OER Professional Development
Advancing Open Education: Texas OER Professional Development Opportunities
The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) Division of Digital Learning, in partnership with the Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education (ISKME), offers comprehensive virtual professional development focused on Open Educational Resources (OER). These structured learning experiences enhance educator capabilities while fostering meaningful collaboration with colleagues across Texas institutions. Participants develop essential skills through practice-oriented sessions designed to strengthen OER implementation and sustainability.
Our professional development pathways include OER community sessions, each with a topical focus, the OER Core Elements Academy, OER Advanced Skills Academy, and the Texas OER Fellows program—each designed to build institutional capacity for OER and deepen engagement with the Texas open education community.
Full program descriptions and registration links are provided. Register today to strengthen your institution’s open education initiatives.
OER Community Sessions
Community sessions are free, virtual events that will cover topics such as Universal Design for Learning (UDL), accessibility through SLIDE practices, leveraging AI in OER, and ensuring high-quality OER through evaluation and peer review. Participants will engage in discussions and hands-on activities aimed at enhancing their skills and incorporating best practices in open education.
OER Community Sessions are open to any institutional representative involved in open educational resources and open education.
OER & Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Guidelines
Wednesday, March 5, 3:00 – 4:00 PM CST
This session will showcase how educators are designing OER to meet the needs of every learner with CAST’s Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Guidelines of engagement, representation, and action and expression. Participants will have opportunities to connect and engage with each other around how they might incorporate the guidelines into their OER work. Register for the OER & UDL session.
OER & Accessibility
Tuesday, March 25, 3:00 – 4:00 PM CST
This session will showcase how educators are making OER more accessible with the five SLIDE practices of styles, links, images, design, and evaluation. Participants will have opportunities to connect and engage with each other around how they might incorporate the SLIDE practices into the design of their OER. Register for the OER & Accessibility session.
Leveraging AI to Enhance Open Educational Practices and OER Creation
Wednesday, May 7, 3:00 – 4:00 PM CST
Research in Texas shows that institutions are increasingly focusing on the benefits of open pedagogy in addition to adopting OER. This session will explore how OER advocates are leveraging AI to enhance the creation and adaptation of OER. Participants will have opportunities to connect and engage with each other around how they might utilize AI to advance their OER work and engage open pedagogical practices. Register for the AI & OER session.
Ensuring High-Quality OER: A Community Session on Evaluation and Peer Review
Wednesday, May 20, 3:00 – 4:00 PM CST
Bring your own OER! This session will focus on the growing need for support in evaluating and ensuring the quality of OER. Participants will be introduced to established rubrics designed specifically for evaluating the quality of OER. The session will also offer practical strategies for conducting peer reviews, including the use of rubrics, feedback mechanisms, and collaborative review processes. Participants will have the opportunity to apply the concepts and tools learned during the workshop through hands-on activities. Register for the High-Quality OER session.
OER Academies
OER Core Elements Academy
The Division of Digital Learning welcomes applications for participation in the third cohort of the OER Core Elements Academy. We are offering the academy this April, in partnership with ISKME. Full and part-time faculty, librarians, and instructional designers at public and private higher education institutions that are new to OER or have intermediate experience are invited to participate. Topics include more about discovery, curation, evaluation, and remixing, including an introduction to OER and OER Practices.
The application deadline is Friday, March 14. Participants will be contacted via email by Friday, March 21, if selected to participate based on a review of the application.
OER Advanced Skills Academy
The Division of Digital Learning welcomes applications for participation in the second OER Advanced Skills Academy. We are offering the academy this summer, in partnership with ISKME. Full and part-time faculty, librarians, and instructional designers at public and private higher education institutions with advanced OER experience are invited to participate. The Academy will build on the foundational skills and practices of curation, evaluation, and authoring of OER to further develop OER projects in process.
The application deadline is Friday, May 23. Participants will be contacted via email by Monday, June 2, if selected to participate based on a review of the application.
OER Fellowship
The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s (THECB) Division of Digital Learning’s Texas OER Fellowship Program aims to support mentor relationships for OER use, creation, and capacity building at institutions and statewide. Visit the OER Fellowship page to learn more and to apply to become an OER Fellow.
For questions about any OER Professional Development opportunities, contact Carrie Gits, Director of Digital Learning, at digitallearning@highered.texas.gov.