Biography
With a Master’s in Information Design and Technology and a background in web design, database administration, instructional design and project management, Elaine currently uses her organizational skills to coordinate two OER programs at Westchester Community College and Medgar Evers College in New York.
The work has been rewarding, she says “Being immersed in the OER community the last year has given me a renewed sense of purpose, creativity, and commitment to not just community college students but to all students who stand to benefit from textbook savings while also enhancing the quality of course materials.”
Leadership Portfolio
Elaine’s OER work this year includes speaking engagements at SUNY Open Ed and Open Oregon focused on OER Project management and execution. She has earned a Certificate in Creative Commons licensing, creating document templates for OER project managers and practitioners including a workflow, and timeline. She also surveyed the OER listserv community to help find solutions for better communication. She’s currently testing multiple OER platforms, using open pedagogy to help faculty design ‘renewable’ assignments, and shepherding dozens of OER course conversions and several new open textbooks to completion (even designing a cover).
Elaine’s capstone project oerpro.org is a social media site for OER leaders seeking to build community and promote adoption. Site features include: resource reviews, subject matter groups, discussion forums, and post-by-email; a way to give listserv contributors a secondary means of creating a lasting record of their contributions to the OER community. By posting (via CC or BCC) to oerpro.org there is a searchable database of their work on the open web to serve as inspiration and guidance to the larger community, fostering the mission of open access.
