Explore Open Education at the Open and Affordable Community Forum

Posted September 16, 2025 in JMU Libraries News, Open Education News

decorative banner that says VIVA Open & Affordable Community Forum

Do you want to connect with educators across Virginia to explore topics of open and affordable higher education?

You’re invited! The Open and Affordable Community Forum covers issues in open education, open pedagogy, and open educational resources (OER). This free event is hosted by VIVA, Virginia’s Academic Library Consortium, and anyone in higher ed in Virginia is welcome to attend. Register now.

This year’s forum will be held on November 14, 2025. The event will be hybrid, allowing you to attend on Zoom or in person (at Reynolds Community College, Parham Road Campus).

The theme for 2025, “Cultivating resilience in education,” explores how open and affordable course content and open educational practices can foster resilience for both faculty and students.

The presentation lineup includes speakers from JMU and other Virginia institutions. JMU presenters include:

Danielle DeRise: “Embracing OERs to Deliver Stable First-Year Writing Courses in Times of Change”
Elaine Kaye and Nicole Wilson: “Creating resilient communities: Developing and implementing a values-based framework for open projects”

Learn more about the Open and Affordable Community Forum or register now.

Questions? Please Liz Thompson, JMU’s Open Education Librarian and leader of the forum planning committee.