January Newsletter: What’s Ahead for 2026
Welcome to the first newsletter from the Open Education Association! After officially launching last fall, the association is now welcoming members and building programs to support the field. This monthly newsletter will share updates on projects, opportunities to get involved, and resources to support your work.
What’s Ahead in 2026
As a new national organization, the Open Education Association is focused on strengthening open education across the United States through coordination, advocacy, and collaborative action. This year, look out for:
Resources to help you stay informed and respond to change
Programming on timely topics and professional development support
Advocacy for open education funding, policy, and scholarly recognition
Coordination to develop shared goals and expand field-wide impact
Recognition for your work and opportunities to shape the association
To the 150+ practitioners and advocates across 35 states who have joined as members, thank you! And to everyone engaging with this work, we look forward to the year ahead.
Working Groups Start in February
Working groups will guide the association work in three key areas. Each group will hold an introductory session during the week of February 9th, then members can sign up for the group of their choice.
Research Working Group: Coordinates with research-focused efforts and identifies where the association can best contribute.
Professional Development Working Group: Explores how the association can support professional growth and recognition.
Outreach Working Group: Develops strategies for reaching and engaging constituencies beyond the open education community.
Policy Spotlight: Colorado
Photo (back to front): Brian Healy (MSU), Jon Dyhr (MSU), Caitlin Fine (MSU), Emily Ragan (MSU), Chealsye Bowley, (Colorado Dept. of Higher Ed, Mallory Reiswig (MSU student), Doug Watkins (Denver Public Schools)
Colorado is considering legislation to renew funding for the state's highly-successful OER grant program. The program awards approximately $1 million annually to help faculty create and adopt openly licensed materials. Since its start, the program has converted more than 2,200 courses and built 17 zero-textbook-cost degree programs, saving students nearly $60 million—an 11-to-1 return on state investment.
HB 26-1016 was heard by the House Education Committee on January 29th. Thanks to testimony by open education advocates (pictured), lawmakers voted to advance the bill. The Open Education Association submitted a letter of support and will be actively tracking the bill's progress.
Latest Resource
We offer a range of popular, field-wide resources including a webinar calendar, opportunity board, and monthly digest. Check out our latest addition.
Open Education State-By-State
This list is a growing directory of state, system, and national-level open education efforts. See what is happening across the country and help fill in gaps in your state.
Member Profiles
Each month we’ll highlight Open Education Association members and what drives their work to advance teaching, learning and sharing knowledge.
Dr. Jeremy Larance
Jeremy teaches British literature, composition, and comics studies at West Liberty University while demystifying copyright law for his colleagues. His mission is helping educators recognize the rights they already have. Read More
Allison Buckley
Allison never forgot the sticker shock of textbook costs after arriving at college. Now an OER specialist with the Southern Regional Education Board, she's expanding dual enrollment access so all students start from the same playing field. Read More
Megan Zara
As the OER Librarian at the University of Texas at Arlington, Megan helps students avoid the kind of barriers she faced herself. Her work centers care and co-creation, asking: who gets to learn, and who decides what learning looks like? Read More
Upcoming Events
March 2-6 is Open Education Week!
Visit the official website and check out our planning guide, which includes materials you can use to promote Open Education Association programming to your community.
Information Session: Open Education Association
🗓️ Thu, Feb 5, 1:00 PM ET • Public
Research Working Group Introduction
🛠️ Tue, February 10, 2:00 PM ET • Members & Prospective Members
Professional Development Working Group Introduction
🛠️ Wed, February 11, 1:00 PM ET • Members & Prospective Members
Outreach Working Group Introduction
🛠️ Thu, February 12, 12:00 PM ET • Members & Prospective Members
Getting Started with Open Education
🎥 Tue, March 3, 1:00 PM ET • Public
OpenEd25 Keynote Rewatch: Dr. Kim Hunter Reed
🎥 Wed, March 4, 2:00 PM ET • Public
OpenEd25 Keynote Rewatch: adrienne maree brown
🎥 Thu, March 5, 3:00 PM ET • Public
Save the Date!
The 2026 Open Education Conference will be held on October 27-29, 2026 as a virtual event. Mark your calendar and sign up to be notified when the call for proposals opens.
Thanks for reading. We’ll be back next month with more updates and opportunities. In the meantime, you can stay connected on social media and our website.