In celebration of international Open Education Week, this briefing will bring together a panel of experts and practitioners to discuss how open textbooks are making higher education more affordable and effective for students.
In the face of rising student debt, textbook costs are a significant but often overlooked barrier that students face. Institutions across the country are working to lower textbook costs through open educational resources (OER) — materials that can be freely downloaded, edited, and shared to better serve all students.
Congressional staff and members of the public are invited to learn about the impact of a Congressionally funded Open Textbook Pilot grant program and upcoming legislative opportunities to achieve savings for students.
Co-sponsored by SPARC and U.S. PIRG.
Briefing Panel
- Kaitlyn Vitez, Higher Ed Campaign Director, U.S. PIRG
- Dr. Delmar Larsen, Associate Professor of Chemistry, University of California Davis; Executive Director, LibreTexts
- Hailey Hollinshead, Student, University of Illinois Springfield
- Dr. Ariel Anbar, Professor of Molecular Sciences, Arizona State University
- Kharl Reynado, Student, University of Connecticut; ConnPIRG
- Moderator: Nicole Allen, Director of Open Education, SPARC
