Description
The use of Open Educational Resources (OER) has significantly improved inclusivity and access in postsecondary education. Initially, textbook cost barriers were lowered, and many faculty have discovered that the philosophy of reusing, revising, remixing, and redistributing content has additional benefits for teaching methods and student inclusion. However, ensuring that OER content is accessible to all students, regardless of abilities, remains a challenge. Join this webcast to gain insights into accessibility considerations while selecting open resources and learn about solutions that can help you ensure accessibility for all students.
Presenters
- Heather Blicher, Program Director, Community College Consortium for OER (CCCOER), Open Education Global
- Karen Cangialosi, Director, Every Learner Everywhere, WICHE
- Seth Vuletich, Scholarly Communications Librarian, Colorado School of Mines
- Moderator: Judith Sebesta, Founder and Principal, Sebesta Education Consulting, LLC
Heather Blicher is the program director for the Community College Consortium for OER (CCCOER) at Open Education Global, advancing open education at community and technical colleges across North America and supporting the next phase of open education innovation. This is a recent professional move from Virginia Tech, where her focus was digital publishing technologies, accessibility, open licensing, and diversity, equity, and inclusion. Heather also worked with Open Oregon Educational Resources as an equity consultant and instructional designer, collaborating with project leadership and author teams to support the centering of equity in the Targeted Open Pathways Project.
Dr. Karen Cangialosi joined Every Learner Everywhere in June 2023. As a dedicated Professor of Biology and student advocate for many years, Karen found her way to Open Education which she sees as especially powerful for helping to bring about what she sees as much needed larger-scale change in higher education. She has gained national recognition for leadership in Open Education, STEM education, faculty development, innovative and digital pedagogies, and authentic student-centered learning and she brings these experiences and perspectives to help shape networking for numerous communities. Prior to joining Every Leaner, Karen served as the director of membership for Open Education Global , as well as the program director for Regional Leaders of Open Education Network (RLOE), a project of Open Education Global and The Community College Consortium for Open Educational Resources (CCCOER), working to reimagine leadership, shift institutional power to marginalized communities, and promote systemic change for open education and higher education more broadly. She is a co-founder of the RIOS Institute for a Racially Just, Inclusive and Open STEM Education where she served as director of open education and open science. Karen holds a doctorate in zoology from Miami University, a master’s degree in biological sciences from the University of Cincinnati, and a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of Maryland Baltimore County. She lives with her partner in Florence, MA and enjoys participating in and organizing LGBTQ community events, playing guitar, harmonica or bass in music jams, kayaking, hiking and biking.
Seth Vuletich As the scholarly communications librarian, Seth supports students and faculty through instruction, consultations, and leading the campus’ efforts toward Open Science. Prior to joining Mines, he worked at the Westminster Law Library at the University of Denver and the Jerry Crail Johnson Earth Sciences and Map Library at the University of Colorado Boulder, in addition to having spent several years as a professional woodworker. Seth’s passion for equitable access guides his primary research interest in the accessibility of materials for users with disabilities.
In his free time, Seth enjoys skiing, hiking, traveling, and spending time outdoors with his dogs.
Judith Sebesta is the founder and principal at Sebesta Education Consulting LLC. She also serves as president of the Executive Council for the Community College Consortium for OER and is on the Board of Directors for the international Open Education conference. Prior to consulting she held roles at ISKME Labs/OER Commons, the Digital Higher Education Consortium of Texas, and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. Before shifting her career focus to the broader landscape of policy and practice in open education, innovation, and digital education, Judith enjoyed a fifteen-year career as a university professor and administrator.