SCHEV-OVAC Call for Nominations - Virginia OER Impact Award

[Anita Walz]

Dear Colleagues, 

Please share this information with authors or adapters of published open educational resources from Virginia institutions of higher education. Nominations are due 03/20/2026.

Warm regards,

Anita Walz

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SCHEV’s Open Virginia Advisory Committee (OVAC) is pleased to announce a call for nominations for the second annual Virginia Open Educational Resource (OER) Impact Award. This award recognizes outstanding Open resources in higher education that have had a significant impact in Virginia postsecondary classrooms.  

 

Nominated OER will be evaluated based on the following criteria: 

• Virginia impact (such as: student success metrics, cost avoidance, classroom adoption, etc.); 
• Innovative pedagogical approaches leading to active and inclusive learning;
• Contributions to Open Education by addressing a need or gap in the pre-existing literature; 
• Digital accessibility (WCAG 2.1 AA compliant).

 

Creators of selected OER will be recognized online, via press release, and at a formal awards ceremony. Awardees will also receive a $2,000 honorarium, funded by VIVA, Virginia’s academic library consortium. 

Eligibility:

• Editions of OER that have already received the Virginia OER Impact Award are not eligible to win again. 
• All other submissions – including editions previously nominated – are welcome! 

 

Award Nominations (including self-nominations) will be made via form here: https://gmulibrary.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3JHypZb8bZwCiuq 

Following submission, SCHEV OVAC will review and select three OER to recognize this year. 

 

Creators of awarded projects will be expected to present their resources at an OVAC/VIVA sponsored event in Fall 2026.

 

For more information about this award, please contact Liz Thompson at thom...@jmu.edu.

 

Application deadline: 3/20/2026

Notifications: 5/1/2026