I definitely agree that we should approach this with mainstream appeal in mind. If, after a few schools, we have a solid methodology, I think it would be great to work on the pitch to the Princeton Reviews of the world.<br>
<br>Great idea. <br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Sat, Oct 31, 2009 at 1:40 AM, Matthew Senate <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:mattsenate@berkeley.edu">mattsenate@berkeley.edu</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">
I absolutely agree Fred, the report card project is a great use of our<br>
time--doing the research is a huge hurdle. I just think a large-scale<br>
implementation of our findings in the format suggested would be<br>
ill-distributed labor. Real change will come from directly communicating<br>
with and convincing the institutions that currently exist and that we<br>
recognize need to change. The suggestion I was making is to proceed with<br>
the campaign remembering that the goal will be locating and lobbying those<br>
who already rate and rank universities. Assembling a thorough and accurate<br>
grading system will make adopting these metrics all the easier.<br>
<br>
- matt<br>
<div><div></div><div class="h5"><br>
> I think it's also about demand -- articulating what "open" is to<br>
> pre-college<br>
> students is one thing, establishing to the publishers that its a criterion<br>
> that students will be evaluating universities on is another story.<br>
><br>
> So I think the best is to have the data first, establish the demand, and<br>
> then make the pitch to the publications.<br>
><br>
> But I love the scale of your thinking, Matt.<br>
><br>
> :)<br>
><br>
> F<br>
><br>
><br>
> ~ ~ ~<br>
> thoughts / <a href="http://fredbenenson.com/blog" target="_blank">http://fredbenenson.com/blog</a><br>
> work / <a href="http://creativecommons.org" target="_blank">http://creativecommons.org</a><br>
> sights / <a href="http://flickr.com/fcb" target="_blank">http://flickr.com/fcb</a><br>
> sounds / <a href="http://www.last.fm/user/mecredis" target="_blank">http://www.last.fm/user/mecredis</a><br>
> status / <a href="http://twitter.com/mecredis" target="_blank">http://twitter.com/mecredis</a><br>
><br>
><br>
><br>
> On Fri, Oct 30, 2009 at 3:01 PM, Samuel Klein <<a href="http://meta.sj" target="_blank">meta.sj</a>@<a href="http://gmail.com" target="_blank">gmail.com</a>> wrote:<br>
><br>
>> It's been many years since grenness started being a common idea in<br>
>> activist<br>
>> circles for an institution. Once we've put out an independent<br>
>> assessment<br>
>> and demonstated what sorts of metrics might be used -- and agreed on a<br>
>> couple of them as fundamental -- people that hand out awards will have<br>
>> something to work with.<br>
>><br>
>> Getting a small consortium of friednly orgs to support/sponsor/write<br>
>> about<br>
>> the first report card on universities will help. I could see some of<br>
>> them<br>
>> helping gather data - herdict might help cover censorship, cc might help<br>
>> cover licensing, a major OA group might cover journal access and<br>
>> publishing<br>
>> standards.<br>
>><br>
>> SJ<br>
>><br>
>><br>
>> On Thu, Oct 29, 2009 at 9:16 PM, Adi Kamdar <<a href="mailto:adikamdar@gmail.com">adikamdar@gmail.com</a>> wrote:<br>
>><br>
>>> I know the Princeton Review rates "greenness" as well.<br>
>>> <a href="http://www.princetonreview.com/green/press-release.aspx" target="_blank">http://www.princetonreview.com/green/press-release.aspx</a><br>
>>><br>
>>> The problem I'm foreseeing is that sustainability is much more<br>
>>> well-politicized issue than openness. It seems obvious that these<br>
>>> ranking<br>
>>> magazines picked that up, but it may be a while before openness is<br>
>>> considered. I think this is the big reason why we should focus on<br>
>>> tackling<br>
>>> the preliminary rankings ourselves, show that it can be done, show how<br>
>>> it<br>
>>> can be done, and show why it's important. Plus, instead of having other<br>
>>> organizations collect and publish findings (something that may not<br>
>>> happen at<br>
>>> all), we should find out and publish what we can (something that we can<br>
>>> make<br>
>>> sure happens).<br>
>>><br>
>>> -Adi<br>
>>><br>
>>><br>
>>><br>
>>> On Thu, Oct 29, 2009 at 8:58 PM, Matthew Senate<br>
>>> <<a href="mailto:mattsenate@berkeley.edu">mattsenate@berkeley.edu</a>>wrote:<br>
>>><br>
>>>> I hate to bump this message, but I'd really like to get a response or<br>
>>>> some<br>
>>>> feedback about this idea.<br>
>>>><br>
>>>> Any thoughts? Newsweek is just one, there are many more serious<br>
>>>> rankings<br>
>>>> that need to take OA, OERs, and the like into consideration. Are there<br>
>>>> any<br>
>>>> already? What do we know?<br>
>>>><br>
>>>> - Matt<br>
>>>><br>
>>>><br>
>>>> > One of the SFFC@Berkeley members (Michael Lissner) suggested an<br>
>>>> > interesting strategy to better distribute the labor of evaluating<br>
>>>> > Universities' "Openness." He suggested convincing groups that<br>
>>>> already<br>
>>>> > review and rank schools to include "Openness" in their evaluations.<br>
>>>> He<br>
>>>> > suggested for example<br>
>>>> > getting people like Newsweek to include "Openness" just as they are<br>
>>>> > beginning to include "Greenness."<br>
>>>> ><br>
>>>> > We should put together a reasonable and convincing argument that<br>
>>>> describes<br>
>>>> > what "Openness" is, which would be similar to the "report cards"<br>
>>>> project<br>
>>>> > below. But instead of simply implementing this on our own, we should<br>
>>>> > pressure other groups to see:<br>
>>>> > 1. Students actually care about these issues<br>
>>>> > 2. Openness is an important aspect of any institution whose purpose<br>
>>>> > includes public service<br>
>>>> > 3. Given the technology and media now at our disposal, universities<br>
>>>> have<br>
>>>> > the responsibility to realize to the best of their ability the full<br>
>>>> > productive potential of these tools in the name of education and<br>
>>>> freedom<br>
>>>> ><br>
>>>> > Note that Openness is perhaps not the best term, since it could be<br>
>>>> > confused with Transparency (which is another metric that should be<br>
>>>> > included in evaluating universities--but that's a battle for another<br>
>>>> day).<br>
>>>> ><br>
>>>> > - Matt<br>
>>>> > SFFC@Berkeley<br>
>>>> ><br>
>>>> >> Writes Kevin Donovan on our blog:<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> As many of you know, following the Free Culture 2008 Conference,<br>
>>>> >> Students for Free Culture began the Open University Campaign - an<br>
>>>> >> initiative to increase collaboration, sharing, and openness at the<br>
>>>> level<br>
>>>> >> of higher education. With the academic year about to begin, we want<br>
>>>> to<br>
>>>> >> invite all interested parties to assist the with project; after<br>
>>>> all,<br>
>>>> we<br>
>>>> >> wouldn't be very genuine if we didn't do this in an open manner<br>
>>>> >> ourselves!<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> ![Oucmini][1]<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> **About the Open University Campaign**<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> In October 2008, Students for Free Culture drafted and adopted the<br>
>>>> >> Wheeler Declaration which declared that:<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> _<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> "An open university is one in which:_<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> _1. The research produced is open access;<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> 2. The course materials are open educational resources;<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> 3. The university embraces free software and open standards;<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> 4. The university's patents are readily licensed for free software,<br>
>>>> >> essential medicine, and the public good;<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> 5. The university's network reflects the open nature of the<br>
>>>> Internet,_<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> _where "university" includes all parts of the community: students,<br>
>>>> >> faculty and administration."_<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> Out of this agreement has grown the Open University Campaign, of<br>
>>>> which<br>
>>>> a<br>
>>>> >> major goal is to produce objective, reliable indicators of<br>
>>>> individual<br>
>>>> >> universities' levels of openness. A primary method through which<br>
>>>> this<br>
>>>> >> will be accomplished is through "report card" style profiles of<br>
>>>> leading<br>
>>>> >> institution of higher learning, similar to [College Sustainability<br>
>>>> >> Report Cards][2]. Students for Free Culture has already begun this<br>
>>>> work<br>
>>>> >> by defining principles of measurement, researching available<br>
>>>> resources,<br>
>>>> >> and developing surveys to be distributed to universities.<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> **What Will the Open University Report Cards Entail?**<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> Mirroring the Wheeler Declaration, the Open University Report<br>
>>>> Cards,<br>
>>>> as<br>
>>>> >> currently envisioned, will evaluate schools on five topics:<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> 1. Open Access: Are faculty required to make their scholarship open<br>
>>>> >> access? Is the university press publish open access materials?<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> 2. Open Educational Resources: Does the university create OERs?<br>
>>>> Does<br>
>>>> the<br>
>>>> >> university use OERs?<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> 3. Free and Open Source Software and Standards: Does university<br>
>>>> >> computing use FOSS? Are students and faculty required to use<br>
>>>> proprietary<br>
>>>> >> software?<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> 4. Intellectual Property: Is IP revenue transparent? Is IP used to<br>
>>>> >> promote innovation, or restrict knowledge?<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> 5. Network Management: Is the network neutral? Is user privacy<br>
>>>> >> respected?<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> Establishing credible criteria under which schools will be assessed<br>
>>>> will<br>
>>>> >> be essential to creating a respected resource. For example, Which<br>
>>>> >> schools' open access policies are currently lacking important<br>
>>>> criteria?<br>
>>>> >> Or, To what extent should a school actively support FOSS? The<br>
>>>> volunteers<br>
>>>> >> currently involved with the project are working through these<br>
>>>> questions<br>
>>>> >> on [the wiki page, and we encourage you to join the<br>
>>>> conversation][3].<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> **What the Open University Campaign Needs**<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> In order to make this a successful endeavor, Students for Free<br>
>>>> Culture<br>
>>>> >> needs your involvement!<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> * Are you a student who can _research official university [open<br>
>>>> access<br>
>>>> >> policies][4]_?<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> * Are you passionate about FOSS and can _develop a [questionnaire<br>
>>>> for<br>
>>>> >> IT administrators about FOSS policy][5]_?<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> * Are you statistically-inclined and can _handle data on<br>
>>>> >> universities_?<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> * Are you a web developer who could _create a public website for<br>
>>>> the<br>
>>>> >> Open University Report Cards_?<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> * Are you a graphic designer who could _create posters to raise<br>
>>>> >> awareness on campuses_?<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> **In Closing…**<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> The Open University Campaign recognizes that scholastic advancement<br>
>>>> >> occurs most readily in an environment of sharing, openness and<br>
>>>> >> collaboration. By providing a cross-index of leading universities,<br>
>>>> the<br>
>>>> >> project will add important comparative measurements to encourage<br>
>>>> >> increased academic openness. Our hope is that these resources will<br>
>>>> >> provide a platform from which openness activists can endeavor to<br>
>>>> improve<br>
>>>> >> the scholastic environment.<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> Join us by jumping into the [wiki][3], signing up for the [Open<br>
>>>> >> University mailing list][6], or emailing board (at) freeculture<br>
>>>> (dot)<br>
>>>> >> org with suggestions or questions!<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> [1]:<br>
>>>> <a href="http://freeculture.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/Oucmini.jpg" target="_blank">http://freeculture.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/Oucmini.jpg</a><br>
>>>> >> (Oucmini)<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> [2]: <a href="http://greenreportcard.org/" target="_blank">http://greenreportcard.org/</a><br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> [3]: <a href="http://wiki.freeculture.org/Open_University_Report_Cards" target="_blank">http://wiki.freeculture.org/Open_University_Report_Cards</a><br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> [4]:<br>
>>>> >> <a href="http://wiki.freeculture.org/Open_University_Report_Cards_Open_Access" target="_blank">http://wiki.freeculture.org/Open_University_Report_Cards_Open_Access</a><br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> [5]:<br>
>>>> <a href="http://wiki.freeculture.org/Open_University_Report_Cards_Survey" target="_blank">http://wiki.freeculture.org/Open_University_Report_Cards_Survey</a><br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> [6]:<br>
>>>> <a href="http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/openuniversity" target="_blank">http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/openuniversity</a><br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> >> URL:<br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> <a href="http://freeculture.org/blog/2009/10/27/call-for-participation-join-the-open-university-campaign/" target="_blank">http://freeculture.org/blog/2009/10/27/call-for-participation-join-the-open-university-campaign/</a><br>
>>>> >> _______________________________________________<br>
>>>> >> Discuss mailing list<br>
>>>> >> <a href="mailto:Discuss@freeculture.org">Discuss@freeculture.org</a><br>
>>>> >> <a href="http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/discuss" target="_blank">http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/discuss</a><br>
>>>> >><br>
>>>> ><br>
>>>> ><br>
>>>> > _______________________________________________<br>
>>>> > Discuss mailing list<br>
>>>> > <a href="mailto:Discuss@freeculture.org">Discuss@freeculture.org</a><br>
>>>> > <a href="http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/discuss" target="_blank">http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/discuss</a><br>
>>>> ><br>
>>>><br>
>>>><br>
>>>> _______________________________________________<br>
>>>> Discuss mailing list<br>
>>>> <a href="mailto:Discuss@freeculture.org">Discuss@freeculture.org</a><br>
>>>> <a href="http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/discuss" target="_blank">http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/discuss</a><br>
>>>><br>
>>><br>
>>><br>
>>> _______________________________________________<br>
>>> Discuss mailing list<br>
>>> <a href="mailto:Discuss@freeculture.org">Discuss@freeculture.org</a><br>
>>> <a href="http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/discuss" target="_blank">http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/discuss</a><br>
>>><br>
>>><br>
>><br>
>> _______________________________________________<br>
>> Discuss mailing list<br>
>> <a href="mailto:Discuss@freeculture.org">Discuss@freeculture.org</a><br>
>> <a href="http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/discuss" target="_blank">http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/discuss</a><br>
>><br>
>><br>
> _______________________________________________<br>
> Discuss mailing list<br>
> <a href="mailto:Discuss@freeculture.org">Discuss@freeculture.org</a><br>
> <a href="http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/discuss" target="_blank">http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/discuss</a><br>
><br>
<br>
<br>
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</div></div></blockquote></div><br><br clear="all"><br>-- <br>Kevin Donovan<br>Georgetown '11: SFS<br>SA Phone: 082.311.8512<br><br>