"Open Access" can be defined as a movement which promotes the availability of research and scholarship without cost or permissions barriers. Though free open-access journals do exist, publishing in open-access journals is not required for compliance with the policy that the Wellesley faculty adopted. Below are online publications, resources, and presentations which provide more background.
Online resources and publications:
Brief introduction to open access
Suber, Peter. Open Access. Cambridge: MIT Press, 2012.
Wellesley's Copyright and Open Access Policy Brochure
Talks and presentations:
Stuart Shieber on Open Access Policies, Talk at Wellesley College, December 2012. (Available only to the Wellesley community.)
Peter Suber on the Future of Open Access, Talk at Berkman Center for Internet and Society, Harvard University.