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OpenEd Digest – February 2026

This month’s roundup of open education news, opportunities and events.

OpenEd Digest

your monthly roundup of what’s new in open education

Introducing our new look! After 10 years and 200 editions, the OER Digest has become the OpenEd Digest. Monthly editions will be delivered from digest@opened.org and get posted online. Please take a moment to confirm your email settings and share this message with anyone who may be interested.

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Upcoming Events

Curated picks from our lists of upcoming webinars and conferences

Upcoming Webinars:

Call for Proposals:

Last Chance Registration:

Save the Date:

  • The 2026 Open Education Conference (OpenEd26) will be held on October 27-29, 2026 as a fully virtual event with attendance welcomed from across the globe. A call for proposals will be released in late February. Help spread the word and sign up for updates to stay informed.

  • The 2026 MI OER Conference will take place on Friday, November 13 at Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor. Additional details will be posted to the MI OER Network website and the call for proposals will open in April.

More Events

Open Opportunities

Highlights from our open education opportunity board

Share the Love: Share your love for OER this Valentine's Day and Open Education Week by joining Colorado in thanking instructors for using OER in their class, recognizing those who support open education on campus.

Open Calls:

Open Education Week Programming:

Learn more

Stories from the Field

Snapshots of open education making a difference

From Florida: University of Central Florida’s Affordable Instructional Materials initiative held its seventh annual awards ceremony to recognize professors championing open educational resources and low-cost course materials. The program has saved students over $50 million since 2019, with 76.5% of course sections in 2025 using free or low-cost materials. Read More>>

From Montana: Tony Hartshorn, an associate professor at Montana State University's College of Agriculture, received the Excellence in Open Education Award for his pioneering work in developing open-access educational resources. Through a 2021 grant, Hartshorn authored an open-access textbook for his Soils course, demonstrating how faculty can leverage open educational resources to provide accessible, customized learning materials. Read More>>

Hot Off the Press

Newly-published resources to explore and share

Report: Fixing the Broken Textbook Market is Student PIRGs’ new research on open textbooks, access codes, and autobilling. Read the report to learn about the growing number of professors taking cost into account and how that progress is being undermined by various publisher practices that reduce student choice.

Report: The Midwestern Higher Education Compact and the Southern Regional Education Board released new reports Using Open Educational Resources (OER) in Dual Enrollment: Stakeholder Perspectives and Dual Enrollment and Open Educational Resources: Intersections and Opportunities in State Policy. These reports explore how OER are being used in dual enrollment and where state policy can better align to expand impact.

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Digest Gabby Hernandez Digest Gabby Hernandez

OpenEd Digest – January 2026

This month’s roundup of open education news, opportunities and events.

Your monthly digest of open education updates, opportunities, and reminders

The OpenEd Digest is beginning its next chapter as part of the Open Education Association. Along with a refreshed layout, the Digest will move to a four-week publication schedule beginning next month. While a few things may look different, you can continue to expect the same trusted updates from across the open education community. Feel free to use the digest sign-up form to update your email information. 

Upcoming Events

Curated picks from the Open Education Association’s Webinar Calendar and Conference List that relate to a national audience and are open for all.

UPCOMING WEBINARS:

CALL FOR PROPOSALS: The open education field has many opportunities to submit conference proposals and share the amazing work happening across the field. Below is a list of open call for proposals and their deadlines:

LAST CHANCE REGISTRATION:

Upcoming Opportunities

Curated picks from the Open Education Association’s Opportunity Board that relates to a national audience and are open for all.

CALL FOR PARTICIPATION: The DOERS Collaborative invites you to collaborate on an exciting new OER and Workforce Development project focused on building stronger, more inclusive learning pathways between education and industry. DOERS needs your input to develop an openly-licensed Playbook to help institutions, employers, and instructional designers collaborate more effectively. If you are available, sign up for an interest group.

ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS: The AtlanticOER Development Grant Program invites applications from educators and institutions in the Atlantic Region of Canada to support the adaptation, adoption, creation, and curation of open educational resources (OER). The program aims to increase equitable access to course materials for students enrolled in credit-bearing courses while strengthening regional collaboration in open education. Applications are due February 6, 2026.

CALL FOR AUTHORS: 

PEER REVIEW REQUESTS: 


Browse more connection opportunities in the regularly updated Open Education Conference List, Webinar Calendar, and Opportunity Board.

Stories from the Field

Quick snapshots of those making change on the ground level, and those impacted.

From Colorado: The Colorado House Bill 26-1016 Continuation of Open Educational Resources Program has been introduced to the Colorado General Assembly and is under consideration. This bill would extend the state OER program for 5 more years, if passed. Read More>>


From Texas: South Plains College (SPC) faculty are preparing for the Spring 2026 semester by innovating technical education with open educational resources and artificial intelligence. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board recently granted a 2025 Star Award to SPC for its strides in AI-augmented OER course redesign, an approach to education that the college continues to leverage this year. Read More>>

Hot Off the Press

Each edition highlights an interesting, new, openly-licensed resource, including research, guides, templates, podcasts, open textbooks and more!

OPEN TEXTBOOKS FROM MILNE OPEN TEXTBOOKS: 

  • The Future is Now: Empowering Society Through AI Literacy is a textbook that serves as a user-friendly guide to the “black box” of AI. It breaks down complex technical concepts—from machine learning and neural networks to large language models—making them accessible to students across all disciplines. This book empowers readers to move from passive consumers of technology to informed, active participants in the AI age.

  • The second edition of Interpersonal Communication: A Mindful Approach to Relationships is not available. This updated edition builds on the strengths of the first while incorporating important enhancements to reflect today’s communication landscape.

Reading List

Stay up to date on the latest trends in Open Education.

Have suggestions for the next edition? Let us know at oerdigest@gmail.com. 

The OpenEd Digest is a public newsletter distributed to a broad group of stakeholders across the higher education community. Subscribe here.

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