2025 Colorado OER Conference: Full Schedule

10:10am MDT

From Classroom to Cosmos: Collaborating to Build an Engaging Orbital Mechanics OER

Friday May 30, 2025 10:10am - 10:40am MDT

When faculty expertise meets student creativity, innovation takes off! Dr. Lynnane George, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at UCCS launched an open educational resource (OER) project in 2018 to develop free learning materials for her Space Mechanics class. Over five years, it grew into An Introduction to Orbital Mechanics, an engaging, interactive textbook published on Pressbooks.Dr. George curated content, wrote detailed explanations, and ensured academic rigor while keeping it accessible. Students played a vital role, conducting research, developing example problems, and creating visual aids. To enhance clarity, the team collaborated with Technical Communication and Information Design (TCID) students under Professor Baye Herald, making the textbook more engaging and student-friendly.Now, Dr. George and TCID student Evangela Dudeck will share their journey in an interactive workshop, revealing challenges, breakthroughs, and lessons learned in creating this dynamic OER textbook. Don’t miss this inside look at reshaping education through collaboration! 🚀

Speakers

Lynnane George

Associate Professor of Teaching, University of Colorado Colorado Springs/Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Informal Science Eduction

Evangelina Dudeck

Student, University of Colorado Colorado Springs/Technical Communication and Information Design

Friday May 30, 2025 10:10am - 10:40am MDT
Room 2300 - 2nd Floor

Presentation, Student engagement

Audience Beginner, Intermediate
Subject STEM, Student engagement

10:45am MDT

Students as OER peer reviewers

Friday May 30, 2025 10:45am - 11:15am MDT

Room 2300 - 2nd Floor

Capstone students with expertise in their field and an interest in open pedagogy are well-suited to serve as peer reviewers for Open Educational Resources (OER) with proper guidance. OER is essential to open pedagogy, promoting accessibility, and the continuous improvement of high quality freely available materials. This talk presents a rubric and training materials to prepare students for reviewing OER, along with an instructor’s guide to support student success. Additionally, feedback from students who have completed this process provides insights into the student experiences and the impact on student professional development. Engaging students in OER peer review is a sustainable and valuable assignment that enhances their academic portfolios.

Speakers

Medora Huseby

Associate Professor, Colorado State University

Friday May 30, 2025 10:45am - 11:15am MDT
Room 2300 - 2nd Floor

Presentation, Student engagement

Audience Intermediate
Subject Student engagement

11:20am MDT

Rerouting: OpenOKState Undergraduate Student Outreach

Friday May 30, 2025 11:20am - 11:50am MDT

Room 2300 - 2nd Floor

Students welcome opportunities to engage in and collaborate on initiatives that shape their educational experiences (Bozkurt et al., 2023; Braatz et al., 2023; Snoek-Brown et al., 2021). Established in 2021, the OpenOKState undergraduate outreach team connected with students, built a collaboration with the OSU Student Government Association, and developed a sustainable long-term plan (Lightfoot, Minton & Essmiller, 2024). Organizational changes have led to the modification of the effective and impactful OpenOKState undergraduate outreach program, shifting from library-led outreach to OpenOKState collaborations with student organizations to amplify student voices and strengthen public awareness and support for OER at OSU. In this presentation, the CEHS Student Council President and advisor will highlight the processes behind OpenOKState’s pilot partnership with the CEHS Student Council.

Speakers

Kathy Essmiller

Coordinator, OpenOKState, Oklahoma State University

I have grown two kids, a pack of dogs, and I love to camp in the mountains. Also happy to talk about Open Educational Resources, the arts (I am a former MS/HS band director), educational technology and instructional design, and how amazing it is to get to work in a Library.

Rebekah Cleary

President, OSU College of Education and Human Sciences Student Council, Oklahoma State University

Friday May 30, 2025 11:20am - 11:50am MDT
Room 2300 - 2nd Floor

Presentation, Student engagement

Audience Beginner
Subject Student engagement

2:45pm MDT

Using Canvas, Student Engagement, and Adaptable Content to Write an Argument Textbook

Friday May 30, 2025 2:45pm - 3:15pm MDT

Room 2300 - 2nd Floor

This presentation will describe the process I am using to craft an OER textbook on argument (as written and spoken discourse). My strategy involves drafting content for Canvas modules followed by extensive editing and expansion over several years. I am also adapting content for one of the chapters from a Project Gutenberg edition of a Platonic dialogue that is no longer under copyright. Its integration into the larger textbook will allow me to make connections that render the text more navigable and engaging. Hyperlinks will be a key component of this part of the text, thus rendering difficult terms, mythological allusions, and other elements less mysterious for students. I will also be drawing heavily on examples students have provided to elucidate key concepts, thus embracing a student-driven approach. The presentation will primarily highlight the challenges I face and the innovations I adopt as I continue this work.

Speakers

John Rief

Associate Professor of Rhetoric & Debate, Metropolitan State University of Denver

Friday May 30, 2025 2:45pm - 3:15pm MDT
Room 2300 - 2nd Floor

Presentation, Student engagement

Audience Intermediate
Subject Student engagement

3:25pm MDT

Empowering Student Voices: Building Effective OER Advocacy Groups on Campus

Friday May 30, 2025 3:25pm - 4:15pm MDT

UNC Campus Commons

In this session, panelists will provide a brief presentation on student OER advocacy on college campuses, including types of advocacy groups, ways students can promote and sustain OER on campus and to legislators, student roles in advocacy groups, and how to get started with developing OER advocacy groups on campus. Speakers will then provide details about the recently formed Pikes Peak State College advocacy club and discuss takeaways from the first campus OER kickoff on March 21. This will be an open conversation with the audience, where panel members will provide insight and support for developing OER student advocacy groups for college campuses across Colorado.

Speakers