Congratulations to the recipients of the 2024 Open Educational Resources (OER) Grant!
The OER Grant Program (formerly the Alternative Textbook Grant Program) supports the adoption and creation of open educational resources for use in University of Kentucky courses. The nine recipients of the 2024 cycle span a wide variety of disciplines; their projects range from open textbooks to interactive assignments. When completed, all materials will be openly licensed and freely available to the public.
Kera Ackerman, Special Education: This project will provide the structure for a stand-alone text for EDS 570 Learning and Behavior Disabilities. Specifically, the foundational chapters and an outline for the remaining chapters will be established.
Sean Burns, Information Science: This project aims to develop a textbook for undergraduate students on semantic web development. The course focuses on HTML5, CSS3, and various semantic technologies with structured data.
Juan Fernandez Cantero, Hispanic Studies: This project is the creation of a new textbook that will be used in the course "Spanish for Business Professionals." It will be designed to introduce students to essential business terminology and language situations commonly encountered in business contexts in the Hispanic world. It will also inform students of the importance of cultural awareness when doing business in Spanish-speaking countries.
Charles Fox, Agricultural and Medical Biotechnology: This project is the creation of an open textbook that is an introduction to population genetics (and introduction to the causes and consequences of genetic variation within and among populations). The book will be designed to support ABT 461G (Population Genetics), but also be available to support similar courses at other universities. The book will be targeted to senior undergraduates and beginning graduate students, an audience underserved by currently available textbooks. It will also include a wide variety of projects and problem sets to give students hands-on experience applying the tools of population genetics to real-world problems.
Melanie Beals Goan, History: This project is the creation of a companion resource for the Making of Modern Kentucky course. The goal is not only to make materials for this big survey class affordable but to also make access and use of them as seamless as possible for students and teaching assistants.
Priscila Norris, Social Work: This project is the creation of a textbook for the Introduction to Doctoral Studies course in the Doctor of Social Work program. It will enrich the learning experience by providing an organized and structured way to orient learners to their doctoral studies. It will also provide a reference guide with academic and professional resources that learners can consult as they continue on their doctoral journey. The book will include scholarly writing resources, reflexivity exercise prompts, self-care tips, time and project management, professional communication, and more.
Winter Phong, Arts Administration: This project aims to transform fundraising education by developing OER and technology companions that address the limitations of traditional textbooks and incorporate contemporary practices and technological advancements in fundraising and philanthropy. Resources will be developed to expand multimedia resources, develop interactive assignments, and build real-world case studies to enrich the learning experience for undergraduate students. Moreover, these resources will extend their value beyond the designated course, serving as valuable tools for professionals, educators, researchers, and individuals interested in fundraising.
Nels Jeff Rogers, German Studies: This project involves finishing a textbook on 21st century German Film. The book introduces students to the systematic study of film from a non-U.S./Hollywood perspective and explores issues central to national film production in German-speaking Europe. It will be used in the UK Core course "German Film Today."
