SMWC Faculty Receive PALSave Open Educator Award

Saint Mary of the Woods, IN (09/28/2024) — Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College (SMWC) is proud to have had two faculty members awarded the PALSave Open Educator Award by the Private Academic Library Network of Indiana (PALNI) for the 2023-24 academic year. Kim LaComba, Ph.D., director of the Ph.D. in Global Leadership program and assistant professor of business, and Jennie Mitchell, Ph.D., emeritus professor and adjunct professor, along with seven additional faculty members from various institutions, were award recipients. The award recognizes innovation and excellence in support of higher education, textbook affordability and student success.

"We are extremely proud to recognize this year's Open Educator Award honorees," said Amanda Hurford, PALNI scholarly communications director. "High textbook costs continue to be a barrier to education, yet these individuals work tirelessly to make course materials more equitable and accessible to all students. With each of PALNI's 24 supported institutions participating in PALSave, faculty and staff are reshaping the educational landscape, ensuring that every student, regardless of circumstance, can learn, thrive and succeed. They have built a community of champions for affordable learning, and we're excited to see their efforts benefit students now and well into the future," Hurford shared.

Overall, 24 supported institutions currently participate in PALSave. The goal for faculty and staff is to continue the mission of reshaping the educational landscape to guarantee every student the opportunity to thrive and be successful.

This year's Open Educator Award recipients include:

Dhabih Chulhai, University of Indianapolis

Patrick Eggleton, Taylor University

Seth Hopper, Earlham College

Kim LaComba, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College

Andrea Mescall, Franklin College

Jennie Mitchell, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College

Glene Mynhardt, Hanover College

Alan Overstreet, Anderson University

Arbin Thapaliya, Franklin College

Honoree Statements from SMWC recipients:

"Open educational resources encourage academic creativity in curriculum design while also keeping affordability in mind for students. Providing quality Open Educational Resources (OER) is always my goal and this is achievable!" said Kim LaComba.

"I am honored to receive the PALSave Open Educator Award. I've deliberately chosen open textbooks and/or created materials for my classes because I believe the cost of books has become a significant barrier to student success. According to the Education Data Initiative, 90% of professors say textbooks and course materials cost their students too muchYet, only 8% of professors have initiated textbook cost-saving programs for students. I wholeheartedly commend the PALSave program and their diverse initiatives at enhancing education's affordability and accessibility," said Jennie Mitchell.

About PALSave

Funded through grant support from Lilly Endowment, Inc., PALSave combats the rising costs of textbooks by supporting faculty adoption and creation of open and affordable course materials.

Some of PALSave's initiatives include:

- Offering workshops and stipends that give educators the resources they need to transform courses using materials that are entirely free to students

- Providing textbook creation grants

- Offering publishing support and more.

Data consistently shows that textbook costs affect the academic decisions students make. According to the College Board, the average full-time, on-campus undergraduate at a four-year school was asked to budget $1,250 for books and supplies during the 2023-24 academic year. When students are unable to meet that financial obligation, they are forced to seek out insufficient alternatives or skip buying course material altogether. PALSave works to provide a proactive solution to these barriers by helping faculty adopt openly licensed and fully customizable OER into their courses.

Concluding the final year of the 5-year Lilly Endowment grant supporting this initiative, PALSave has far exceeded its initial goals. Highlights of the program's successes include:

- $2,277,117 cumulative savings to date, exceeding PALNI's original goal of $1 million

- 37,233 students impacted, saving on average $61.03 each

- 99% of students reporting a positive or neutral impact on studies and grades with OER

- 877 faculty reached with educational workshops

- 323 courses transformed to include OER

- 46% of redesigned courses indicating grade improvement

- 789% return on investment with course redesign funds

- 100% of PALNI institutions participating in PALSave

For more information, visit the PALSave: PALNI Affordable Learning Program website: www.palni.org/palsave.

About Lilly Endowment Inc.

Lilly Endowment Inc. is an Indianapolis-based, private philanthropic foundation created in 1937 by three members of the Lilly family - J.K. Lilly Sr. and sons J.K. Jr. and Eli - through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. While those gifts remain the financial bedrock of the Endowment, the Endowment is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff and location. In keeping with the founders' wishes, the Endowment supports the causes of community development, education and religion and maintains a special commitment to its hometown, Indianapolis and home state, Indiana. More information can be found at www.lillyendowment.org.

About the Private Academic Library Network of Indiana

The Private Academic Library Network of Indiana (PALNI) is a non-profit organization that supports collaboration for library and information services for 24 colleges, universities and seminaries throughout the state. From its inception in 1992, the PALNI collaboration has been a key avenue for its supported institutions to contain costs while providing more effective library services. More recently, PALNI has adopted a model of deep collaboration that pools resources and people as a tool to expand services while containing costs. Simultaneously, PALNI is expanding collaboration within its institutions and with external library partners to address challenges and build cost-effective services. Visit www.palni.org for more information

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