3 faculty receive Undergraduate Student Government award for open educational resources

Dear students, faculty and staff:

The high cost of textbooks and other educational media is a significant barrier to students completing their coursework and earning their degrees. That’s why a critical component of UIC’s commitment to fostering student success is supporting the creation and use in our courses of freely accessible and adaptable open educational resources such as open textbooks and other freely available digital media.

Since 2017, the Office of the Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and the University Library have made awards to faculty members through the Open Textbook Faculty Incentive Program to support creation of open educational resources. Now we are proud to announce the awardees of UIC’s first student-led initiative to support open access materials — the Undergraduate Student Government Faculty Open Educational Resources Leadership Award Program. This award recognizes faculty who demonstrate exemplary use of open educational resources in their classrooms and leadership in using and advocating for open course material. Examples include incorporating free educational materials in courses, including open textbooks, and creating original open educational resources. With guidance from the University Library, a subcommittee of the Undergraduate Student Government has chosen three award winners:

Preston Snee, Chemistry, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences: Professor Snee’s commitment to accessible resources is evident in his creation of a freely accessible textbook that integrates seamlessly with course materials. He received Open Textbook Faculty Incentive Program awards in 2017-2018 and 2020-2021.

Hananeh Esmailbeigi, Richard and Loan Hill Department of Biomedical Engineering, Colleges of Engineering and Medicine: Professor Esmailbeigi uses open educational resources in a variety of formats, including freely available videos. The videos serve as step-by-step visual guides that enhance student learning and provide real-world examples.

Jeremy Riel, Educational Psychology, College of Education: Professor Riel has designed and launched a series of courses for the minor in instructional design and training. In each course, Riel is committed to the creation of high-quality resources for students to use that remain accessible beyond the semester during which they study under his guidance.

Please join us in congratulating the 2024 awardees and thanking Undergraduate Student Government for making the award possible.

Sincerely,

Karen Colley
Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs

Rhea Ballard-Thrower
University Librarian and Dean of Libraries

For more information, please contact:
Sandra De Groote
digscholarship@uic.edu