LCSC's Bryce Kammers Receives Innovative Educator Award - Big Country News (Idaho)

The recipients, their institution, and areas of instruction are:

Bryce G. Kammers – Lewis-Clark State College; Written Communication

Heather Schoenherr – College of Western Idaho; Social and Behavioral Ways of Knowing

Brittney Gehrig – Boise State University; Humanistic and Artistic Ways of Knowing

Shawn Willsey – College of Southern Idaho; Scientific Ways of Knowing

Karla Mitchell – North Idaho College; Mathematical Ways of Knowing

Tandace Crane – College of Southern Idaho; Oral Communication

Each recipient was invited to give a presentation to Summit attendees describing practices they use in the classroom that benefit students.

“I was excited that most of the recipients talked about how they used open educational resources (OER) to help students access materials free of charge to improve learning,” said Dr. TJ Bliss the State Board of Education’s Chief Academic Officer. “The State has invested over $1 million so far to promote increased access and affordability for students through innovations like OER.”

https://www.bigcountrynewsconnection.com/idaho/lcscs-bryce-kammers-receives-innovative-educator-award/article_0d99550e-7347-11ee-82b2-3ffdf945a92e.html

A YEAR IN THE OPEN CLIMATE CAMPAIGN - Monica Granados, Cable Green, Creative Commons

If we are going to solve climate change, the knowledge about it must be open. Only 47% of research papers on climate change are open. That means less than half of all climate research can be read by the public, researchers, journalists, educators, policy makers, students and others seeking to mobilize this knowledge in mitigations and solutions for climate change. One year ago, Creative Commons and our partners — SPARC & EIFL with the guidance of the Steering Committee — launched the Open Climate Campaign to address the lack of access to climate change research. Comprising 11 goals, the Open Climate Campaign’s mission is to make the open sharing of research the norm in climate science.

https://creativecommons.org/2023/10/23/a-year-in-the-open-climate-campaign/

MUC may not be final destination for Textbook Service - Ty Hicks, ALESTE

According to Hendricks, SIUE staff was able to box up, move, unbox and organize all of the moved textbooks in just a little under two weeks time. While this move is only reported to be a temporary fix, Hendricks said that some alternative textbook options may be on the current radar. “Our team has been on several committees that have been talking about OER” Hendricks said. Hendricks said OER, or Open Educational Resources, is a tool that faculty can use to source free resources for classes. The biggest appeal of this program is that students would have access to source materials almost anywhere with internet access.

https://www.alestlelive.com/news/article_bb79c378-6e1c-11ee-a0ca-d7311329df14.html

‘Speaking of Higher Ed’: Jeff Gallant’s insights on lowering education costs - JAG Wire

The program welcomes Jeff Gallant, program director of Affordable Learning Georgia, in this month’s segment. ALG, an advocate for affordable and open educational resources, remains committed to advancing student success and ensuring equitable access to education. During the conversation, Gallant provides an in-depth overview of Open Educational Resources and outlines steps to initiate the process of selecting materials for educational courses. Faculty members within the University System of Georgia can access campus-based faculty, library and design champions for assistance in this initiative. Gallant also underscores the benefits of OER, emphasizing how they can enhance teaching materials while alleviating financial burdens for students. The discussion emphasizes how OER can create a more level academic field for all students, fostering a conducive environment for academic achievement.

https://jagwire.augusta.edu/speaking-of-higher-ed-jeff-gallants-insights-on-lowering-education-costs/

CVTC instructors pen OER article for national journal - Alyssa Van Duyse, Chippewa Valley Technical College

Two people with connections to Chippewa Valley Technical College have co-authored an article about Open Education Resources that was published in a national journal. Kim Ernstmeyer, Open RN project director at Chippewa Valley Technical College, and Elizabeth Christman, Open RN instructional designer and former nursing faculty at CVTC, wrote an article titled “Adopting Open Educational Resources as an Equity Strategy” that was published in Nursing Education Perspectives, The Research Journal of the National League for Nursing. “CVTC is considered a statewide leader in the development and adoption of OER and AER textbooks,” Ernstmeyer said. 

https://chippewa.com/news/local/education/cvtc-instructors-pen-oer-article-for-national-journal/article_263a8368-6eb4-11ee-a798-a717da2613dd.html

Library director presents 2023 Henderson Lecture - the Holcad, Westminster College

“OER (Open Educational Resources): What’s in It for Us?” explores how OER—free learning materials that can be downloaded and shared with students and eliminate the need for textbooks—are utilized and perceived by faculty members. As OER become increasingly popular, McGill Library Director Jamie Kohler’s research found that educators are more accepting of OER. Most reluctance stems from the extra time required to implement new material using the system. The lecture will highlight the research on faculty’s willingness to use OER and best practices for programs that support them.  

https://www.wcn247.com/holcad_and_campus/our_campus/library-director-presents-2023-henderson-lecture/article_b54f8e98-6c86-11ee-9d8e-033fe157175e.html

OpenStax Welcomes 16 New Colleges and Universities to Its Institutional Partner Program - Kate Lucariello, Campus Technology

Rice University's OpenStax initiative has welcomed the largest cohort of colleges and universities to its Institutional Partner Program (IPP) since its founding in 2015. Sixteen new institutions have joined the program to give their students free or low-cost access to textbooks and other educational materials. The organization said it has over 60 titles of open educational resources in its library and will be adding 15 more in 2024. "This year's cohort is our largest ever — it's inspiring to see so many different types of institutions coming together to nurture OER initiatives and make learning easier and more affordable for their students," said Anthony Palmiotto, director of higher education for OpenStax.

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2023/09/28/openstax-welcomes-16-new-colleges-and-universities-to-its-institutional-partner-program.aspx

Three from Trine honored with Open Educator Award - Trine University

Three Trine University staff members have been honored by the Private Academic Library Network of Indiana (PALNI) for their innovation and excellence in support of higher education, textbook affordability and student success. Andrea Bearman, Director of Instructional Design and Development, Melissa Brown, Graduate Advisor, and Lauren Decker, Chair and Assistant Professor, Department of Mathematics, were among the nine recipients of the PALSave Open Educator Award for the 2022-23 academic year.

https://www.trine.edu/news/2023/palsave.aspx

UNM celebrates open access week - Sara Velasquez, University of New Mexico

This year’s theme focuses on “community over commercialization.” Open Access is the free, immediate, and online publication of research articles that are openly licensed and digitally accessible. At its core, Open Access publishing is a social justice issue that aims to make research more accessible to the greater public. Open Access scholarly publishing is related to Open Educational Resources (OER) in that they share similar licensing and ideology. OER materials provide students and teachers with free access to educational materials. OERs can significantly reduce the costs students spend on textbooks and other course materials. The UNM OER Initiative seeks to lower college costs for UNM students by encouraging and supporting UNM faculty with resources to adopt quality open materials in their courses.

https://news.unm.edu/news/unm-celebrates-open-access-week

Open Educational Resources (OER) and Open Textbooks: A Revolution in Education - IQ Newswire

Education is the cornerstone of societal progress, and access to quality educational materials is fundamental in fostering learning and knowledge dissemination. However, the cost of educational resources has long been a barrier for many students, limiting their access to textbooks and other learning materials. In response to this challenge, Open Educational Resources (OER) and Open Textbooks have emerged as a revolutionary force in education, providing accessible, affordable, and often freely available resources for learners of all backgrounds.

https://ventsmagazine.com/2023/10/16/open-educational-resources-oer-and-open-textbooks-a-revolution-in-education/

Three UIndy faculty receive 2023 PALSave Award - Southside Times

According to Elizabeth Kiggins, one of UIndy’s recipients, “Access to Open Educational Resources (OER) is critical to our students, providing not only a relevant but also an affordable alternative to what can be purchased through normal channels. Students, with ever increasing financial stressors, deserve an affordable option. With OER, they have an option that provides access to a wealth of educational resources and also enhances their learning experiences. I have always viewed one of my primary roles at UIndy as an advocate for our faculty in the integration of instructional technologies into their teaching. PALSave has allowed me to promote these vital resources to our faculty while giving them the ability to provide additional resources for their students and perhaps to become an author for the first time.”

https://ss-times.com/three-uindy-faculty-receive-2023-palsave-award/

'Connecting the Opens' panel during Open Access Week - Virginia Tech News

University Libraries’ faculty Philip Young, Anita Walz, and Jonathan Petters will provide brief overviews of open access, open educational resources, and open data to provide some general information on the topics. Finally, presenters will discuss how aspects of open have impacted their career development as well as how they have incorporated open practices into their research and scholarship, and the audience will be invited to participate in the robust conversation. All are welcome!

https://news.vt.edu/notices/2023/10/libraries_notice_connecting_the_opens_panel.html

University of Arkansas Call for Proposals: Paid Faculty Course Material Conversion Program

Faculty can apply to the Course Materials Conversion Program to receive extra compensation. Successful applicants can receive $4,500 for adapting open educational resources or $7,500 for creating their own. Visit the Open Educational Resources webpage to learn more about the program and the differences between these two options. "In addition to being fully customizable and continuously updatable, Open Educational Resources ease the financial burden that can be a barrier to the pursuit of higher education," said Jason Battles, dean of libraries. "We want to see every student at the U of A complete their degree program, and the cost savings they benefit from in courses that utilize open materials in lieu of expensive textbooks increase their likelihood of success." 

https://news.uark.edu/articles/66542/call-for-proposals-paid-faculty-course-material-conversion-program

Baylor Receives Fulbright-Hays Grant to Strengthen East Asian Languages, Asian Studies Program - Lori Fogleman, Baylor News

 The $294,000 Fulbright-Hays grant will allow Baylor to:

• Hire a Full-time Lecturer in Korean during the grant cycle. 
• Develop/Revive a Study Abroad Program in East Asia: Supporting a group of Baylor faculty for a field trip to East Asia and students with scholarships for summer study abroad opportunities in East Asia.
• Create Interdisciplinary Team-taught Courses in Asian Studies: For faculty development to develop innovative courses in Asian Studies.
• Develop Open Education Resources (OER) in Asian Languages and Asian Studies Courses: Helping a faculty member develop OER materials, organize workshops for faculty and reduce the cost of textbooks for students.

https://news.web.baylor.edu/news/story/2023/baylor-receives-fulbright-hays-grant-strengthen-east-asian-languages-asian-studies

Open Education - North Carolina State University Libraries

The NC State University Libraries is committed to fostering change in the current textbook publishing environment. Librarians can partner with faculty members on licensing resources, using digital repositories, and creating and publishing their own open educational resources.

NC State awards grants to faculty to adopt, adapt, or create free or low-cost alternatives to expensive textbooks.

All instructors are eligible to apply for Alt-Textbook Grants.

• Examples of Alt-Textbook Projects.
• Learn more about the Alt-Textbook Project.

https://www.lib.ncsu.edu/do/open-education

Sarah H. Northam Director of Research and Instruction Velma K. Waters Library, Texas A&M University-Commerce - Texas Library Assn.

As I got older, I realized that librarianship was actually about connecting people to information and helping them navigate that information. It still sounded like a pretty amazing career to me, so I went into librarianship. What is an innovative practice at your library/organization (current or former) that you’d like to share with others? We are really starting to focus more on expansion of Open Educational Resources on campus. We want our library to serve as a resource hub for our faculty and students when it comes to OER. I feel that encouraging the use of OER aligns with the mission of our library because we are focusing on ways that we can make school easier and more cost-effective for students.

https://txla.org/news/between-the-lines-october-member-spotlight-5/

University Of Tübingen: Funding Allocated For Innovative Digital Teaching Initiatives - Iednewsdesk

Four creative digital teaching projects in Tübingen receive funding from the Dr. Eberle Center for Digital Skills. With 10,000 euros each, the researchers can implement their innovative ideas for digital teaching and learning materials. This is the third time that convincing projects have been funded using this format. The results will be freely accessible online via the Baden-Württemberg Central OER Repository. The call for proposals was supported by the generous support of Dr. KH Eberle Foundation made possible.

https://indiaeducationdiary.in/university-of-tubingen-funding-allocated-for-innovative-digital-teaching-initiatives/

UW Libraries Hosts ‘Open October’ - University of Wyoming

University of Wyoming Libraries is hosting “Open October,” a series of programs focusing on open access, open research and open education initiatives. Open access and open research initiatives provide unrestricted access to scholarly research, data and knowledge. Open education initiatives focus on making educational materials freely available to remove barriers to learning and promote accessibility. “We’re really ramping up our efforts to inform the UW community about our open initiatives this year,” says Chad Hutchens, chair of Digital Collections at UW Libraries. “International Open Access Week takes place the last week of October, and we wanted to expand on that by offering numerous workshops throughout the month. Several services are available to faculty and students that can make their scholarship and teaching more impactful, more discoverable and, of course, more openly available.”

https://www.uwyo.edu/news/2023/10/uw-libraries-hosts-open-october.html

Open educational resources to make lifelong learning accessible to all - Fiona Buckland, Times Higher Education

In our (University of Edinburgh) commitment to delivering high-quality lifelong learning and massive open online courses (Moocs) that are widely accessible at little or no cost, we have embraced the use of open educational resources (OERs). The use of OERs in our online course design workflows for the past 10 years has built our understanding of how to harness and share these resources in order to maximise the benefits for both the learner and the creator. Here I share useful insights for anyone wishing to work with OERs.

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/campus/open-educational-resources-make-lifelong-learning-accessible-all

Student Research Finds Free Materials Could Replace Books - Stockton University

Replacing expensive textbooks with free educational resources could reduce high college costs, but more professors and administrators need to promote the option to have an impact, according to student research published today by the William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy at Stockton University. The National Center for Education Statistics estimated that college textbooks and materials for the 2021-22 academic year cost an average of $1,326 per student nationally. Over the last 50 years, prices increased at three times the rate of inflation, a research paper by Stockton senior Jessie Nash reported. Textbook costs have increased by 7 percent since 2020, outpacing increases in tuition, fees and housing, the report found.

https://stockton.edu/news/2023/student-research-free-materials.html

Open Educational Resources workgroup Jacob Adcock, Daily Eastern News

On Tuesday, Sept. 19, an Open Educational Resource workgroup gathered six attendees and facilitator Dr. Lauri DeRuiter-Willems. The workgroup met from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. and discussed the importance of Open Educational Resources (OER) for education. All the attendees were currently in the work field surrounding education, which allowed the meeting to be very crucial for them.  When the meeting officially started, everybody gave an introduction, discussing their experience with OER. They were also instructed to talk about issues regarding textbooks. They were asked to explain one good thing about textbook rentals and one good thing about purchasing a textbook. After that, they were asked to voice how textbook rentals or purchased textbooks could improve.  Some opinions expressed included how it can sometimes be beneficial to have a hard copy of the text in front of the student, since they can highlight and annotate in textbooks that they personally own. Even though textbook rentals cut the cost for students when receiving textbooks required for a class, a student might not even use the textbook for the semester, which allows the cost of the rental textbook fee to add up.

https://www.dailyeasternnews.com/2023/09/20/open-educational-resources-workgroup/

Lehigh Valley mathematics professor helps create open-educational resources - Sara Karnish, Penn State University

Larry Musolino, assistant teaching professor, mathematics, has worked on several textbooks created by OpenStax, a leading supplier of open-educational resources. OpenStax’s assets are now used by approximately 7 million students in more than 150 countries. OpenStax has estimated that over 70% of higher education institutions in the U.S. have adopted its textbooks; using its texts has saved students more than $2.9 billion since 2012. In 2022, Musolino authored two chapters on statistics topics in the OpenStax “Principles of Finance” book. He is in the process of editing and revising both the existing "Introductory Statistics and Business Statistics" textbooks.

https://www.psu.edu/news/impact/story/lehigh-valley-mathematics-professor-helps-create-open-educational-resources/

LTC Students Spared Over $2 Million in Costs Thanks to Embrace of Open Educational Resources - Kevin Zimmermann - WHBL

Savings come wherever one can find them, and for many LTC students, that’s through what’s called “open educational resources.”  That refers to such options as free online textbooks, videos, and other learning tools that reside in the public domain.  Because of the public domain status, access is free of restrictions that apply to copyrighted works and textbooks, thereby saving an average of $105 per textbook according to a study by the Education Data Initiative.  LTC says that those savings have amounted to $2.1 million since 2018.

https://whbl.com/2023/09/29/ltc-students-spared-over-2-million-in-costs-thanks-to-embrace-of-open-educational-resources/

Hidden Fees: Striving for Academic Open Access - Quan Nguyen, DePauw

Additional “hidden” fees in academic materials such as textbooks, software subscriptions, and laboratory instruments have always been a great concern of students, especially with the increasing cost of attendance at DePauw in the past years. According to the most recent expense breakdown on the DePauw website, these hidden fees are not included in the tuition fee, but in the “additional expenses” section at approximately $950 per student a year. This raises the question of whether or not these fees create academic inequity, especially for students from low and middle-income families. 

https://thedepauw.com/hidden-fees-striving-for-academic-open-access/

Việt Nam develops open educational resources for higher education - Việt Nam News

Under the programme, in the 2023-2026 period, an online portal of open educational resources will be built and put into operation, providing learning, teaching, and research materials for learners, officials, lecturers of higher education institutions, and those who need to update higher education knowledge. Deputy Prime Minister Trần Hồng Hà on behalf of the Government and Prime Minister has signed Decision No. 1117/QĐ-TTg approving a programme to develop open educational resources for higher education. Under the programme, in the 2023-26 period, an online portal of open educational resources will be built and put into operation, providing learning, teaching, and research materials for learners, officials, lecturers of higher education institutions, and those who need to update higher education knowledge.

https://vietnamnews.vn/society/1594546/viet-nam-develops-open-educational-resources-for-higher-education.html

Inside Higher Ed: UC Clermont professor writes open-access textbook to promote affordability - Amanda Chalivoux, University of Cincinnati

Inside Higher Ed recently spoke to UC Clermont accounting Professor Patty Goedl about an interactive accounting resource she created that has saved students more than $100,000 so far. In 2020, Goedl watched the average cost of a digital accounting textbook soar from approximately $30 per student to more than $200. Students were struggling to afford the resource they needed to succeed in class. At first, Goedl negotiated with the publisher to decrease the cost of the textbook; but soon, the price rose again. So, she created her own.

https://www.uc.edu/news/articles/2023/09/inside-higher-ed--uc-clermont-professor-writes-open-access-textbook-to-promote-affordability.html

Vietnam develops open educational resources for higher education - Vietnam Plus

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha has signed Decision No. 1117/QD-TTg approving a programme to develop open educational resources for higher education. Under the programme, in the 2023-2026 period, a portal of open educational resources will be built and put into operation, providing learning, teaching, and research materials for learners, officials, lecturers of higher education institutions, and those who need to update higher education knowledge.  By 2026, over 40% of higher education institutions in the country will participate in building and developing open educational resources.

https://en.vietnamplus.vn/vietnam-develops-open-educational-resources-for-higher-education/268635.vnp

Big Ten Academic Alliance seeks to ensure equity with Open Educational Resources - Leah Schroeder, Daily Northwestern

To combat this issue and encourage equity, NU Open Education Librarian Lauren McKeen McDonald has worked to introduce Open Educational Resources at Northwestern. The initiative provides teaching and learning resources with an open license, meaning resources can be freely used, shared and customized. “The thing that we’ve been talking a lot about at Northwestern is the cost of course materials and use of access codes and other supplementary materials and how it continues to rise,” McDonald said. “OER is a way for us to be able to provide low- or no-cost course materials to students, so it provides a more equitable learning environment.”

https://dailynorthwestern.com/2023/09/26/campus/big-ten-academic-alliance-launches-open-educational-resources/

Growing Houston tech nonprofit expands access to textbooks for college students - Maurice Bobb, Innovation Map

This month, OpenStax will add to its 57 open education resources, or OER, titles with a full version of John McMurry's popular pre-med textbook, Organic Chemistry, under an open license to honor his late son, Peter, who passed away in 2019 after losing his battle with cystic fibrosis. “The author, John McMurry, granted us the ability to publish the 10th edition openly,” Anthony Palmiotto, director of higher education at OpenStax, tells InnovationMap. “So, the most widely used organic chemistry textbook went from being one of the most expensive undergraduate texts on the market (almost $100), to a free and open text, making this a watershed moment for OER.” This school year, OpenStax is adding 16 academic institutions onto its platform, including Georgia State University, Southwest Texas Junior College, Texas A&M University-Commerce, University of San Diego, and more. It's the largest batch of new schools OpenStax has onboarded in a year, Palmiotto says in a news release.

https://houston.innovationmap.com/rice-university-openstax-grows-platform-2665729452.html

Three UIndy Faculty Receive 2023 PALSave Award - Lilli Keiper, University of Indianapolis

Three UIndy faculty have been selected to receive the PALSave Open Educator Award from the Private Academic Library Network of Indiana (PALNI). PALSave is funded through grant support from Lilly Endowment, Inc. and combats the rising costs of textbooks by supporting faculty adoption and creation of open and affordable course materials. According to Elizabeth Kiggins, one of UIndy’s recipients, “Access to Open Educational Resources (OER) is critical to our students, providing not only a relevant but also an affordable alternative to what can be purchased through normal channels. Students, with ever increasing financial stressors, deserve an affordable option. With OER, they have an option that provides access to a wealth of educational resources and also enhances their learning experiences.

https://news.uindy.edu/2023/09/20/three-uindy-faculty-receive-2023-palsave-award/

Open Educational Resources workgroup - Jacob Adcock, Daily Eastern News

Some opinions expressed included how it can sometimes be beneficial to have a hard copy of the text in front of the student, since they can highlight and annotate in textbooks that they personally own. Whereas textbook rentals forbid you from writing, highlighting, or removing pages from the text. If the textbook is suspected to contain any of those forbidden factors, the student risks paying the full price.  Even though textbook rentals cut the cost for students when receiving textbooks required for a class, a student might not even use the textbook for the semester, which allows the cost of the rental textbook fee to add up.

https://www.dailyeasternnews.com/2023/09/20/open-educational-resources-workgroup/