Drawing on the leadership and expertise of faculty, students, staff and administrators from across the UT System, the Task Force was convened to:
- Elevate awareness of, and deepen engagement with, existing high-quality Open initiatives, in the UT System, across Texas and with other states, with a focus on Open Educational Resources (OER);
- Identify strategies and collaborative opportunities to expand the adoption and development of affordable and next-generation learning resources, including OER, existing library-purchased materials, low-cost business models that remove barriers to affordability, and other affordable resources across UT institutions, in Texas and nationally;
- Assess and identify mechanisms for monitoring current and potential ROI of such efforts across the System;
- Evaluate and identify metrics to assess the impact of OER and other affordability measures on student success outcomes; and
- Identify funding opportunities to amplify the work on behalf of students across the UT System and Texas.
The task force focused broadly on financial well-being as critical to student success and engagement, and was mindful throughout its deliberations of quality, equity and inclusion as core values of the UT System, as well as faculty authority over the curriculum and decision-making about course materials and learning resources.
