Connecting Colleagues: The OEN Scholarship Matchmaking Spreadsheet

Community is a priority at the Open Education Network (OEN). We are dedicated to helping OEN colleagues connect and collaborate toward open educational goals and interests. As a result, we are pleased to share that we’ve developed a tool to facilitate these scholarly connections: the Scholarship Matchmaking Spreadsheet.

The spreadsheet was initially introduced in July at our community’s annual gathering, OEN Engage! During this session, Barb Thees, OEN Director of Community Engagement, and Kate McNally Carter, Open Education Librarian at the University of Houston, explained that the scholarship matchmaking idea is driven primarily by member feedback from the 2025 OEN Community Scan.

Kate noted that the idea also coincides with our guiding principles. “Whether you’re newer to the field or you’ve been working in open ed for years, everyone has something to give and share,” said Kate, an Event Planning Committee alumna and one of the primary leaders on this initiative. “[The Committee] saw this as an opportunity to help facilitate collaboration within this strong and vibrant community that we’ve cultivated.”

Now accessible on the Community Hub under the Community Conversations & Networking tab, the spreadsheet offers a convenient way for members to post open educational needs or offers for assistance with initiatives. The new, openly licensed, living document is based on a similar spreadsheet, the Creative Commons Certificate Alumni Connections/Collaborations Sheet, also openly licensed. “We’ve taken this idea and refined it to suit the needs of the OEN community,” said Kate.

Bethany Mickel has already received responses to her post, which reads, in part, “Seeking people interested in exploring ways to grow OER programs during challenging political and economic times.” She’s looking forward to engaging with these colleagues in the weeks ahead.

“Open education thrives on collaboration,” said Bethany, an Instructional Design & OER Librarian at the University of Virginia. “By sharing this call, I aim to connect with colleagues who are actively exploring new opportunities and confronting challenges in different institutional settings. These conversations will not only strengthen our collective work but also help us identify practical strategies that we might share with others.”

Spreadsheet content is organized into three categories: Articles & Writing Projects, Conference Presentations, and Guest Speaking Engagements. For example, a current post on the Conference Presentations tab reads, “Seeking a partner to design and present a short course (75 minutes) at the Central States Communications Association Conference….” Another opportunity posted under Articles & Writing Projects briefly describes an offer from someone “interested in representing Tribal College and University perspectives within the OE Movement.”

Spreadsheet participants may choose to provide estimated start/end dates, anticipated hours, project status updates, and additional information. They may also indicate if they would like to be notified when changes are made to the spreadsheet, including replies.

Kate sees the Scholarship Matchmaking Spreadsheet as “something we hope will carry our collaboration forward and maintain this momentum of connection over the long term.” The OEN team plans to host a follow-up event in January 2026, revisiting the spreadsheet to see how members are using it thus far. Event specifics will be shared soon. Watch for our email to the OEN Google Group and listing on the Community Hub Event Calendar.

OEN members, are you interested in collaborative opportunities in open education? Would you appreciate help preparing a proposal? Are you willing to share your writing/publishing experience or deliver open education presentations at other institutions? Think about using this tool to establish a scholarship collaboration that you may, or may not, have considered before. 

“Approach the spreadsheet with openness and curiosity,” Bethany suggests. “Even if someone’s post does not align directly with your goals, there’s real value in learning from different perspectives and institutional contexts. The open education community is incredibly welcoming, so this process is low-risk and high-reward. At the very least, you’ll meet someone equally committed to advancing open education, and quite frankly, that in itself is worthwhile.”