Affordability and Equity Grants

The Affordability and Equity grant program, sponsored by the Jefferson Trust and offered by the University of Virginia Library, will provide support to faculty who want to adopt, adapt, or create open educational resources (OER).

2023-24 is the second year of a two-year pilot program; projects will be selected through a competitive process.

OER are teaching, learning, and research resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits their free use and re-purposing by others.  Open resources have the potential to provide equitable access to knowledge, drive down student costs, and create a more inclusive learning environment.

Projects will be selected through a competitive process with applications accepted on a rolling basis.  Expect awards to be announced about four weeks after submission.

The awards, which will be given as either taxable summer wages or as research funds, will be given in three categories:

1. Adopt a resource:  $1000*

   • Intended for faculty who would like to adopt an existing resource for their course, revising their syllabi and lesson plans.

2. Adapt (edit or augment) a resource:  $2500*

   • Intended for faculty who would like to make changes or additions to an existing resource. Examples of adaptation include customizing, updating, or localizing a resource; combining existing resources with changes; adding interactivity; developing ancillary resources (such as quiz questions, slides, etc.) for an existing work; adapting an open data set.

Up to $1,000 in student funding will also be available for all "adapt" projects. 

We welcome proposals from those whose adoption, adaptation, or creation of OER predates this announcement. 

*Faculty who intend to adopt or adapt a resource should select that resource in advance of submitting an application.  For help in discovering a relevant work, consult with your subject librarian or contact Judith Thomas at judith.thomas@virginia.edu or Bethany Mickel at bethanym@virginia.edu

Eligibility

This program is open to anyone holding a faculty appointment at the University of Virginia who is teaching a two-, three-, or four-credit course.

Selection criteria

• Demonstrated need for adoption, adaptation, or use of OER
• Benefits to students
• Extent of curricular impact (e.g., single or multiple, one-time or repeated courses; effect on departmental curriculum).
• Alignment with institutional, school, or departmental goals for diversity, equity, or inclusion.

Expectations of faculty

• Pre-submission:

  • Select your resource if you are planning to submit an “adopt” or “adapt” proposal (contact your liaison, Judith Thomas, or Bethany Mickel for help)

• Post-award:

  • Implement your OER, in whole or part, within 18 months of receiving the award.
  • Attend a consultation session and a minimum of two workshops (about three hours total)
  • Acknowledge the grant program and funder in external communications
  • Use the work in class within the year following completion
  • Clear all rights (copyright and licensing guidance available from the Library)
  • Publish the work with a Creative Commons license that allows for access and re-purposing (preferably CC-BY)
  • Ensure ADA compliance  (guidance available from the LIbrary)
  • Upload a version to UVA’s institutional repository, Libra
  • Submit a final report to the Library summarizing the project and the outcomes within a year of class implementation
  • Share your experience and results with the recipient cohort
  • Commit to a local presentation of project

What the Library will do

• Help with discovery of existing content (in advance of your proposal)
• Provide training in copyright and licensing
• Provide technical and instructional design support in recommended technologies for authoring and disseminating content
• Help with project design and management
• Help with ADA compliance
• Provide a forum for local presentations
• Provide the framework for a local community of interest around open education
• NOTE: This is a pilot project!  Library staff will be learning alongside faculty

For further information

Review this guide for more information about OER at UVA.  For an individual consultation, contact Judith Thomas or Bethany Mickel.

Learn about funded projects.

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