Affordable Course Materials Initiative (ACMI)

The long-term goal of the stipend program is to cultivate and support the development of more low-cost and zero-cost courses at Oakland University and support the faculty who implement, adapt, and develop open educational resources. The program encourages the broad sharing of these resources to help support student learning and Oakland University’s mission of student success by requiring recipients to openly license any instructional material created or adapted using program funds.

Applicants are expected to convert at least one-course section. For courses with multiple sections, we encourage faculty to submit team applications. 

Course conversion projects may require reworking the syllabus, locating, evaluating and/or creating new materials, doing a copyright analysis of current content (including images), and creating new slides and quizzes. 

*The fabulous team of instructional designers in e-LIS is available to assist with integrating content into Moodle and creating new interactive materials.

**Applicants are encouraged to review the OER Guide and schedule an appointment to discuss their project before submitting an application. (Please contact Julia Rodriguez, ACMI Team Lead ~ juliar@oakland.edu). The number of stipends awarded will be determined by the number and type of qualified applications received. 

NEW REVISED Stipend Categories:

• Low-cost ($800) or no-cost ($1,000) course conversion - Replace required traditional textbooks and/or course materials by adopting an open textbook, OER course components, articles, book excerpts, audio, videos, or other library-owned materials. *Use of a low-cost homework system paired with the open textbook is permitted. *Final cost to students for low-cost must be less than $50.
   
• DEI/Social Justice Focus course conversion - $1,500 - Using a DEI or Social Justice Rubric to guide the redesign of the course to replace required traditional textbooks and/or course materials by adopting an open textbook, OER course components, articles, book excerpts, audio, videos, or other library-owned materials.  *Use of a low-cost homework system paired with the open textbook is permitted. *Final cost to students for low-cost must be less than $50.
   
• Program/dept. multi-section shared materials -$TBD. Conversion of a multi-section course proposed by a program or group of faculty developing materials together.  (This type of award would be directly paid to the program or department to cover the cost for a faculty course release or other types of expense.)
   
• Creation - $1,500 - $3,000 -  Develop and share openly licensed materials. Create OER materials or an open textbook to replace required costly course materials working solo, as a team, or with students. (Total stipend amount determined by the scope of the project.)

Faculty Eligibility

• All Oakland University faculty and instructors teaching the course being converted in Fall 2025 or Winter 2026 are eligible to apply. 
• Faculty can apply as a team. Only one faculty leader should complete the application.   
• Team applications must include at least one instructor who has taught the course previously and one instructor who is the instructor of record for the course the semester the new material will be implemented.  
• Program/Dept. group for multi-section courses should appoint a group leader to submit the application and coordinate work.
• Faculty previously receiving a stipend may re-apply for a new course or as part of a team. However, new applicants may be given preference. 
   

Course Information

• Projects are for courses that use course materials costing more than $50 to convert courses to low- or no-cost courses. 
• New courses may be considered as eligible. Contact the ACMI coordinator directly before applying.  

Program Requirements: 

1. All stipend recipients must attend an orientation workshop and submit a work plan and timeline one semester before intended implementation.
2. A report including assessment outcomes must be submitted before the end of the first semester after implementation. 
3. Recipients are expected to mark their course in Banner with the appropriate cost designation each time it is offered. Contact the ACMI Coordinator directly if this requirement conflicts with department policy.
4. Recipients are expected to share their experiences with OU colleagues through department meeting presentations, workshops, or publications. 
5. Recipients must openly license any instructional material created or adapted with a Creative Commons license and be willing to share it in an open education repository, such as OER Commons.

Application Evaluation Criteria

1. Project feasibility of implementing within the applicant’s proposed timeframe.
2. Project’s benefit for student learning. 
3. A plan for assessing the new content aligned to course outcomes.
4. Potential for the project to have a high impact on students.