SPARC Projects

Connect OER

Open Education

Rhode Island College

Providence, RI, United States
Official Website @ricnews

Type: Public 4-Year
Annual Enrollment: 8,641

  Non-Member  

OER LibGuide

Overview

As a leading institution of the Rhode Island Open Textbook Initiative, a challenge set by Governor Gina Raimondo through the Office of Innovation to save students across Rhode Island $5 million in 5 years, Rhode Island College supports faculty adoption of OER and open textbooks. Reference Librarian Dragan Gill leads campus initiatives and is co-chair of the statewide steering committee.

Rhode Island College is a member of the Open Textbook Network (OTN). Regular professional development workshops are held through the Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning, including through the OTN's workshop and review process. An unofficial committee meets to collaborate across campus divisions and provide direction for faculty outreach and support efforts. The Office of the Provost and the Office of the President provide stipends for professional development and textbook or OER adoption.

Other Languages: Portuguese | Spanish; Castilian


Campus Details

Campus Entities Most Active in Efforts Advancing OER:

Library Departments Active in Efforts Advancing OER:

Academic Subjects With Greatest OER Traction:

Mechanisms to Support OER Included in the Following:

OER Staff Location:



OER Programs

Open Educational Resources Learning Circle

Join faculty colleagues in a 4-session OER Learning Circle, facilitated by Dragan Gill, Adams Library. This Learning Circle will introduce you to key concepts in open with the goal of leaving with a plan for next steps and knowledge of the resources available to support you. You’ll define your OER goals; gain understanding of copyright and open licensing; spend time developing a custom plan for creating an open pedagogy assignment, revising/remixing OER, or creating new OER or open textbooks with colleagues or students. The learning circle will end focusing on how to share or publish your work, with considerations for student privacy and accessibility. Learning circles are a facilitated study group for peers to support each other in learning more about a shared interest.

Program Type:

Duration: 06/2021 - 06/2021

Scope: OER (open course content)

Primary OER Strategy: OER Adaptation

Secondary OER Strategies: OER Adoption, OER Awareness, OER Curation, OER Pedagogy, OER Publication, OER Review/Assessment

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Other Resource

RIC Open Textbook Leadership

This unofficial committee meets to provide direction for faculty outreach and professional development needs; collaborate on efforts such as shared technology and policy needs; and to leverage campus events, campaigns or efforts to raise awareness and gather student and faculty perspectives.

Program Type:

Duration: 12/2016 - Present

Program Webpage: http://library.ric.edu/open-textbooks/at-ric

Scope: OER (open course content)

Primary OER Strategy: OER Awareness

Secondary OER Strategies: OER Adaptation, OER Adoption, OER Curation, OER Pedagogy, OER Publication

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Job Description Change

To more accurately describe the efforts of Reference Librarian, Assistant Professor, Dragan Gill's work the library director, as approved by the Provost and Human Resources, and with the support of the faculty union (AFT) changed Dragan's job description to include OER and open textbook work.

Duration: 12/2017 - Present

Scope: OER (open course content)

Primary OER Strategy: OER Adoption

Secondary OER Strategies: OER Adaptation, OER Awareness, OER Curation, OER Pedagogy, OER Publication, OER Review/Assessment, OER Research

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Job Description

Open Textbook or OER Adoption Faculty Stipend

In support of the time and effort required to adjust a course following the adoption of an open textbook or OER faculty are eligible for a one-time $200 stipend provided by the Office of the President.

Program Type:

Duration: 03/2017 - Present

Program Webpage: http://library.ric.edu/open-textbooks

Scope: OER (open course content)

Primary OER Strategy: OER Adoption

Secondary OER Strategies: OER Adaptation, OER Awareness, OER Curation, OER Pedagogy

Unit Housing the Program:

Program Partners:

Source of Program Funding:

Total Program Funding to Date: $ 6,200

Total Student Savings to Date: $ 356,600

Incentives Offered by the Program:

Total amount of incentive grants awarded to date: $ 6,200

Total number of incentive grants awarded to date: 31

Typical amount of each grant: $ 200

Links:
MOU for Participants

Faculty Professional Development Workshops (Open Textbook Network Member)

As Open Textbook Network members the library and Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning provide regularly scheduled workshops on open textbooks and their role in addressing barriers to accessing education and teaching freely. Following the workshop faculty review an open textbook in the Open Textbook Library. Faculty who complete the two hour workshop and review are eligible for a one-time $200 stipend provided by the Provost's office.

Program Type:

Duration: 03/2017 - Present

Program Webpage: http://library.ric.edu/open-textbooks

Scope: OER (open course content)

Primary OER Strategy: OER Adoption

Secondary OER Strategies: OER Adaptation, OER Awareness, OER Pedagogy, OER Publication, OER Review/Assessment

Unit Housing the Program:

Program Partners:

Source of Program Funding:

Total Program Funding to Date: $ 19,500

Total Student Savings to Date: $ 356,600

Incentives Offered by the Program:

Total amount of incentive grants awarded to date: $ 13,000

Total number of incentive grants awarded to date: 65

Typical amount of each grant: $ 200

Links:
MOU for Participants

Institutional Teaching and Learning Material Data Collection

In compliance with the Higher Education Opportunity Act and Americans with Disabilities Act, and in support of OER adoption impact data collection, the college will be piloting a new form within PeopleSoft to collect teaching and learning materials across the institution in the Spring of 2019 for Summer Session 2019, with the hopes of full implementation Fall 2019.

PeopleSoft form creation and management - Management Information Services
Data collection - Academic Affairs
Americans with Disabilities Act Compliance - Disability Services Center
Higher Education Opportunity Act Compliance - Library
Bookstore Contract and Data Coordination - Administration and Finance

Presented to College Council - December 14, 2018

Program Type:

Duration: 03/2019 - Present

Program Webpage: https://library.ric.edu/open-textbooks/peoplesoft-pilot

Primary OER Strategy: OER Review/Assessment

Secondary OER Strategies: OER Research

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Committee Outreach

To raise awareness and develop greater institutional investment through collaboration, Dragan meets with relevant campus committees: Academic Technology Advisory Committee, Bookstore Advisory Committee, College Council, Committee on Online Learning, Deans and Directors, Department Chairs, and the Library Advisory Committee.

Program Type:

Duration: 09/2019 - Present

Scope: OER (open course content)

Primary OER Strategy: OER Awareness

Secondary OER Strategies: OER Adaptation, OER Adoption, OER Curation, OER Pedagogy, OER Publication, OER Review/Assessment, OER Research

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Other Resource


OER Events

OER and Solving the Textbook Cost Crisis

Nicole Allen, Director of Open Education, SPARC, provided an overview of OER in the context of open access for faculty librarians during Open Access Week.

Date: Oct. 22, 2015 - Oct. 22, 2015

Event Type:

Event themes:

Scope: OER (open course content)

Approximate Attendees: 7

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Slides

Student #textbookbroke Poster at Financial Wellness Week Event

A Learning for Life student peer navigator presented a poster on open textbooks and soliciting student experiences dealing with textbook costs throughout one day of campus Financial Wellness Week.

Date: Sept. 4, 2018 - Sept. 4, 2018

Event themes:

Scope: OER (open course content)

Approximate Attendees: 25

Event Hashtag: #ricmoney, #gameoflife, #textbookbroke

Links:
Promotional Material

But I Don't Use a Textbook: Open Educational Resources for All

Open Educational Resources (OER) come in all shapes and sizes, just like traditionally published teaching and learning materials. In this hour-long session you'll learn about how OER are created, where to find them and how you can use them, including revising them to fit your needs.

Date: March 5, 2019 - March 5, 2019

Event Type:

Event themes:

Scope: OER (open course content)

Approximate Attendees: 2

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Promotional Material
Slides

Open Textbooks: Access, Affordability and Academic Success

David Ernst of the Open Textbook Network introduced faculty open textbooks and their impact on student access to a full education and the model workshop for our on-going workshop and textbook review program. This was part of the site visit by the OTN upon joining the network.

Date: Feb. 20, 2017 - Feb. 20, 2017

Event Type:

Event themes:

Scope: OER (open course content)

Approximate Attendees: 36

Links:
Promotional Material
Slides

Open Textbooks: Access, Affordability and Academic Success

As part of our membership to the Open Education Network, Dragan Gill provides regular faculty professional development workshops. Faculty who attend both the workshop and review a textbook in the Open Textbook Library are eligible for a one-time $100 stipend supported by the Provost's Office.

Date: Oct. 15, 2020 - Oct. 15, 2020

Event Type:

Event themes:

Scope: OER (open course content)

Approximate Attendees: 5

Links:
Promotional Material
Slides

Open Textbook Network Training Workshop

Marilyn Billings presented to faculty and staff of: the library, administration, User Support Services, Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning, Learning for Life (a department of student services), and the RI Office of Innovation. This was part of our site visit upon our joining the Open Textbook Network.

Date: Feb. 20, 2017 - Feb. 20, 2017

Event Type:

Event themes:

Scope: OER (open course content)

Approximate Attendees: 20

Links:
Slides

Open Textbooks: Access, Affordability, and Academic Success

As part of our membership to the Open Textbook Network, Dragan Gill provides regular faculty professional development workshops. Faculty who attend both the workshop and review a textbook in the Open Textbook Library are eligible for a one-time $200 stipend supported by the Provost's Office.

Date: Oct. 16, 2017 - Oct. 16, 2017

Event Type:

Event themes:

Scope: OER (open course content)

Approximate Attendees: 12

Links:
Slides

Open Textbooks: Access, Affordability, and Academic Success

As part of our membership to the Open Textbook Network, Dragan Gill provides regular faculty professional development workshops. Faculty who attend both the workshop and review a textbook in the Open Textbook Library are eligible for a one-time $200 stipend supported by the Provost's Office.

Date: Oct. 19, 2017 - Oct. 19, 2017

Event Type:

Event themes:

Scope: OER (open course content)

Approximate Attendees: 10

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Slides

Faculty Center for Teaching & Learning Think Tank: OER for Accessible, Flexible and Creative Online Teaching

As we look for resources to support online teaching, open educational resources of all types, including simulations, videos, and activities, are free to use for you and students and support flexible teaching. Whether you're revising in response to the pandemic or to create lasting online and hybrid courses, OER reduces the economic barriers for students and can be revised and remixed with students to actively create teaching and learning materials and engage in scholarly communication and research.

Date: June 25, 2020 - June 25, 2020

Event Type:

Event themes:

Scope: OER (open course content)

Approximate Attendees: 11

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Event Summary

Using Object-Based and Open-Enabled Pedagogy for Authentic Learning

A workshop as part of a day-long Adjunct Professional Development Day professional development series provided by the Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning. This workshop was lead by two librarians introducing Object-Based Learning and how open access collections can support and supplement this learning method.

Date: July 26, 2017 - July 26, 2017

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Approximate Attendees: 25

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Open to Support Accessibility and Inclusion

There isn’t a singular way to make teaching and learning materials accessible and inclusive, but you can start by having the right to make changes. Open educational resources (OER) allow you to do just that. In this workshop we’ll explore how to use the “5 Rs of open” to break-down barriers to student learning with examples and tips for getting started.

Date: Feb. 27, 2020 - Feb. 27, 2020

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Event themes:

Scope: OER (open course content)

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Event Summary
Promotional Material
Slides

Using Object-Based and Open-Enabled Pedagogy for Authentic Learning

A requested, repeat offering of the July 2017 workshop created for adjunct faculty, this time provided for all faculty through the Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning.

Date: Oct. 17, 2017 - Oct. 17, 2017

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Implicit Bias on Wikipedia

Wikipedia is the 10th-most visited website in the world. It is the first—and sometimes the last—place people go when they need information. But as an information source composed and regulated by the public, Wikipedia suffers from the same issues of implicit bias as the rest of the world. The following program is a combined lecture and workshop series focused on understanding and ending implicit bias on Wikipedia. It is designed to encourage participation from all members of the RIC community. Participants are welcome to attend the lecture, workshop, or both.

Date: March 3, 2020 - March 3, 2020

Event Type:

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Approximate Attendees: 28

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Event Summary
Promotional Material

Harnessing Faculty Knowledge and Open-Enabled Practices to Create Ebooks and Online Course Materials

A faculty member from the Computer Science department, Sally Hamouda, with experience creating online, responsive textbooks provided an overview of two projects she had worked on with funding from the EU. Including data on student use and improving the interactive pieces to increase student retention of difficult concepts. Reference Librarian, Dragan Gill, provided examples of creating similar online content using resources at the college, open repositories and the value of sharing back into the open community.

Date: Feb. 13, 2018 - Feb. 13, 2018

Event Type:

Event themes:

Approximate Attendees: 4

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Slides

Open Textbooks: Access, Affordability, and Academic Success

As part of our membership to the Open Textbook Network, Dragan Gill provides regular faculty professional development workshops. Faculty who attend both the workshop and review a textbook in the Open Textbook Library are eligible for a one-time $200 stipend supported by the Provost's Office.

Date: Feb. 28, 2018 - Feb. 28, 2018

Event Type:

Event themes:

Scope: OER (open course content)

Approximate Attendees: 5

Links:
Slides

Understanding Copyright and Creative Commons Licensing

Librarians Deryl Freeman and Dragan Gill will lead this ninety-minute session introducing you to copyright and Creative Commons licensing. Understand how to appropriately use copyrighted materials in the classroom and how Creative Commons licensing works for users as well as creators. Learn how both work together to protect and share your intellectual property.

Date: Oct. 9, 2018 - Oct. 9, 2018

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Slides

Open Textbooks: Access, Affordability, and Academic Success

As part of our membership to the Open Textbook Network, Dragan Gill provides regular faculty professional development workshops. Faculty who attend both the workshop and review a textbook in the Open Textbook Library are eligible for a one-time $200 stipend supported by the Provost's Office.

Date: Feb. 27, 2018 - Feb. 27, 2018

Event Type:

Event themes:

Scope: OER (open course content)

Approximate Attendees: 9

Links:
Slides

What does an Open Textbook Look Like? Library Exhibit

The library displayed the OpenStax College Physics textbook in three formats: ebook; OpenStax printed copy; and faculty adapted, single-semester on-campus printed chapter selections for the Month of March.

Date: March 1, 2018 - March 31, 2018

Event themes:

Scope: OER (open course content)

Links:
Promotional Material

Pending review: Meet Pressbooks

This item is pending review. Please check back later or contact us.


OER Resources

Open Textbooks LibGuide

Links to repositories and collections of open textbooks as well as introductory materials about the value and importance of open textbooks.

Resource Permissions:
CC BY SA

Resource Citation:
Gill, D. (2015). Open Textbooks. Retrieved from https://library.ric.edu/open-textbooks

Open Access Collections LibGuide

A directory of open access directories, collections and projects.

Resource Permissions:
CC BY SA

Resource Citation:
Gill, D. (2017). Open Access Collections. Retrieved from https://library.ric.edu/open-collections

Open Educational Resources LibGuide

An overview of OER, including policy and advocacy, collections and repositories, tools for creation and adaption, and training and support.

Resource Permissions:
CC BY SA

Resource Citation:
Gill, D. (2015). Open Educational Resources (OER). Retrieved from https://library.ric.edu/oer



Point of Contact

Dragan Gill
Reference Librarian, James P. Adams Library