Getting Involved

Getting (More) Involved with the OCW Consortium

Wondering how to get (more) involved with the OCW Consortium?  You should be.  Opportunities for collaboration with other Consortium members around the world are some of the most significant and enduring benefits of membership, and many of those opportunities arise in the course of other Consortium projects.  So, if your organization is a member, your getting involved is really a matter of getting the most for your organization’s money. If your organization is not yet a member of the Consortium, we welcome your involvement as well. The OCW Consortium hosts a variety of projects representing a wide range of time-lines and participation formats, so finding one to serve your interest and circumstances shouldn’t be difficult.  If you don’t see what you want among the descriptions below, drop us a line at  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and we will do what we can to put you in touch with others who are similarly inclined!

Join/Form a Community of Interest

Communities of Interest are discussion forums, proposed by members and organized according to particular topics of interest within the OCW movement.  Participation in a Community of Interest is by no means limited to OCW Consortium Members. Some examples include the K-12 Community and OER Health Community.  Visit our dedicated Communities of Interest website.

Join/Form a Working Group

Working groups arise from the membership, forming around discrete tasks that call for collaboration, whether that be drafting a document, researching a common question or writing a piece of code. Often a group will gather initially at an OCW Consortium Global Meeting and then put out a request for additional members in the newsletter. Some working groups form quickly and then dissolve as soon as the task is complete.  Others maintain ongoing email lists so that participants can be on-call as relevant tasks materialize. Examples include the Technology Working Group and the Copyright Exceptions and Limitations Working Group. For a full list of our currently active Working Groups, click here.

Join a Committee

Committees are more formal groups that have been tasked by the Board of Directors to provide advice regarding the life of the Consortium.  Standing Committees are tasked with ongoing concerns such as Consortium finances or the review of membership applications.  Ad hoc Committees are tasked with short-term tasks such as an employee search process or website revision. For a full list of our currently active Committees, click here.

Run for a Position on the Board of Directors

The Board of Directors of the OCW Consortium provides strategic direction to the organization in support of its mission.  Membership on the Board of Directors is limited to employees of member organizations.  It represents a significant commitment to guiding the OCW Consortium in its development by providing leadership at the highest level.  Specific Responsibilities for Members of the Board include:

• Develop a strategic plan every two years as high-level guidance for Consortium activities.
• Provide input for and approve an annual business plan that includes activities intended to achieve the organization's goals.  Approve the annual budget and insure that resources are effectively deployed to meet goals and objectives.
• Set annual dues levels for the Consortium and attend to strategic membership issues.
• Provide financial oversight of Consortium activities.
• Provide input and support to the Executive Director on an as-needed basis and evaluate performance.
• Facilitate Communication between the Board and Consortium Committees/Working Groups.
• Represent the Consortium at speaking engagements and conferences relevant to Consortium goals.
• Proactively develop funding sources for the Consortium.

If you are interested in running for a seat on the Board of Directors, please indicate your interest by submitting a nomination form to the Nomination Committee when the call for Nominations goes out in March of each year.