Northern Illinois University supports open education initiatives as part of our value for curiosity and creativity, equity and inclusion, and service and stewardship. As a community of faculty, staff, students and alumni we advocate for open education efforts to increase student success through affordable textbooks and course materials. Open education efforts align with the following presidential goals:
Additionally, these efforts align with the Strategic Enrollment Management (SEM) plan’s goals for targeted enrollment efforts and improving access and affordability and improving student success, persistence and graduation.
The Course Materials Affordability Task Force advocates for and supports the adoption of free and open textbooks and other low-cost course materials as well as celebrates and commends faculty who make every effort to keep their course materials affordable.
Huskie Commons is Northern Illinois University's digital repository, a secure virtual space in which we collect, preserve and provide access to the scholarly and artistic works created by the NIU community. From peer-reviewed articles authored by faculty to honors capstone projects created by students to electronic theses and dissertations, Huskie Commons showcases the intellectual output of NIU's faculty, staff, students, and organizations.
NIU does not stand alone in its open educational and open pedagogy efforts. We collaborate with, gain knowledge from, and share resources through institutional memberships with several key organizations such as: CARLI’s Open Illinois, UNESCO, OER Statewide Leaders and SPARC.
Northern Illinois University engages in conversations with colleagues at other institutions across the country and across the world about open education and course materials affordability—and it encourages its faculty, staff, and students to learn more by participating in annual conferences that foreground open educational resources and open pedagogy.
Faculty who commit to no or low-cost course materials are encouraged to designate their courses in MyNIU as no- or low-cost. Faculty may also wish to add a commitment statement to their syllabus.
Your librarian for this course, Firstname Lastname, can help you narrow a research question, manage citations, and use library services. You can contact him/her/them at email@niu.edu to request an appointment. For recommendations and links to the best library resources, please see your department's Library Research Guide. For any research question, you can also chat live with a librarian.
As a commitment to education affordability, this course uses course materials that are either open educational resources (OER), available from the University Libraries under fair use guidelines, or identified as low-cost (under $40).
Faculty, staff and alumni research, publish and share other types of scholarship for affordable course materials.
Phone: 815-753-0595
Email: citl@niu.edu
Phone: 815-753-1995
Email: lib-admin@niu.edu