International Journal of Open Educational Resources Volume 2, Issue 1, Fall 2019/Winter 2020 | Page 232

International Journal of Open Educational Resources
goal of the working group is to identify
all instructors at the university who
are using OER and build a database, so
that we can assist them in any way, from
understanding open licenses to ensuring
instructional design standards are
maintained. Thus far, through workshop
events and library outreach, we
have identified several instructors who
are OER users, including the provost
and the university’s president. Finding
champions of open access and OER on
campus can benefit the working group
and help achieve the university’s strategic
directive.
The current working group acknowledges
the limitations of the survey,
considering that the number of responses
(81) compared to the number
involved in teaching that fall semester
(455) is small. Also, according to the
demographic data, there is limited
feedback from part-time instructors at
UNA. However, given the inclusion of
OER in the campus strategic plan, the
evidence from the survey results provides
the working group guidance on
strategies to build awareness on campus
and increase OER in UNA’s courses.
As the campus OER initiative
continued to grow, the working group
realized that it would benefit the group
to include other campus representatives.
To accomplish this, we have invited
three people to join our working
group: a full-time teaching faculty
member, a student engagement staff
member who works with the campus
food pantry and at-risk students, and
a sophomore student who serves as a
student government senator. As part of
this expansion, a memo has been drafted
and sent to the provost to formalize
our working group through campus
shared governance. In the documentation,
we have drafted language to define
our charge to be the following:
1. To support the campus initiative to
adopt, implement, and use OER.
2. To raise awareness of OER on
campus.
3. To advise and educate the campus
about OER and related issues, such
as copyright, fair use, open access,
and open pedagogy.
4. To propose changes in areas related
to OER, including policies, procedures,
and products used.
Future Directions
The importance of administrative
support, including funding and
promotion of OER efforts and
building OER initiatives into the campus
strategic plan, cannot be understated.
However, without understanding
the needs of the campus, the allocation
of funding and support would be difficult.
Thus, the first step in implementing
an OER process was assessing the
current status of awareness and use of
OER on campus. Using the results of
that assessment has allowed the OER
working group to coordinate a strategic
rollout of OER initiatives across campus
for all teaching faculty and staff.
The purpose of this research is not only
to explore awareness and adoption at
our institution, but also to contribute
to the growing body of research on
224