local workshops
Engaging faculty, answering questions
Textbook reviews by faculty, for faculty
We facilitate workshops that introduce faculty to open textbooks and the benefits they offer to pedagogical practice and student learning. Following the workshop, faculty are invited to write a brief review of an open textbook and decide if one could work for them and their students. 45% of faculty who attend our open textbook workshop indicate an intent to adopt an open textbook.
We take academic freedom seriously. Only faculty can decide what book is right for their students and their course.
The workshop strategy
1. LIBRARY
Offers a comprehensive collection of open textbooks for faculty to consider.
2. WORKSHOP
Helps faculty understand what open textbooks are and addresses their concerns.
3. REVIEW
Asks faculty to evaluate an open textbook and decide if one could work for them.
Open Education Research & Textbook Adoption Guide
We asked the Open Education Group to create a Guidebook to Research on Open Educational Resources Adoption. It was developed to support local research initiatives on open textbook efficacy. Supplemental materials are available through the Open Education Group.
Meet the OEN presenters
MARILYN BILLINGS
Marilyn Billings is the Scholarly Communication & Special Initiatives Librarian at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, a position she has held since 2006. She is the head of the Office of Scholarly Communication and provides oversight of UMass Amherst’s digital repository ScholarWorks. She was a founding member of the Open Education Network and has led the campus’ Open Education Initiative since 2011. Marilyn received her B.S. in Biology and Psychology from Bates College and her M.L.I.S. from the University of Rhode Island.
PETER BOBKOWSKI
Peter Bobkowski is an associate professor in the William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Kansas. He researches information and data literacy, and journalism education, and teaches courses on finding and evaluating information sources. His open textbook, co-authored with Karna Younger, is Be Credible: Information Literacy for Journalism, Public Relations, Advertising and Marketing Students.
MEG BROWN-SICA
Meg is the Assistant Dean for Scholarly Communication and Collections at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado. Previously she served at the University of Colorado Denver as the Associate Library Director for Technology and Special Collections. She received her undergraduate degree in English and Spanish Literature at Franklin and Marshall College and her MLIS from the University of South Florida.
BOB BUTTERFIELD
Bob Butterfield is the Director of the Instructional Resources Service (IRS) at the University of Wisconsin-Stout, a position he has held since 2011. His duties include direction of Stout’s print rental textbook program, digital resources program and open educational resources program. He has served as both an Open Education Network Steering Committee member and on several OEN work groups. He continues to advocate for Stout’s students and advocate at the state and national levels for textbook affordability.
CHERYL CUILLIER
Cheryl Cuillier is the Open Education Librarian at the University of Arizona Libraries in Tucson. She coordinates campus OER initiatives and collaborates with a wide range of university partners. She has spoken about OER and other ways of reducing the cost of course materials at a number of national and regional conferences. An active member of the Open Education Network since 2015, she currently serves on the Open EducationNetwork Steering Committee. She is also a Faculty Senator and involved in library faculty governance.
EMILY FRANK
Emily Frank is the Coordinator of Scholarship and Open Access for Louisiana State University Libraries. She leads the library’s affordable course materials projects, including an e-textbook initiative focused on aligning licensed e-books with courses and the OER program. She coordinates local projects under the Affordable Learning LOUISiana initiative spearheaded by LOUIS: The Louisiana Library Network, the state library consortium, and collaborates with librarians statewide to extend the scope of this initiative. She received her MLIS from the University of Kentucky and an International Master’s in Digital Library Learning from universities in Norway, Estonia, and Italy through a program funded by the European Union.
MANDI GOODSETT
Mandi Goodsett is the Performing Arts and Humanities Librarian at Cleveland State University. She earned her MLIS from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2013. Mandi’s professional interests include open education, critical thinking and library instruction, and distance learning. In keeping with her interest in promoting open education, Mandi also serves as an OhioLINK Affordable Learning Ambassador for Ohio. To learn more about Mandi, you can visit her website.
MEGGIE MAPES, Ph.D.
Meggie Mapes (Ph.D. Southern Illinois University Carbondale) is a faculty member and Introductory Course Director in the Department of Communication Studies at the University of Kansas. Her research emerges at the intersections of pedagogy and critical/cultural studies. She is an open pedagogy advocate and the author of the open textbook, Speak Out, Call In: Public Speaking as Advocacy.
MERINDA MCLURE
Merinda serves as one of the Open Educational Resources (OER) Leads in the University of Colorado Boulder Libraries, where she is also the Health & Human Sciences Librarian and an Associate Professor. She was a 2016-2017 OER Research Fellow with the Open Education Group’s fellowship program. Previously, she served as the Open Educational Resources (OER) Librarian and Health and Human Sciences Librarian at Colorado State University. She joined the Open Education Network in 2015, after participating in the Network’s inaugural summer institute and organizing a successful Open Education Network visit for the Colorado State University community. Merinda received her M.L.I.S. in 2002 from The University of British Columbia.
CARLA MYERS
Carla Myers serves as the Coordinator of Scholarly Communications for the Miami University Libraries. Her professional presentations and publications focus on US copyright law and affordable learning initiatives. She has a B.S. in Psychology form the University of Akron and a Masters in Library and Information Science from Kent State University.
JONATHAN PORITZ
Jonathan Poritz is a mathematics faculty member and the OER Coordinator at Colorado State University Pueblo. He has written two OER textbooks of his own and currently works with more than a dozen faculty on his campus, supporting their OER projects. Poritz served on the Colorado OER Council for three years, including one year as its chair. For more information: poritz.net/jonathan.
JOE NOWAKOWSKI
Dr. Nowakowski is an Ohio Affordable Learning Ambassador and an Open Education Network faculty representative. He has led study abroad programs to Puerto Rico, France, Italy, Spain, England, and the first Muskingum study abroad program in the PRC.
NICOLAS PARES
Nicolas is a member of the learning experience design team at the University of Denver where he specializes in faculty development and educational technologies. Nicolas is also a faculty instructor at Front Range Community College where he teaches courses in applied adult learning theory and teaching English to speakers of other languages. Nicolas serves as an Open Education Ambassador for the State of Colorado and is an active presenter and trainer on the development of open educational resources and open textbooks.
JASMINE ROBERTS
Jasmine Roberts is a lecturer in the School of Communication at the Ohio State University, where she teaches in the areas of public relations writing, digital activism and campaign strategy. Professor Roberts’ advocacy work centers on the experiences of people of color, women and queer communities. Along with her communication expertise, Roberts is also a renowned open education leader. She has delivered numerous keynote presentations across the country on the topics of inclusion and social justice in open education. She is the author of the highly-rated, openly-licensed book “Writing for Strategic Communication Industries.”