OERu/ IT Sligo joins OERu as first anchor partner from Ireland

Institute of Technology Sligo (IT Sligo) has announced that it will be joining the Open Education Resource university (OERu) as the first anchor partner from Ireland.

IT Sligo, founded in 1970, is a regional higher education institution in the north-west of Ireland with over 5,000 students. The Institute delivers campus-based programs from associate degree to masters level as well as being active in research up to PhD level.

A pioneer in online distance learning in Ireland and a winner of several national prizes in this field, IT Sligo now has over 30 programmes available online with 1,100 students currently enrolled. The objectives of the OERu align perfectly with our mission in online distance learning. IT Sligo is committed to improving access to higher education for people of all ages and cost is a major barrier to this.

Brian, who has led the online development at IT Sligo since 2002, affirms that "Open Educational Resources and Practices will play a key role in overcoming the barriers of cost and access and membership of the OERu will both help us to develop such practices and help us to help others."

"It is appropriate that the recipient of a national Presidential award for online distance learning should claim the accolade of becoming Ireland's first OERu anchor partner" said Dr Wayne Mackintosh, Director of the OER Foundation and COL Chair in OER at Otago Polytechnic. "Our international partnership and the learners we serve will benefit tremendously from the foresight, experience and leadership in online learning at IT Sligo."