Your 2022 news from Rebus Community! See what's new

TSP Spotlight: Welcome New Facilitators!

This section highlights projects currently enrolled in the Textbook Success Program. Want to be part of the Textbook Success Program? Our cohorts run three times a year. Sign up for a consultation.

We’re excited to announce three new Textbook Success Program alumni who will be stepping into the role of Rebus TSP Facilitator! Welcome to Jonathan Poritz, Julie Meyer, and Liza Long. We look forward to supporting your growth as OER leaders, and watching you shepherd new cohorts working on OER creation/adaptation efforts.

Facilitator Spotlight: Jonathan Poritz

For years, Jonathan Poritz was one of those tattered minstrel mathematicians one sees wandering dusty backroads with nothing but chalk on his coat and a theorem on his lips: in total, he studied and taught mathematics and computer science at around a dozen universities in five time zones on two continents, most recently in a fifteen-year stint at Colorado State University Pueblo.

He has also worked in various IT firms, from start-ups to multi-nationals, doing things like AI, cryptography, and consulting on public policy towards technology. Building on a lifetime of using free/libre/open-source software, Jonathan has for the last decade been involved in the open education movement, writing three OER textbooks and serving on the Colorado OER Council. In his spare time, he teaches the Creative Commons Certificate course and writes snarky articles about the over-hyping of blockchains. Much more information about him, including (almost) everything he's written, (almost) all of it released under an open license, can be found on his website.

Jonathan will be working closely with OER creation projects from Massachusetts, beginning in February 2022.

New Philosophy OER: Aesthetic Theory & Practice

This section amplifies posts new OER released by the community! If you would like your book release shared in our newsletter, post your announcement in Rebus Community forum.

The Introduction to Philosophy OER series, edited by Christina Hendricks, continues to grow with a new release on Aesthetic Theory and Practice (ed. Valery Vino). Many thanks to the numerous contributors to this series — from editors, authors, reviewers, formatters and designers.

Introduction to Aesthetic Theory & Practice, edited by Valery Vino, covers a range of topics including: the nature of art and aesthetics, environmental aesthetics, aesthetics and politics, engaging with Indigenous art, beauty in art and in nature, everyday aesthetics, somaesthetics, ancient aesthetics, and more. This OER is a collection of contributor perspectives from Canada, Japan, United States, China, Australia, Austria, England, France, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, and Ethiopia. Learn more about this volume in the series!

Don't forget to check out the other books in the collection: Philosophy of Mind, Ethics, Logic, Philosophy of Religion, and Epistemology.
Book covers for the Introduction to Philosophy series

Calls for Participation

This section features calls for participation from projects with a topic in our Contributor Marketplace. If you would like to see your call in our newsletter, follow these steps to amplify your requests for contributors.

Are you a graphic designer interested in joining the HOME @ School digital literacy team? TSP participant Jessie Curell and team are developing a new OER to bring animation into the classroom for Canadian teachers & we want to make it look slick! Please contact the team on their project homepage if you are interested in helping.

Equity in Open Webinar Series!

Want to learn more about DEI in Open Education? This free three-part Equity in Open webinar series is being hosted by OpenStax and the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE). Learn more and sign up for any or all the sessions:

Equity Challenges & Making DEI Work for You (Wednesday, January 26, 2022)

Equity in Open Textbook Content (Tuesday, February 1, 2022)

Respect and Equity in Digital Learning Resources (Thursday, February 10, 2022)

#OEROfficeHours Returns Tomorrow! OER Challenges Facing Newcomers

Topic: Advice for OER Newcomers
When: January 20, 2021, 2-3 ET
Guests: Gabriella Hernandez (Open Education Librarian, University of Texas, Rio Grande), Shannon Smith (Open Educational Resources Librarian, Boise State University) and Cheryl (Cuillier) Casey (Open Education Librarian, University of Arizona)

There are challenges in developing open educational programs, and for newcomers to OER they may be especially vexing. How do we support OER adoption in a changing environment? How do we talk to faculty about Creative Commons licenses? How do we develop publishing programs that support faculty’s goals while being realistic about our capacity? The questions are many, and many will recur through the years! We want to offer a welcoming community to support newcomers, one that shares recommendations, rubrics and other adaptable tools for supporting student success and professional well being. Our guests, who are both experienced OER professionals and those who are newer to the field, will explore the challenges facing newcomers and discuss how we can support one another as we move open education forward.

#OTL10: Share your Stories!

To celebrate the Open Education Network’s (OEN) Open Textbook Library (OTL) turning 10 in April, we’d like to encourage you all at the Rebus Community who use the OTL to share your stories, and collectively recognize and appreciate the library’s impact and growth and your accomplishments! You can leave your comments anonymously, or include your name and email so the OEN can potentially follow up.

The OEN will be collecting stories via this form until Monday, January 31. You can also share your stories directly on social media using the hashtag #OTL10 throughout the year.