News
Project Update: September 2025
With the fall semester in full swing, we are excited to share the latest developments from the Open Education Association Development Project as we prepare to launch the association.
With the fall semester underway, the Open Education Association Development Project has been preparing to launch the association. We recently published the Open Education: Getting Started Guide, a resource for exploring key Open Education tools and resources. We’ve also hosted a series of working sessions where community members helped shape membership, resources, programming, and branding.
We invite you to join one more working session to provide feedback, ask questions, and get a sneak peek before we officially open membership.
Sign Up for the Working Session
📝 Next Steps & Community Feedback
📅 September 30th, 3:00 PM ET / 12:00 PM PT
What have we done over the last month?
Published the Open Education: Getting Started Guide, a brand new resource developed to help practitioners get connected with useful resources in various core areas of Open Education practice
Hosted a series of working sessions on membership, programming, and curated tools & resources
Continued outreach to individuals and organizations to gather feedback. Have ideas or want to connect? Let us know!
What are we working on now?
Hosting one final working session before our launch, register now to join
Developing our brand and visual identity, and we’d love your input. Share your feedback to help shape how we present ourselves to the community
Sponsoring OpenEd25, stop by our table to connect, learn, and grab some goodies
Further Reading
Project Update: August 2025
The Open Education Association Development project has been hard at work reflecting on your feedback as we plan for the future of the project. Read more about what we’ve done and what we have planned!
As the start of the semester approaches, we’re excited to share what’s new with the Open Education Association Development Project. On July 28th, we hosted the Report Out and Next Steps webinar, where the Steering Committee presented findings from the national needs assessment and field conversations, along with what’s coming next. If you missed it or want to revisit the discussion, the recording and slides are now available. We also invite you to add your thoughts to the Padlet, which will remain open for contributions.
Sign Up for Working Sessions
Thursday, August 21st, 4:00 PM ET / 1:00 PM PT
Tuesday, August 26th, 12:00 PM ET / 9:00 AM PT
What have we done over the last month?
Launched a Resources Page on our website to house our growing collection
Hosted the Report Out and Next Steps webinar, which highlighted results from the needs assessment survey, field mapping, and future plans
Shared the results of the National Needs Assessment Survey
Continued outreach with community members to hear more voices and ideas. Interested in a conversation? Let us know!
What are we working on now?
Hosting working sessions over the next month for community members to help shape membership, branding, and other key aspects of the project
Making plans to participate in the 2025 Open Education Conference on October 28-30th (don’t miss our panel!)
Creating new resources that make open education information and opportunities easier to find
Further Reading
National Needs Assessment Survey Results
The Open Education National Needs Assessment Survey was conducted in spring 2025 with input from 1,327 community members across all 50 states. This blog post offers an overview of the methodology and findings.
The Open Education Association Development Project recently held a webinar reporting back on our first phase of work, which focused on mapping the needs, challenges, and priorities of the open education field. A major component of that work was the Open Education National Needs Assessment Survey, which was conducted in spring 2025 with input from 1,327 community members across all 50 states. While the survey was tailored to the goals of this project and not intended for formal publication, we are pleased to share more detail about the results. This blog post offers an overview of the methodology and findings, as well as downloads of the data tables and survey instrument (openly licensed).
Accessibility note: The images of graphs and data tables shown in this blog post are taken from the webinar slide deck.
Introduction
The Open Education Association Development Project is a national initiative to advance the open education field through strategic coordination and collaborative action. With a focus on U.S. higher education, the project recognizes that open education has made significant progress to benefit learners, yet is not as widely recognized as it should be. In today’s evolving landscape of policy changes, new technologies, and marketplace shifts, the open education field needs to evolve.
Funded by a two-year grant from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Open Education Association Development Project set out to identify shared needs, build connections across existing efforts, and expand support for open education’s collective impact. The goal of the Open Education National Needs Assessment Survey was to gather insights into the current state of the field and inform priorities for the next phases of work.
Methodology
The survey was administered by the research firm Bay View Analytics, using funding from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation’s grant to SPARC. The project steering committee provided input and oversight throughout the survey’s development, dissemination, and analysis.
The survey design was adapted from a market research approach known as Outcome Driven Innovation (ODI), which focuses on the type of activities a target audience is seeking to accomplish (also known as “jobs to be done”) and the extent to which this audience is satisfied with the current solutions to support that activity. For the purposes of this survey, the target audience was defined as individuals engaged or interested in U.S. open education work, with a focus on those in higher education (faculty, librarians, administrators, nonprofit staff, etc.).
The full survey instrument took about 10 minutes for participants to complete and comprised several parts:
Background: Participants were asked a series of questions to understand their professional role and relationship with open education. This section contained the only required questions in the survey.
Activities Rating: Participants were asked to rate a set of nine activities or “jobs to be done” related to open education on a five-point Likert scale according to the activity’s importance to their work. Those who rated an activity as at least moderately important were similarly asked to rate their satisfaction with the support available for that activity. Participants also completed a follow up question for each activity, as well as one open-ended question at the end.
Perceptions: Participants were asked several overarching questions about the state of the field. This section was followed by an optional set of demographic questions.
The set of nine activities was identified from data collected through national strategy webinars held in 2024, as well as a series of need discovery interviews conducted by project staff in January and February 2025. The nine activities were:
Find OER: efficiently find OER
Tools & Resources: access tools and resources to support your open education work
Stay Up to Date: stay up to date about open education
Respond to Change: respond to political or technological changes affecting open education
Professional Development: access open education-related professional development
Funding: secure funding for your open education work
Adapt/Publish OER: adapt and/or publish OER
Networking: network and collaborate with open education peers
Recognition: receive recognition for your open education work
Data were collected anonymously via Qualtrics. The survey was disseminated organically in March–April 2025 through an email invitation sent to individuals and groups within the open education community, with an encouragement to disseminate the invitation further. This approach resulted in 1,024 valid responses, which we will call the “primary sample.” Bay View Analytics also disseminated a shortened version of the survey to a random sample of U.S. faculty in order to compare overall trends. This drew another 303 valid responses, which we will call the “national faculty panel.”
Results were reported in aggregate to project staff. Consistent with the ODI approach, we used the activities rating results to calculate an opportunity score, which represents the gap between the perceived importance of an activity and the perceived satisfaction with its current solutions. The opportunity score is calculated using the proportion of respondents who chose boxes four or five on the five-point Likert scale. We calculated the opportunity score as:
Opportunity Score = Opportunity Score = 10 × (Top2Box Importance + MAX(0, Top2Box Importance − Top2Box Satisfaction)
High opportunity scores indicate activities where the population is underserved, meaning that the activity is very important but people are less satisfied with the solutions available. Low opportunity scores indicate activities where the population is overserved, meaning that the activity is less important or people are highly satisfied with the solutions available.
Results & Discussion
For the purposes of this blog post, we will report only on the results of the primary sample (n=1,024) and not the national faculty panel (n=303). While the two samples did show some differences, the overall patterns were sufficiently consistent across the two groups to rely on the primary sample.
Of the 1,024 valid responses, 90% were employed at postsecondary institutions, most commonly as faculty or librarians. The other 10% were primarily employed by government agencies and non-profit organizations, with a handful working in K-12 and other sectors. Years of engagement with open education varied, with just over half selecting 5 years or above. Participants were geographically distributed across the U.S.
The activities rating section revealed a clear hierarchy in the importance of activities. An activity was considered important if the participant rated it four or five on the five-point Likert scale. Most activities were rated as important by 50% or more participants, with finding OER (80%) and accessing tools and resources (71%) being highest. The only outlier was recognition for open education, which only 21% rated as important.
Satisfaction ratings indicated that most activities have a moderate level of satisfaction. A participant was considered satisfied with the solutions available if they rated it four or five on the five-point Likert scale. Six of the nine activities were grouped between 51% and 61% satisfaction. No activities ranked higher than 61%, and three ranked significantly lower. Unsurprisingly, access to funding (32%) and the ability to respond to political and technological change (20%) ranked lowest. Interestingly, recognition (36%) was also low, suggesting that while fewer people view this as important, those who do are highly dissatisfied with current solutions.
The opportunity score calculation suggests that the clearest areas of opportunity are support for finding OER (10.9), responding to change (9.5), accessing tools and resources (8.4), and securing funding (7.9). These four areas are not only ranked highly overall, they are consistently at or near the top when results are disaggregated by professions and other demographics. The next four activities—staying up to date, professional development, adapting or publishing OER, and networking—fall in a more moderate opportunity score range between 5.2 and 6.9. This suggests that while there is still some unmet need in these areas, there is not as wide of a gap in support. Recognition had the lowest score at 2.1, driven primarily by its low importance.
When activities are plotted based on their importance and satisfaction scores, it illustrates the extent to which the activities are well-served by the field. As the graph below shows, none of the activities fall in the severely overserved or underserved areas. Most activities are grouped in the middle range. This type of pattern is consistent with a field that is generally aligned with the needs of its audience, but falls short in certain areas due to persistent technical challenges, current events, or a lack of resourcing.
The final section of the survey assessed people’s perceptions of the open education field. The first question concerned participants’ level of confidence in knowing where to turn for support. About two-thirds (65%) of respondents rated their level of confidence as a 4 or 5 out of 5, suggesting that most people have a high level of confidence. While the overall amount of confidence varied slightly by profession, the distribution remained consistent.
The pattern of confidence also holds true across different types of open education networks, whether people are involved at a national, state, or institutional level. The only group that showed a much lower level of confidence is participants that indicated they were not part of any open education network. This suggests that there are portions of the audience not reached by existing efforts—likely many more than this survey reached, given that it was disseminated primarily through existing networks.
While the results were positive for the open education field at an individual level, the outlook was less positive at a national level. Participants were asked to rate the state of the open education field nationally on a five-point Likert scale. When asked if the field is well coordinated and well recognized nationally, only 14% and 15% respectively rated it as a 4 or 5 on a five-point Likert scale. This suggests that while existing networks are successful in serving the needs of many individuals, there is a gap in representation at the national level.
Conclusion
Overall, the results of the National Needs Assessment Survey show a field that is broad, diverse, and provides a significant amount of support for the most important needs. Most respondents reported knowing where to turn for support, and most respondents feel satisfied with the support available for most of the activities. This suggests the greatest need is less about any single solution and more about amplifying and uplifting all of the existing solutions so that they can be more effectively utilized by the open education field. This is a clear role for a national association.
That said, the survey did indicate several areas of need where the association can prioritize its programming. The four priorities were:
Finding OER, particularly making it easier to find repositories
Responding to change, particularly providing strategic guidance on how to navigate funding cuts, political restrictions, and artificial intelligence
Finding funding for open education work, particularly at the institutional, system, and state level
Accessing tools and resources to support open education work, especially curated lists and how-to guides
Finally, perhaps the clearest directive of the survey is the perception of the national state of the field. With only a small portion of respondents viewing open education as well-coordinated and well-recognized nationally, there is a clear gap and need for a national voice that could be filled by an association. Furthermore, the survey suggested that there are many individuals who are not part of existing networks, who do not know where to turn for support. A national association can play that connective role—preserving the field’s hard-won gains, advocating on its behalf, and opening doors for individuals who are not yet linked to existing networks.
For more information about how the Open Education Association Development Project plans to put the results of the survey into action, please watch the recording of the Report Out Webinar held on July 28th. Additional downloads and links are provided below.
Survey Downloads
The survey was designed specifically to inform the project and is not intended for formal publication. In the spirit of openness, we are sharing the instrument (openly licensed) and frequencies for those who may be interested.
Report Out Webinar Recording (survey starts at 5:40)
Report Out Webinar Slides (see slides 10-24)
Survey Instrument (CC BY)
Data Tables (primary sample)
Project Update: June - July 2025
With summer underway, we hope many of you are getting a much-deserved break. The Open Education Association Development project has been hard at work reflecting on your feedback as we plan for the future of the project. Read more about what we’ve done and what we have planned!
With summer underway, we hope many of you are getting a much-deserved break. The Open Education Association Development project has been hard at work reviewing your feedback and planning for the future. The Steering Committee held a two-day meeting to review findings from our national survey and develop strategies to address the needs you voiced. We also launched several new resources to help keep you up to date and continued building out our map of the field. Over the next month, our focus will be taking all this groundwork and turning it into action.
You are invited to join us on Monday, July 28th at 2:00pm Eastern / 11am Pacific for a webinar on the next phase of the Open Education Association Development Project. The steering committee will report back on what we have learned, outline our next steps, and share how you can get involved. In the meantime, send us a message in our comment box and remember to stay cool.
🔍What: Report Out and Next Steps Webinar
🗓️ When: Monday, July 28, 2:00pm Eastern / 12:00pm Pacific
💻 Where: Zoom & Recorded
What have we done over the last month?
Analyzed the results of our needs assessment survey and meetings with individuals and organizations
Held an intensive two-day strategy meeting for the Steering Committee
Published two new resources: a Webinar Calendar and Opportunity Board
Expanded our map of engaged organizations and institutions across the field
What are we working on now?
Building a concrete plan for how we will respond to the needs voiced by the community
Meeting with organizations, state leaders, and other community members to gather additional input (Interested? Let us know!)
Holding a community webinar on July 28th at 3:00 PM Eastern to share next steps
Planning opportunities for community members to shape the next phase of the project
Further Reading
New Resource: Open Education Opportunity Board
This board tracks active opportunities related to open education, ranging from open calls for proposals, job opportunities, calls for participation, and more.
The open education field is brimming with opportunities to connect, contribute, and grow. To round out our collection of resources to help you stay up to date, we are pleased to introduce the Open Education Opportunity Board.
This board brings together a wide range of active opportunities, such as calls for participation, job applications, and conference proposals. It’s designed to make staying involved in the field simple and efficient.
Alongside our Open Education Conference List and Webinar Calendar, the Opportunity Board will be be updated regularly using information gathered from community forums, newsletters, and listservs.
Have something to add? Email us at contact@opened.org and we’ll help amplify your efforts! Have ideas for other resources that would support your work? Let us know through our suggestion box.
Open Education Opportunity Board
This work is marked with CC0 1.0.
New Resource: Open Education Webinar Calendar
Available in both list and calendar formats, this resource is designed to help you stay informed about upcoming webinars and other events of interest. The calendar will be updated regularly with registration details, as well as recordings when available.
A common theme that has emerged across our survey data and conversations is that people are looking for more central, accessible ways to discover and share information about open education.
We’re excited to introduce the second resource in our growing collection: the Open Education Webinar Calendar. Available in both list and calendar formats, this resource is designed to help you stay informed about upcoming webinars and other events that may interest you. The calendar will be updated regularly with new webinars and registration details, as well as recordings when available.
Hosting an upcoming webinar? Email us at contact@opened.org to get added. Got an idea for what we should build next? Drop it in our suggestion box!
Be sure to also check out our list of conferences for more opportunities to connect and engage.
Calendar View
List View
This work is marked with CC0 1.0.
Project Update: April - May 2025
Our first two months have been focused on listening. We circulated a national survey, met with collaborators, and launched our first set of resources in response to community needs. Read more about what we’ve done and what we have planned!
The Open Education Association Development Project is excited to share our latest updates. This initiative is working collaboratively to strengthen the open education field in the United States by identifying shared needs, filling critical gaps, and supporting greater collective impact. In our first two months, we’ve focused on listening to the open education community by circulating our national needs assessment survey. The survey drew more than 1,000 responses from across all 50 states, and we’ve held conversations with over 20 organizations (and counting) to explore opportunities for collaboration. Thank you to everyone who has participated! Later this month, our Steering Committee will meet to shape the project’s next steps based on what we’ve learned so far.
The Steering Committee recognizes this project is beginning amid rapid change in U.S. education that has profound implications for educators, institutions, and learners—in ways that are both professional and personal. As the project moves forward, we are reflecting on how a coordinated national effort can support members of the open education field in navigating these changes with clarity and strength. Open education must not only continue, but lead: eliminating cost as a barrier, preserving access to knowledge, and expanding practices centered on the success of all students.
Have thoughts or ideas? Share them through our suggestion box!
What did we do in our first two months?
Held a kickoff webinar on March 10th
Launched a national needs assessment survey that drew more than 1,000 responses across all 50 states (thank you!)
Met with more than 20 organizations to discuss collaboration (Interested? Let us know!)
Released our first resources, including an open education conference list and an email template to promote the benefits of OER
What are we working on now?
Analyzing the needs assessment survey results and applying insights
Mapping the open education field in order to highlight existing resources and identify gaps
Holding our first in-person steering committee meeting to shape our activities based on what we’ve learned from the field
Further Reading
New Resource: Open Education Conference List
For one of our very first resources, we’ve created a list of annual events with a primary focus on open education. Stay tuned for more resources that help you find, learn and share information about open education.
As the Open Education Association Development Project (opened.org) gets underway, we’re starting to lay the groundwork for shared resources that support the field. While we await the results of our national needs assessment survey, one message has already come through loud and clear: people are looking for central places to find and share information.
For one of our very first resources, we’ve curated a list of annual events with a primary focus on open education. The database is built in Airtable, so the data can be easily filtered, sorted and downloaded for use in your local context.
Explore the Open Education Conference List now and start planning your next opportunity to connect, learn and share! It will be updated regularly with registration, call for proposals, and save the date information.
See something missing? Email contact@opened.org. Got an idea for another great list? Use our suggestion box.
Open Education Conference List
This work is marked with CC0 1.0.
Meet the Steering Committee
Meet the steering committee behind the Open Education Association Development Project. This group of 10 professionals from across the United States brings a wealth of experience and expertise in open education.
Meet the Steering Committee behind the Open Education Association Development Project. This group of 10 professionals from across the United States brings a wealth of experience and expertise in open education. Each member engages with open education in unique ways, contributing their insights and perspectives to shape the future of this initiative.
The project is committed to being guided by community input. We encourage you to sign up to help shape the direction of the initiative.
Liliana Diaz Soloduhkin
Senior Director of Student Success and P20 Alignment, Colorado Department of Higher Education
Liliana Diaz Soloduhkin currently serves as senior director of student success and P20 alignment at the Colorado Department of Higher Education. Liliana has served in a variety of roles and capacities within higher education for more than a decade with experience in admissions, financial aid, academic advising, pre-collegiate programs, and civic and community engagement at both two-and four-year institutions. Before joining the Colorado Department of Higher Education, Liliana was senior policy analyst at the Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education (WICHE). In this role, she supported the advancement, adoption, and scaling of Open Educational Resources (OER) across western states and nationally through collaborative projects and initiatives. Liliana currently serves as lead for the Advancing OER for All Working Group for Driving Open Educational Resources for Student Success (DOERS). Liliana earned her master’s and doctorate in higher education from the University of Denver.
Abbey Elder
Statewide Open Education Coordinator & Open Access and Scholarly Communication Librarian, Iowa State University
Abbey Elder is the Open Access & Scholarly Communication Librarian for Iowa State University, where she uplifts and supports instructors who are interested in open education, open access publishing, and other scholarly communication topics. Over the past decade, Abbey has greatly expanded the support for open education at Iowa State University, developing a cross-campus committee, grant program, website, and annual programming. In addition to her institutional work, Abbey serves as the Statewide Open Education Coordinator for the Iowa Open Education Action Team, where she collaborates with colleges across Iowa to develop and assess programs that support the use of OER.
Carlos Goller
Teaching Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University
Dr. Carlos Goller is a Teaching Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences and teaches in the Biotechnology Program (BIT) at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC. His research interests include molecular microbiology, metagenomics, epidemiology, the history of diseases, science education, and open educational practices. Dr. Goller is also focused on teaching with technology and the scholarship of teaching and learning. As a reflective teacher and curious scientist, his goal is to learn with and from students and staff at NC State and beyond.
Rebecca Karoff
Associate Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs, University of Texas System
Dr. Rebecca Karoff leads systemwide student success initiatives at The University of Texas System as Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs. She is committed to using the system as a catalyst for educational attainment, equity, innovation, and transformation. Her work addresses the student success continuum, recognizing the remarkable responsibility and opportunity of the University of Texas System to expand opportunity and outcomes for the state's increasingly diverse students. She leads several system-institutional collaborative initiatives, including the Exemplary Student Pathways Project, initiatives on transfer and advising, and the UT System’s momentum-building strategy on Open Educational Resources (OER).
Joy Shoemate
Director, Online Education, College of Canyons
Joy Shoemate is the Director of Online Education at College of the Canyons where she supports instructors’ successful integration of technology into teaching and learning to promote student success, persistence and completion in distance education courses. She also oversees the development and adoption of Open Educational Resources (OER). Joy previously served on the Executive Council of CCCOER and currently serves on the board of the Drivers of Educational Technology California Higher Education (DET/CHE). She also facilitates courses for the Online Network of Educators (@ONE), the leading professional development organization for the California Community College system.
Daniel Williamson
Managing Director, OpenStax
Daniel Williamson is the Managing Director of OpenStax, a leading non-profit educational technology company that provides free, open textbooks and learning resources, saving students over $2 billion in textbook costs since 2012. A two-time Rice University graduate with a background in opera performance and an MBA, he is deeply committed to equity in education. He also serves on the board of Level (learnlevel.org), a non-profit dedicated to expanding educational opportunities for incarcerated individuals. When he is not busy at work, you can find him spending time with his dog, Endi, and husband Scott.
Aishah Abdullah
Open Education Project Manager, SPARC | Non-Voting Member
Aishah Abdullah works for SPARC as the Open Education Project Manager. In this role, she helps support SPARC's open education work and collaborates closely with the operations behind the national coordination efforts. She began her journey in open education as a student advocate at her community college and continued advocating for textbook affordability at the University of Maryland. Aishah graduated from the University of Maryland with a bachelor’s degree in Public Policy, focusing on Education.
Nicole Allen
Director of Open Education, SPARC | Non-Voting Member
Nicole Allen is the Director of Open Education for SPARC, leading efforts to advance openness and equity in education. She oversees a state and federal policy program, a librarian community of practice, and a leadership program for open education professionals. Nicole has dedicated her career to ensuring global access to knowledge and is an internationally recognized advocate for open education. She has been cited in the media, delivered hundreds of talks in over two dozen countries, and led SPARC’s open education program to significant policy achievements. Nicole holds a BA in Philosophy from the University of Puget Sound and lives between Providence, RI, and Washington, DC.
Jeff Gallant
Chair, DOERS & Program Director, Affordable Learning Georgia | Non-Voting Member
Jeff Gallant is the Program Director for Affordable Learning Georgia, an initiative of the University System of Georgia to reduce the cost of textbooks for students system-wide with strategies including grant programs, pilots, training programs, repositories, publishing partnerships, and cross-institution collaborative projects. Jeff often represents Affordable Learning Georgia externally at meetings, conferences, and site visits, and has guided and mentored Affordable Learning Georgia Champions from each state institution in Georgia.
Amanda Larson
Board Member, Open Education Conference & Affordable Learning Instructional Consultant, The Ohio State University | Non-Voting Member
Amanda has worked in Open Education since 2016, supporting everything from grassroots initiatives to well-funded OER programs at three very different R1 institutions. Currently, she works as the Affordable Learning Instructional Consultant at The Ohio State University. Her role involves organizing professional development programs for staff, librarians, and instructors on open pedagogy and open educational practices.In practice, this work ranges from accessibility training, community building, curriculum development, instructor support (pedagogical and technical), grant and program management, OER publishing, donor relations, and her favorite, mentoring early career folks. She brings a neurodiverse perspective to the table and is passionate about accessibility, equity in higher education, open pedagogy, and social justice.
Jenny Parks
VP of Policy and Research, MHEC | Non-Voting Member
Jenny Parks is vice president of Policy and Research at the Midwestern Higher Education Compact (MHEC). She leads the exploration, development, and implementation of projects that help Midwestern postsecondary institutions improve the way they serve students. Jenny has worked at all levels and in multiple sectors of education, including state and federal compliance, institutional research, accreditation, and policy advocacy. She earned her master’s degree in educational policy and research from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her doctorate in higher education administration from Northeastern University in Boston.
Survey Invitation: National Open Education Needs Assessment
Participate in our national survey on the current needs, challenges, and priorities of the open education field. Your input will help identify areas for national-level action.
Update: Thank you to more than 1,300 open education community members and practitioners who completed the survey. Sign up to receive updates on the findings, which will be shared over the summer.
The Open Education Association Development Project is a new national initiative to strengthen open education in the U.S. through strategic coordination and collaborative action. As one of our first steps, we are conducting a national survey to better understand the current needs, challenges, and priorities of the open education field.
The survey is open to anyone engaged in open education — whether you’re an educator, librarian, administrator, or advocate. Your input will help identify areas where national-level action can make the greatest impact to advance open education efforts in service of learners.
The survey takes about 10 minutes to complete and will remain open until April 4, 2025. All responses are confidential and will be analyzed in aggregate to inform future strategies and programming.
The survey is administered by Bay View Analytics and is supported by funding from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. While our primary focus is the U.S. context, people from all countries are welcome to participate.
We want to hear from you! Please take the survey and share the invitation with anyone who may be interested.
Announcing Next Steps on U.S. National Coordination on Open Education
We are excited to announce the Open Education Association Development Project, a national initiative to advance open education efforts in the United States for the benefit of learners.
We are excited to announce the Open Education Association Development Project (opened.org), a national initiative to advance open education efforts across the United States for the benefit of learners. Answering a community-developed call to action for greater coordination at the national level, the project will seek to increase recognition of open education nationally, bridge gaps between existing efforts, and foster connections that empower the open education field to have a greater collective impact.
Supported by a two-year grant from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Open Education Association Development Project will begin in spring 2025 with a field-wide survey to identify needs and gaps that can be addressed through national-level action. Based on the results, the project will take targeted steps to address strategic priorities, which may include raising the visibility of open education among key audiences, developing resources to support advocacy and fundraising, and creating new ways to recognize outstanding open education work. The project will also work to build collective spaces and structures to better connect members of the field with resources, information, and each other.
The project will be led by a national Steering Committee that is committed to ensuring the project engages transparently with the community, works collaboratively without duplicating efforts, and respects the diverse contexts of existing initiatives. The foundations of this work were shaped through more than a year of conversations facilitated across a variety of community forums by DOERS, SPARC and the regional interstate higher education compacts (MHEC, NEBHE, SREB and WICHE). SPARC will serve as administrator of the grant under the Steering Committee’s oversight.
As articulated in the Proposal for National Coordination on Open Education, the Open Education Association Development Project’s long-term vision is a future where educational resources and practices throughout our education systems are openly shared and reflective of the learners they serve. With an initial focus on U.S. higher education, the project will dedicate itself to serving the open education field as a whole, working to build a shared association where people, organizations and open education efforts can connect and collaborate toward a more sustainable future.
As the work gets underway, everyone who is interested is invited to sign up for updates and opportunities to get involved. Updates will also be posted on opened.org.
Get Involved
Kickoff Webinar: Join us for a webinar on March 10, 2025 to learn more about the project!
Interest Form: Complete the interest form to sign up for updates
Share Comments: Share your thoughts using our comment form or email us at contact@opened.org