One of the goals of the OhioLINK’s Affordable Learning Initiative is to advocate for the use of Open Educational Resources (OER) to reduce the costs of course materials for students. In order to meet that goal, OhioLINK hopes to develop a team of trained librarians throughout Ohio with expertise in OER to help faculty find, adopt, and incorporate OER into their courses. The Open Education Network, a national OER advocacy organization of which OhioLINK is a member, has a Certificate in Open Education Librarianship Program designed to meet this very need.
The Open Education Network certificate in Open Education Librarianship is designed to train a cohort of librarians who are, or anticipate becoming, newly responsible for building open education programs at their institutions. The Certificate in Open Education Librarianship offers formal training, a community of peers, and expert mentors in order to build sustainable, collaborative, and effective open education programs on higher education campuses. Librarians who successfully complete the full program will receive a Certificate in Open Education Librarianship from the Open Education Network. For more information about the program, please click here.
OhioLINK’s Certificate in Open Education Librarianship Scholarships
OhioLINK is sponsoring up to two scholarships for the Open Education Network’s Certificate in Open Education Librarianship. The goal is to train two more librarians in open education which they will then be able to bring back and share with other Ohio librarians. OhioLINK will conduct an application process and pick two librarians to sponsor for participation in the program. This selection will be based on quality of application, regional representation, and institutional type representation. We are looking for librarians who are in a position to develop an OER initiative or are in the beginning stages of developing an OER initiative at their institution and who have the support of leadership to implement that vision. The participants should also have support of their leadership for continuing to work with OhioLINK to develop a train the train the program for other librarians. OhioLINK will fund their participation in the program if they are selected by the Open Education Network in their application process. We cannot guarantee that the applications that we select will be selected by the Open Education Network for their cohort, so we will fund up to two or as many as they select. As part of the responsibility of receiving the scholarship to participate in the program, they will work with OhioLINK staff to help develop and create a program to train other librarians in the state of Ohio.
Selection Criteria
Participants will be selected based on the following:
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A two-page CV, including areas of interest or responsibility related to open education and experience working with faculty, programs, and campus stakeholders;
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A completed application that provides information about you and your institution;
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A letter of support from your dean, director, or supervisor that indicates that he/she would be supportive of your participation in the program and the additional responsibility of helping to design the OhioLINK train the trainer program.
Application deadline: Please have all of this information to Anna Bendo by October 11th, 2024. The CV and letter of support can be emailed. The application form can be found here.
Certificate Calendar
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February–April, 2025: Participants will participate in online instruction, including readings and discussions with their cohorts.
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May–September, 2025: Participants will have synchronous video discussions with small groups and mentors. During these discussions, participants will share progress reports, reflections, and support as they implement local action plans during the six months following the in-person program.
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September, 2025: Program assessment by participant.
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October, 2025 – March, 2026, participating in the design of a program for other OhioLINK librarians. We do not know the exact time commitment that will be required yet, but we anticipate a monthly virtual meeting and one in person convening during this time frame.
Please contact Anna Bendo with any questions.
