1.0 Executive Summary

As of this month, December 2024, the TRU Open Press ISP has hit some fantastic milestones in open educational resource (OER) development! For the 2023-2024 academic year, we’ve completed 22 projects (high-fives all around!), with 7 more in progress, including the Plumbing Apprenticeship Level 2 project, set to wrap up by January 2025. And to celebrate its completion, we’re planning a launch party—stay tuned for details! For the 2024-2025 cycle, we approved 10 out of 16 project submissions, and content development started in September—some developers are even working ahead of schedule!

One of our big wins this year was the launch of Future Earth: A Student Journal for Sustainability and Environment. This journal not only gives students a platform to share their sustainability research but also boosts academic engagement on pressing environmental issues. By showcasing student research, Future Earth strengthens TRU’s commitment to sustainability and connects classroom learning with real-world impact.

Our Indigenous Medicines Project, led by Natasha Ramroop Singh in partnership with the Cayoose Creek Band, highlights our dedication to inclusive, culturally relevant OER.

Furthermore, students have been central to our projects, with six initiatives engaging them in key roles, from research assistants to project leads. On the promotional front, we’re building impact stories and gathering data to gauge OER usage.

Looking ahead, the TRU Open Press is all about growing our OER offerings, getting more students involved in open education practices, supporting other ISP initiatives at TRU, and deepening our work with Indigenous communities. Here’s to what’s next—more collaboration, more impact, and more OER magic!

2.0 Status of Open Press Projects

Here is a brief overview of the key updates, achievements, and upcoming initiatives within the TRU Open Press for the reporting period. All OP projects can be viewed on our website: https://openpress.trubox.ca/projects/ (or Open Press Projects (List Format) – TRU Open Press)

3.0 Special Initiatives Worth Noting

3.1 Indigenous Medicines Project

In collaboration with Natasha Ramroop Singh, the Cayoose Creek Band in Lillooet, B.C., and Splitrock Environmental, the TRU Open Press is supporting the development of culturally relevant OER materials. This project integrates Indigenous knowledge and practices while exploring the chemical properties of plants used in Indigenous medicine. Once the research has been compiled, the TRU Open Press will provide copyediting, design, and interactive components for the final OER textbook. As part of this collaboration, the team visited the band site in September and helped facilitate honoraria for the band’s Knowledge Keepers and Elders, ensuring their invaluable contributions are recognized and respected.

3.2 Future Earth: A Student Journal on Sustainability and Environment

4.0 Support for Other ISP Initiatives

• TRUEnviroCollab: Supported by designing and structuring the website, creating faculty pages, developing a hotspots graphic, and providing copyediting to ensure clarity and professionalism.
  
• PLAR Decolonization: Converted three guides: PLAR Competency Based Portfolio, PLAR Course Based Portfolio – Student, and Decolonizing and Indigenizing PLAR, into accessible Pressbooks for students and assessors, aligning with decolonization principles and original design and feel of professional guides.
  
• Knowledge Makers: Contributed to designing Volume 9 in InDesign, including copyediting, image placement, article layout, and preparing print-ready specifications.
  
• Arts Cohort: Collaborated with students to set up and design a website for Lunch and Learn presentations, providing work release forms and training to use the WordPress platform effectively.
  
• Honours College: Assisted with course redesign through an institute and committed to future support for students in developing webpages and other learning materials and artifacts.

5.0 Student Involvement

5.1 Research Assistants and Student Creators

• Number of 2024-2025 Projects with Student Roles: 5
• Students’ roles in these projects include Research Assistants and contributors to content development.

5.2 Co-op Students

Since our inception in March 2023 and following the completion of our hiring process, we began onboarding co-op students who have made a significant impact on our project’s success and team culture. Some students have even extended their terms with us.

• December 2023 to April 2024: Hired 1 student as a Copyeditor/Writer for impact stories.
• May 2024 to August 2024: Hired 3 students (1 Copyeditor/Writer and 2 E-Learning Support Technicians).
• September 2024 to December 2024: Hired 3 students (1 Copyeditor/Writer and 2 E-Learning Support Technicians).

We are currently in the process of hiring two new E-Learning Support Technicians for the January to April 2025 term, as our current ELSTs will be continuing their studies in the new year.

6.0 Promotion and Impact

6.1 Promotion Plans for 2024-2025

To enhance awareness of and engagement with TRU Open Press initiatives, we have outlined a series of promotional activities and events. These efforts aim to showcase our projects, support open educational resource (OER) development, and foster community connections.

• Project Developer Interviews: Aiko, one of our talented students, is conducting interviews with project developers from the 2023-2024 fiscal year and will continue doing this for any completed 2024-2025 projects for as long as we have her. These interviews will be recorded and featured alongside project descriptions on our OP website.
• Project Impact Stories: Aiko is also crafting impact stories to highlight how our initiatives align with the Project Matrix criteria and benefit students.
• OER Surveys: Our team has distributed posters with QR codes for a quick 5-minute survey to gather faculty and student insights on OER awareness and usage. Participants will be entered into a draw for $5 coffee gift cards (drawn and notified at the end of January).
• SEO/Marcom Collaboration: Partnering with Marketing and Communications, we’ll optimize our content for better search engine visibility, ensuring our OERs reach a broader audience.
• OP Website Enhancements: We’re continually updating and refining our website to make it more navigable, informative, and inspiring for the TRU community.
• CFBX Radio: Christopher Waddell at CFBX 92.5FM – The X – Campus & Community Radio serving Kamloops, BC will broadcast two PSAs to promote the Future Earth student journal and raise awareness about OERs and the TRU Open Press.
• TRUSU/The Omega Student News: We’ve reached out to TRUSU and The Omega for support in promoting the TRU Open Press, OERs, and the Future Earth student journal.
• Student Street Showcase: On January 8, 2025, from 12-3 PM, we’ll showcase our projects and create awareness about OER development and what the Open Press supports at TRU.
• 21st Annual Teaching Practices Colloquium (TPC): Scheduled for February 18, 2025, we plan to present completed projects, promote OER development, and encourage project proposals for 2025-2026.
• Open Ed Talks: Every Wednesday in March 2025, we’ll host hybrid Open Ed Talks with streaming and roundtable discussions for faculty and students, held in HoL 269.
• Thompson-Okanagan Teaching and Learning Conference: We are proud to sponsor this event, scheduled for May 13-14, 2025, by providing refreshments.

These activities reflect our commitment to promoting OERs, fostering collaboration, and engaging the TRU community in meaningful ways.

6.2 Quantitative Data Collection

• Project Usage Stats: We are committed to continuously gathering data on OER usage, including adding the adoption forms to each project, and monitoring access and download rates, student engagement, and course integration. To enhance this effort, we’ll send a survey in December (when things have quieted down a little) to all project developers from 2023 to 2025, asking them to share what they know about other potential users of their OER resources at different institutions. This way, we can ensure that each project description on our website includes comprehensive stats.
• OER Usage Stats at TRU and other Institutions: We’ll collaborate with the fantastic teams at TRU Library, BCcampus, and possibly our sister institutions to gather meaningful statistics on OER usage and track these trends over time. These will be available on the OP website.

7.0 Future Outlook and Recommendations

7.1 Overview

Looking ahead to the remainder of 2024 and into 2025, our plans focus on key areas of growth and impact. These include completing the 2024-2025 adjudicated projects, further support of ISP initiatives including development of culturally relevant and respectful Indigenous OERs, fostering increased student participation in OER initiatives, and implementing enhanced promotional strategies to raise awareness. Additionally, we hope to prioritize best practices for search engine optimization (SEO) and indexing (DOIs, ISSNs, and ISBNs) to ensure our published OER projects are easily discoverable, amplifying their reach and impact within and beyond the TRU community.

7.2 Upcoming Events

8.0 Conclusion

Looking back on the past term at the TRU Open Press, we’re thrilled to see open educational resources (OER) evolving in some pretty exciting ways. Our focus on accessibility and inclusivity is right in sync with our mission to make education open and equitable for all. With emerging tools—like H5P, AI, and lightboard videos—our resources are getting more interactive and ready to adapt to all kinds of learners.

Sustainable funding and strong partnerships, both within TRU and with our community, are key ingredients in ensuring our projects stay valuable for the long haul. By embracing open pedagogy, we’re inviting learners to be part of the creative process as co-creators, making these resources even richer. And to ensure our content reaches the widest audience, we’re prioritizing strategic promotion and SEO, connecting with more learners, educators, and advocates through targeted outreach and improved search visibility.

The TRU Open Press will continue to champion collaboration, innovation, and inclusivity, bringing these projects to life and making sure they’re seen and shared. So, here’s to everyone who contributed to our projects this term—your support helps us not only adapt but lead, as we set a strong course for the future of open education. Together, we’re building a future that’s engaged, equitable, and filled with possibility.