provide access to content through the Digital Commons repository.

If you are a rights holder and are concerned that you have found material on Pittsburg State University’s Digital Commons@Pitt State repository without your permission and believe our inclusion of this material in the repository violates your rights (e.g. inclusion is not covered by the Fair Use or other exemption to a copyright holder’s rights), please contact digitalcommons@pittstate.edu and include the following:

  • Your contact information (email and phone number),
  • Exact URL where you found the material,
  • Details that describe the material (title, collection name, number of items, etc.),
  • The reason why you believe that your rights have been violated, with any pertinent documentation,
  • A statement that you in good faith believe that the use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law, and
  • A statement that the information in your notification is accurate and that you are the rights holder or are authorized to act on behalf of the owner.

Upon receipt of a request, library staff will:

  • Promptly acknowledge the request via email or other means of communication if you do not have an email account;
  • Assess the validity of the request;
  • Upon request, we may temporarily remove the material from public view while we assess the concern;
  • Upon completion of the assessment, we will take appropriate action and communicate that action to you.

      • More information about the takedown policy for Digital Commons@Pitt State can be found here. Further information on library policies, standards, and guidelines can be found on the Leonard H. Axe Library website. Also see the Campus Internet Copyright Policy.