Supporting the Journey: Adapting Library Services to Support the Entire Process of OER Implementation

As colleges and universities engage in creation and repurposing of Open Educational Resources (OER), libraries are stepping up to provide faculty the support they need to manage these resources However, librarians have mostly fulfilled this role by simply folding OER support into traditional library services such as one-shot workshops or webinars (Mitchell & Chu, 2014; Jensen & West, 2015; Primary Research Group Staff, 2017). While these strategies are important for building faculty awareness, they risk falling short of addressing the evolving needs of faculty as they progress through OER development, implementation, and assessment. Providing flexible service beyond the traditional liaison roles can better position librarians to lead successful OER initiatives. Collaborations within and outside the library are vital to OER implementation. This panel will focus on efforts to help chemistry faculty adapt and create a text, thereby, highlighting one library’s journey from one-shot information sessions on to a multi institutional collaboration with technical/discovery services and instructional designers from the Center of Teaching Excellence. The panelists will highlight victories, challenges, and plans for future project endeavors. Participants leave with a sense for anticipating the needs of faculty with OER materials, as well as working strategies to expand liaison and technical services roles to effectively support OER.