I think we can all agree that 2020 was a strange year: for some of us, our OER work grew exponentially as the need for affordable digital materials became evident. For others, our work stalled as support staff became inundated with work and stress. Still, Iowa OER’s community has shown an incredible amount of growth over the past 12 months, and that growth has belied the need for more transparent communication between our action team and the higher ed community in Iowa. To help spread awareness of our work and encourage more discussion, we developed the Iowa OER Google Group and mailing list, a regular webinar series with guest speakers from across (and outside) the state, and we are currently working on additional professional development support for instructors across the state by working with partners like you! 

To further develop our collaborations, Iowa OER’s action team has put together a Communications Plan that articulates *how* we share information, *who* we contact to share news and updates and *what kinds* of content we plan to post regularly on our mailing list and elsewhere. 

You can read through our communications plan, comment on it, and add recommendations for future additions or edits live in the Iowa OER Toolkit: 

• 2021 Communications Plan
• Iowa OER Toolkit

Thanks for reading, and best wishes for an excellent 2021!