Improving Access to Higher Education with Open Educational Resources (OER)

The increasing costs of traditionally published course materials and online homework platforms has further limited who can afford to obtain a degree in higher education. Open Educational Resources help make higher education more accessible to low-income students by relieving the burden of expensive textbooks. Adoption of OER has proven to improve academic success for students and increase retention rates. Use of OER materials allows educators to adapt their curriculum to students’ specific learning needs with the ability to remix or alter textbooks. OER is a growing initiative in higher education as tuition and textbook rates continue to skyrocket. My role as the Digital Scholarship and OER Librarian allows me to lead these initiatives at Emporia State University through my work in committees, collaborating with faculty to implement OER materials, and promoting OER adoption. This paper will further explain the issues with the textbook industry, how OER can help relieve the financial strain on students, and my own initiatives to make higher education more accessible to everyone at ESU financially and academically.