OER Grants

Submit an application for the adoption grant which demonstrates how a textbook that students were previously required to purchase will be replaced with an openly licensed resource or combination of openly licensed resources and library options, such as course reserves or use of library-provided ebooks.

If selected, you must commit to the following:

1. Meet with the Scholarly Communications Librarian. 
2. Provide a syllabus for the course(s) for which you are adopting an open educational resource in lieu of a commercial textbook.
3. Complete a survey on your experience after teaching the class using the open resource.
4. Ask your students to complete an optional survey about their experience with OER.

The use of funds is entirely at the discretion of the grant recipient.

Funds will be disbursed upon completion of the project. Funds can be paid to individuals (taxed) or deposited into research accounts which must be used according to the WMU Research Acceleration Program (WRAP) policy.

Applications will be evaluated based on cost savings, as well as the number of students potentially impacted.

Grant applications for undergraduate courses with high enrollment will receive priority consideration.

• Dr. Whitney DeCamp, SOC 6210
• Lori Farrer, ED 3690
• Dr. Michelle Hrivnyak, ANTH 2510
• Kyle Jehnzen, AVS 1210
• Marie Moreno, BCM 3700
• Dr. Kenneth Smith, MUS 3810
• Katherine Suender, ED 2300

Submit an application for the creation grant which articulates your plan to develop an openly licensed book and any supplemental materials for an existing course at WMU, including the following:

1. Briefly describe your expertise in the specific subject area of the proposed open textbook. Also, describe your experience in teaching the course for which you are creating the OER or open text.
2. Explain how your OER creation will impact student success, including potential financial savings for students.
3. Project description and goals: Provide a detailed description of your project, including information about the course and why OER may be appropriate to use.
4. Justification for creating a new OER: Demonstrate that quality OER are not currently available to meet learning objectives. Attach additional documentation as needed. Examples include searches in OER repositories, evidence of review of existing OER materials, etc.
5. Provide an accessibility statement: how will the new OER be accessible for students with disabilities.
6. Articulate an assessment plan of the impact and effectiveness of the OER on student learning.
7. Provide a sustainability plan after the end of the project.
8. Provide a project timeline. The project should be completed within 18 months of the announcement of the award.
9. Submit a budget for anticipated expenses related to the project. See Eligible Expenses and Disbursement of Funds section for information on allowable expenses.  
10. Inclusion of a statement of support from the department chair is strongly encouraged. The statement should address other courses for which the open text could potentially be used, department curricular plans for the subject matter of the OER, the particular qualifications of the author(s) on the subject matter, or any other relevant information.

If selected, you must commit to the following:

1. Meet with the Scholarly Communications Librarian to go over project plans.
2. Plan to implement the resource in class for at least two semesters.
3. Submit a mid-progress report and final report.
4. Publish the OER with a Creative Commons license.
5. House the OER in WMU’s institutional repository, ScholarWorks.
6. Satisfy the requirements for inclusion in the Open Textbook Library and complete the submission process.
7. Oversight and submission of a student survey of experience with the resource.
8. Share experience and outcomes for development for future OER creation.

The grant program is intended to compensate awardees for the time invested in writing, creating and developing a new open text, as well as supplementary materials (such as test banks, homework assignments and laboratory manuals).

WMU Libraries budgets up to $1,500 per project for additional support. Applicants are expected to include a proposed budget if they anticipate additional costs related to the project.

Allowable expenses include:

• Software or other services directly related to development of the book.
• Attendance at a conference that is directly related to the development of the book.
• Peer review of OER ($200 per peer review. Name of peer reviewer must be submitted and approved before work is done).
• Payment to graduate assistant for help in development of the work. (Author must submit budget to include the work that will done by the GA and number of hours. Budgeted amount must be preapproved. Payment is on reimbursement basis only.)
• Copyright payments for use of images or other restricted content.
• Other publishing support, including copy editing, indexing, formatting, etc.

The grant payment as well as additional costs will be disbursed upon completion of the project unless applicants make a case for needing funds for expenses to be incurred during the development process. Funds can be paid to individuals (taxed) or deposited into research accounts which must be used according to the WMU Research Acceleration Program (WRAP) policy.

Proposals will be evaluated using a rubric that balances the following criteria:

Objectives

The proposals objectives are clearly articulated and well planned. The rationale for approaching the project is clear and the applicant has reflected on the work necessary to make the project a success.

Impact

The proposal clearly and convincingly articulates how their open text will significantly impact individual courses, address disciplinary gaps in open content, and/or impact student learning

Cost savings

The combination of previous textbook costs, student enrollment, frequency of the course offered means that the OER is likely to create extensive cost savings for students.

Feasibility and sustainability

The proposal’s timeline is feasible and clearly aligns with the work required to complete the proposed project. Proposal provides a clear plan for revising and updating content, both minor and major revisions.

Inclusiveness and cultural relevance

The proposal clearly demonstrates a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion through an exploration of the following: including diverse perspectives, serving populations disproportionately affected by textbook costs, and/or making the OER accessible for all students.

Accessibility

The proposal addresses principles of Universal Design, user experience and accessibility for students with disabilities.

Assessment

The assessment plan addresses how both the OERs quality and student learning outcomes will be addressed

Letters of support

The application includes strong letters of support from the department chair or similar person with knowledge of the proposed project.  

• Dustin Altschul, IADN 1570, 2500, 3550
• Dr. Jessica Cataldo, HSV 4780