We are thrilled to welcome Mo Nyamweya to the SPARC team as Open Education Coordinator. Mo comes to SPARC from Virginia Commonwealth University, where she recently graduated with a BA in Political Science. During her senior year, she worked with the VCU Libraries as a student employee in the Affordable Course Content initiative, where she gained experience in faculty outreach, campus communications, and tracking the impact of OER on students. Mo also has experience as a Press Intern in the Virginia State Legislature and served as president of two social justice oriented clubs.
As Open Education Coordinator, Mo will work on all aspects of SPARC’s Open Education Program, from our state and federal OER policy work to engaging with the library community to supporting our Open Education Leadership program. She is interested in the intersection of open education and social justice and has a passion for storytelling. Mo will be in attendance at the annual Open Education Conference in Niagara Falls, NY coming up in October, and other future OER events.
Mo says she is excited to take on this role at SPARC because it combines her passion for academia and social justice with her experience in political science and public policy. In addition to working with the library community, she is also excited to continue engaging with students. “I support open education initiatives because it’s clear that students are being impacted by the cost of expensive materials. I think that there is so much power in grassroots organizing, and students can harness that power to improve educational equity, which is so special,” said Mo.
Mo will remain based in Richmond, VA at the Virginia Commonwealth University Libraries, and will visit the SPARC offices in Washington, DC once a month. SPARC could not be more thrilled for Mo to have a home at one one of our member campuses, and is grateful to the VCU Libraries for their support.
“The VCU Libraries is proud for one of our own to join the SPARC team and delighted that Mo will remain on campus,” said VCU University Librarian John Ulmschneider. VCU Scholarly Communications Outreach Librarian Hillary Miller, who mentored Mo during her time as a student, will also be joining SPARC’s Open Education Leadership Program this fall.
Mo starts as Open Education Coordinator today and can be reached by email at [email protected] and on Twitter at @MoNyamweya.
