The University of New Mexico announced it has been chosen as a recipient of the federal Open Textbook Grant, totaling almost $2.125 million, acknowledging its dedication to advancing education through Open Educational Resources (OER). The New Mexico Open Educational Resources (NMOER) Consortium will be created with this funding to facilitate the adoption of open-access materials by faculty throughout the state, according to a press release by UNM.

The NMOER Consortium will engage in collaborative efforts with various university units including the University of New Mexico Press, Center for Teaching and Learning, and the University Libraries. These collaborative endeavors will establish an Open Educational Resources (OER) center within New Mexico. The center will serve as a resource for faculty providing support in research and the creation of open-access materials. It is intended to foster more widespread adoption of OER throughout the state, said UNM.

“This grant program will be pivotal for OER in New Mexico because using open curriculum takes more time and effort for faculty to adopt and adapt. This grant will support faculty and encourage multi-institutional adoption and collaboration of open curriculum,” said University Libraries OER Librarian Jennifer Jordan.

The initiative will have a Workforce Advisory Board consisting of stakeholders such as Workforce Connections of Central New Mexico, University of New Mexico Hospital, The New Mexico Black Leadership Council, and The Bureau of Business and Economic Research at UNM.

“Improving college affordability with OER is one of CULLS’ five strategic priorities. This is an important step forward to achieving it. I am so proud of the efforts of the OER Working Group, and special thank you to our co-chairs in securing this grant,” said Leo Lo, dean of UNM College of University Libraries and Learning Sciences.