Franklin College Faculty Named Open Educator Award Recipients
The Private Academic Library Network of Indiana (PALNI) has awarded two Franklin College educators, Andrea Mescall, MBA, CMA, and Arbin Thapaliya, Ph.D., the PALSave Open Educator Award for the 2023-24 academic year.
Franklin College is a supporting institution of the PALSave: PALNI Affordable Learning Program that funds the awards. The program offers Open Educational Resources (OER) to help lower the cost of higher education and increase resource accessibility for students. Mescall and Thapaliya have adopted OER in their classrooms with the goal of reducing costs for students, improving access to required texts and increasing student success and retention.
Mescall, assistant professor of accounting and a resident of Gosport, implemented OER last year. She said, “It reduces financial barriers for students, ensuring equal access to high-quality educational materials which is crucial in this economy. This approach fosters a more inclusive learning environment and promotes academic success.” She not only uses zero-cost textbooks, but also utilizes a contract grading method to promote student mastery of course objectives.
Thapaliya, associate professor of physics and resident of Greenwood, is the first and only two-time recipient ever of the PALNI Open Educator Award. He said, “Every class I teach at Franklin College utilizes an open textbook, and I am committed to keeping it that way for as long as I can because it makes both me and my students happy. I am very grateful to PALSave for supporting not only my commitment to open textbooks but also for supporting faculty from both Franklin and other institutions in Indiana.” Thapaliya has published his own open textbook through a PALSave textbook creation grant as well.
Only nine faculty members from PALNI’s 24 supporting institutions in Indiana were named Open Educator Award recipients for the 2023-24 academic year.