Certificate in Open Education for Librarians

Fifteen years ago, few librarians needed to know about Creative Commons licensing or textbook affordability. Now, however, most librarians need some understanding of the basics of open licensing. Increasingly job descriptions list some responsibility for open education and the ability to help the community find and use open materials.

Working with open materials can help all types of libraries – academic, public, special, government, and archives – find new ways to promote and serve their access-driven missions. Affordability, in particular, drives institutions to invest in employees with open education skill sets.

The courses in the certificate address the diverse skill sets librarians working with OER need: copyright and licensing expertise, finding and reviewing open content, advising library partners, teaching with OER, enhancing information literacy instruction through open practices, and preparing to lead libraries into the future as critical partners in textbook equity.

All participants seeking the certificate will take Open Pedagogy & Information Literacy, Wikipedia Editing for Librarians, and Librarians as OER & Textbook Affordability Leaders. Participants will choose between taking Introduction to OER or taking Introduction to Copyright based on their self-assessment of prior OER knowledge and skills. If you’re new to OER, take Intro. to OER, which is introductory. If you have sufficient OER experience to feel you meet the Intro. to OER outcomes, take Intro. to Copyright, which is more advanced.