Open Educational Resources (OER)

OER are free teaching materials intended to be widely distributed and modified to fit the needs of instructors. Examples of OER used by TWU faculty include textbooks, Canvas modules, lab manuals, and workbooks. OER are used as alternatives to expensive textbooks by providing students with high-quality course materials at no cost.

Learn more about OER at TWU

OER Course Redesign Mini-Grants

Applications for the 2026-2027 OER Mini-Grants are now open! Applications close September 1, 2026 at 11:59 PM.

Each year, the TWU Libraries offer up to 10 Open Educational Resource (OER) Course Redesign mini-grants in the amount of $1,000. With this grant, our faculty can develop, adopt, or adapt OER for their courses.

If you are interested in transitioning your course(s) to free learning materials but need support, consider one of these mini-grants!

For more information, contact Elizabeth Headrick at eheadrick@twu.edu.

Submit an OER Mini-Grant Application

Eligibility/Application

Applications must meet the following criteria:

Submitted by one or more TWU employees with teaching responsibilities.
The proposal includes the intent to use an Open Educational Resource in a credit-bearing course.

Applications are ranked by:

Significance of the project.
OER experience of the applicant
How the funds will be distributed
Number of TWU students impacted
Number and frequency of TWU courses impacted
Cost of the materials that will be replaced

Expectations for grant recipients are:

Meet with librarians for an individualized OER consultation to discuss a timeline and work plan.
Check in periodically or as needed to report progress and request support.
Completed projects are expected to be implemented in a course offered in Fall 2027 or Spring 2028.

When completed, new and adapted works must meet the following requirements:

Open access (assigned Creative Commons or another open license, or placed in the public domain)
Public with no cost or login barrier (posted online in The Repository@TWU, Pressbooks, and/or another freely available location)
Comply with the WCAG 2.1 Level AA accessibility standard (e.g. alt text for images, captions or transcripts for audiovisual materials)