Open Education 2016

Having a statewide OER librarian for Oregon's community colleges was a brand-new position when I started my job in January 2015. But it was backed by years of prior OER work on various campuses and a great deal of interest from faculty, support staff, and administrators. With that groundwork established, Open Oregon Educational Resources takes a top-level view and connects OER initiatives happening at 17 separate community colleges that are not in a system.

This presentation will cover the challenges that I initially perceived and the reality of the past one and three-quarters years. With a tremendous amount of shared effort from partners all over the state, Open Oregon has created a name and online presence for Oregon community college OER efforts; encouraged adoption by sharing information, funding projects, and showcasing successes; and offered in-person and online trainings to build capacity throughout the state. There is growing interest in open degree pathways and a cohort of 35 grant projects underway.

This spring Oregon also hired a statewide OER Specialist for all of higher ed, including our 7 universities. This position within state government is a new colleague and partner for community college OER champions and can advocate within the legislative process. This provides a complement to my position at the community college level.

What's working? What will I never try again? What's next? Stop by this session and find out.

Open Oregon Educational Resources connects OER initiatives happening at 17 community colleges. What's working? Stop by and find out.