UNC GA grant provides Open Educational Resources for students at UNC campuses - UNCG Campus Weekly

'The libraries of the UNC system are joining together to reduce textbook costs for students. According to a 2016 U.S. PIRG Report, the cost of a college textbook has increased by 73 percent since 2006 ─ over four times the rate of inflation. Results from a 2016 survey conducted in Florida, Student Textbook and Course Materials Survey, indicated that 66 percent of students do not buy their textbooks, greatly hindering their success in the classroom.

'Academic libraries around the country, including several in North Carolina, are working with their faculty to implement Open Educational Resources (OERs), which are high impact, low-cost or free resources in their courses,' said Kathy Crowe, interim dean of University Libraries at UNCG.

In November 2016 the University of North Carolina’s General Administration (GA) offered 'Actualizing Innovations Meant to Scale' (AIMS) grants to the campuses to support their strategic plan. One initiative included OERs under GA’s 'Deploying Academic Innovations for Affordability' goal. The University Librarians Advisory Council (ULAC), which includes the library deans and directors from the 17 UNC campuses, applied for an AIMS grant and was awarded $32,750 to provide an OER education and outreach program for librarians and faculty at UNC campuses. Crowe co-wrote the application with Janice S. Lewis, director of Academic Library Services at East Carolina University and Will Cross, director of the Copyright and Digital Scholarship Center at North Carolina State University Libraries.

'The funds will be used to support a system-wide membership in the Open Textbook Network (OTN). The OTN, based at the University of Minnesota, is an alliance of more than 350 colleges and universities advancing the use of open textbooks in higher education,' said Cross. 'ULAC will sponsor a day-long training workshop, led by OTN representatives, for North Carolina librarians from each campus in May 2017.'"