About the OAER Working Group
The cost of course materials presents a barrier to success for many students—students’ access to open and high-quality course materials is paramount. In February 2017, Penn State’s Transforming Education Steering Committee charged the Open and Affordable Educational Resources (OAER) Working Group to implement the recommendations from the University’s 2016 OER Task Force Report, develop new programs related to OAER, and pilot select OAER initiatives. Since that time, the role of the OAER working group is to guide, encourage, support, and assess the transformation of pedagogy, the enhancement of accessibility and equity, and the reduction of student costs through open education.
Check out our OER @ PSU annual report for 2021-2022.
A few highlights of the OAER Working Group’s efforts include:
- Launching a website for the university community dedicated to open and affordable educational resources
- Development of an enterprise-level repository for open and affordable educational resources – ROAM
- Piloting a campus-based OER Champion Award to highlight instructor contributions
- Developing a comprehensive faculty development plan, including programs such as the Affordable Course Transformation program, which has supported the creation of 42 faculty OER projects thus far, with a potential savings to students of over $2 million
- Funding institutional memberships in consortia such as the Open Textbook Network, OERu, and Open Education Global
- Licensing e-book textbooks for World Campus and residential courses through University Libraries, with a savings to students of approximately $350,000-$400,000 per semester
Who are we?
The OAER Working Group includes representatives from across the University, including student representatives, and engages both an Instructional Advisory Group (IAG) and a Student Advisory Group. The Working group meets monthly, as do its subgroups. The OAER Instructional Advisory Group is engaged at least once during both the Fall and Spring semesters.
Working Group Members
| Member | Position |
|---|---|
| Rebecca Miller Waltz, Co-chair | Interim, Associate Dean, University Libraries |
| Ann Taylor, Co-chair | Assistant Dean for Distance Learning and Director, John A. Dutton E-Education Institute, College of Earth and Mineral Sciences |
| Jennifer Babb | Learning Designer, Dutton Institute |
| Gary Chinn | Director, eLearning Institute, College of Arts and Architecture |
| Sara Davis | Instructional Designer, TLT |
| Angie Dick | Manager, Instructional Design and Development, TLT |
| Malena Gittler (for Chris Millet) | Senior Instructional Designer, World Campus Learning Design |
| Jennifer Guyer | General Manager, Penn State Bookstore |
| Sarah Hamilton | Education Program Manager, WPSU |
| Bryan McGeary | Learning Design and Open Education Engagement Librarian |
| Chris Millet | IT Manager |
| Christina Riehman-Murphy | Reference and Instruction Librarian |
| John Shank | Head Librarian, Berks Thun Library |
| Corey Wetherington | Open Education Infrastructure Specialist, RePub |
| Liz Wright | Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Office of Vice President for Commonwealth Campuses |
OAER Instructional Advisory Group Members
| Member | Position |
|---|---|
| Fred Aebli | Instructor, Information Sciences and Tech Division |
| Clyde “Lee” Giles | Professor, College of IST, Data Sciences |
| Larry Musolino | Lecture of Mathematics, Mathematics Division |
| Ana Serrano-Martinez | Lecture of Spanish, Arts and Humanities Division |
| Renee Borromeo | Teaching Professor, Health and Human Development Division |
| Alfredo Jimenez | Associate Professor of Mathematics, Matematics Division |
| Linghao Zhong | Professor of Chemistry |
| Zack McLaughlin-Alcock | Lecturer, Mathematics |
| Vivian Hsu | Associate Teaching Professor, Psychological & Social Sciences |
| Nicole Young | Assistant Teaching Professor of Mathematics, Mathematics |
Student Advisory Group Members
| Student | Program |
|---|---|
| Aayush Dalal, Chair | Open Education Intern |
| TBA | 2022-23 World Campus Student Government student representative |
| TBA | 2022-23 Commonwealth Campus Student Government student representative |
| TBA | 2022-23 University Park Undergraduate Association student representative |
