TESTIMONIALS
“If at all possible, take this course. It’s probably the most valuable and rewarding professional development training I’ve done since becoming an academic librarian in 2013. I thought I had a pretty decent grasp of the ins and outs of Creative Commons before taking the course, and the difference in my knowledge and skillset now compared to then is night and day. In my experience, the heavy majority of faculty don’t have a great idea of what CC is, how it works, or what it can do for them. Being a campus resource for CC has raised my profile at the university, which has done wonders for work building and running an OER program. As soon as I started helping faculty with individual reference consultations about CC, word started getting around. Now I’m getting faculty I’ve never met emailing me to ask for advice on a CC question, because they heard about me from a peer. Money well spent.” – Stephen Craig Finlay
“This is the best training to learn everything you need to know about CC licenses and licensing practice including info related to OER. The course is well structured and tutors offer great support.”- Maja Bogataj Jancic
“One of the most challenging but rewarding courses. Well designed and well executed. Worth every minute spent.” – Ethan Pullman
“This course has been a wellspring of information for me as an instructional designer, musician, and author. Each module addressed topics in a well-organized and thorough manner, and the assignments were directly aligned with that content. As I progressed through this course, I was able to compile an abundance of ideas for supporting faculty and staff at my institution, whether it be acquainting them with resources, guiding them in the use of these resources, or assisting them in creating resources of their own. This is the most useful and impactful professional development I have participated in since becoming an instructional designer.” -Laurie Nave
“My Creative Commons experience was awesome. I particularly enjoyed the discussions and webinars. I had an opportunity to expand my educational horizons and collaborate with great educators. “Team Work Makes The Dream Work”’ -Verlindsey Stewart
“Taking the Creative Commons Certification course will be incredibly beneficial as I work with campus faculty to adopt/adapt/create OER materials to benefit our students. Understanding how Creative Commons Licensing works is essential to creating a more equitable campus for everyone.” -Jennifer Pate
“I’m really glad I took this course. It was intense, but very worth the takeaways, which include a great set of Creative Commons learning objects as well as solid grounding in licensing that will help me personally as well as in my role at my institution.” -Tess Olten
“Great way to interact with others around the globe to create a better understanding of the Open movement and Creative Commons licensing!” -Anonymous
“It was a great experience to get to know the CC Community. I learned so much and got to meet nice people around the globe to discuss copyright, CC licenses and Open Access with them. Now I feel well informed and prepared to support others in using CC licenses.” -Katja Wermbter
“I thought I knew a lot about Creative Commons and the licenses before I took the class, but now I’m aware of how much I didn’t know before! I feel much more confident in my ability to assist faculty at my institution in using Creative Commons-licensed works and in licensing their own work now.” -Jill Hallam-Miller
“Great course, packed with valuable knowledge and taught by talented, passionate professionals.” -Larissa Smith
“This course efficiently helped me learn what I needed to lead open education initiatives at my school.” -Anonymous
“I started simply to learn more about copyright and Creative Commons but quickly realized the value of the course lay in continuing to build the commons, the creative and collaborative community.” -Jane Jacobson
“The Certified Course was an opportunity to receive basic and intermediate knowledge that clarified concepts that I did not handle clearly (although I thought I did) and understand that there is still a lot to learn. Not only did I receive theoretical knowledge but also many practical tools for managing content and copyright, all of this in a suitable structure that allowed me to learn quickly and that I found so great that I want to copy it in my own classes in the future.
El Curso Certificado fue una oportunidad de recibir conocimiento basico e intermedio que me aclaro conceptos que no manejaba claramente (aunque creia que si) y comprender que aun hay muchisimo que aprender. No solo recibi conocimiento teorico sino muchisimas herramientas practicas para el manejo de contenido y su derecho de autor, todo esto en una estructura adecuada que me permitio un rapido aprendizaje y que me resulto tan genial que quiero copiar en mis propias clases en el futuro.” -Jose Mendoza
“Participating in the CC Certification course was an absolute delight. The content is well-organized and paced, providing an approachable introduction to open licensing for educators from a range of diverse backgrounds. One of the greatest benefits was the opportunity to connect with others from all over the globe, who share a passion for opening up the education process for ALL learners. I highly recommend this course to anyone seeking to work with openly licensed content.” -Sarah Hutton
“If you’ve ever seen a Creative Commons license and wondered what on earth they were about, this course will tell you everything you could ever want to know. If you’re more familiar with CC Licenses and the range of activities they’re used for, like I was, you will still get tremendous value from this course. I’ve been using CC Licenses since 2002 and I got a lot of new information from this course and the chance to engage in hands-on learning activities that I can take back to my workplace.” -Lauren Bourdages
“The Creative Commons Certificate Program for Librarians provided me with a solid understanding of the Creative Commons licenses and the integral role that they play in promoting and sustaining the open movement. Armed with the knowledge from this course, I feel more confident in my scholarly communication work with faculty and students at my institution.” -Khaleedah Thomas
“The Course was very useful and even if you know a lot about CC already you will get a much better and deeper understanding after the course! It was well worth spending my time on!” -Fredrik Edman
“The CC Certificate is vital knowledge as higher education evolves toward sharing knowledge in an open environment. The information I learned will help me provide better advice to faculty who are using or creating Open Educational Resources, as well as to students who are using CC-licensed works in their studies. Even more important, it gives me a toolbox I can reference as a librarian to be a stronger advocate for open access scholarship. I highly recommend this course for every information professional or educator.”-Adam Johnson
“The Creative Commons Certificate Course should be required for anyone who works with or produces openly licensed material, particularly scholarly editors or publishers. Slapping an open license on a work is one thing, truly understanding the context, history, and potential use cases entirely another. This course offers a wealth of information delivered in a collegial environment by amazing instructors. Highly recommended!” – Jeno Mavzer
“The Creative Commons Certificate Course was illuminating but also sparking a lot of creativity too; I thoroughly enjoyed the flexibility in terms of media that could be used and also it introduced me to a variety of new tools and platforms that was really useful. Even if they are not strictly relevant currently, it is always good to have an idea of what is available. The assignments asked you to understand the theory through practical implementations in your assignments and hence was very hands-on. The assignments were extremely well-structured, logical and clear in their directions. Altogether a pleasurable experience with great facilitators too! Highly recommended.”- Kathryn Kure
“The Creative Commons Certificate course was an incredibly intense and enjoyable learning experience and I was able to apply my new learning and methods to my own work situation. It was exciting to work with the knowledgeable facilitators and to learn with other participants who shared their own experiences, viewpoints, and knowledge. This created a rich environment to study and learn about Creative Commons licensing and how it applies to the global OPEN movements. I recommend the course without reservation!” – Michael Nieckoski
“I found this course to be immensely worthwhile. I gained a better understanding of the Creative Commons licenses and how to effectively apply them in different scenarios, as well as how licenses work with copyright law to ensure that creators and users have a myriad of possibilities when sharing work. As a librarian, I feel much more confident discussing and providing guidance to my colleagues who are interested in creating or using open work, such as Open Educational Resources. Most importantly, through taking this course I now have a network of colleagues from all over the world who I can turn to with questions and guidance. Creative Commons truly is a movement!” – Roxanna Palmer
“The CC Certificate Program is one that I highly recommend to anyone working in any area of our shared information community. With a background covering libraries, publishing, and academia, I have found the value of this course bridges all three areas and provides takeaways that will not only enhance your own professional understanding and applications of CC licenses and open values, but also further develop your approaches and understandings toward those you work with, educate, and advocate for. The outcomes are beneficial on both a personal and professional level.” – Vanessa Rusch
“The CC Cert course is a digestible and insightful introduction to the world of open licensing for educators. In addition to well curated content the course offers the opportunity to connect with other educators from around the world.” -Robert Farrow
“The Creative Commons (CC) certificate course gives you both a solid foundation of knowledge and a practical component that you can utilize in your professional and personal life. For me, this meant filling in the knowledge gaps and conducting a workshop for my village in Ukraine!” -Todd Raschen Lim
“Two of my favorite things about this certificate are: a. You discuss your CC questions and thoughts with others from all over the world, and you find out how your experiences compare and you learn from others, not just the facilitators; and b. The openness of the facilitators each time I wanted to modify my assignment slightly to make it more useful for my own context and goals.” -Maha Bali
“The course was very valuable with rich content, clear presentation and interactive assignments and discussions. It was highly beneficial, and I acquired a deep knowledge about Creative Commons and its offered licenses. Practically, I will employ this knowledge in enhancing and increasing the awareness among the scholarly community stakeholders in my region ‘Middle East & North Africa.’” -Mohamad Mostafa
“It was a great pleasure for me to take this course. The way in which it is taught is very helpful for countries where the CC licensing literature is not so vast. This is precisely why more specialized people are needed in this field: cultural production demands it today. We all think we know something about CC licenses, but this course helps a lot to clear up doubts that at first may seem basic, but they are not. It is a whole universe in itself which needs a specialized and professional guide.” -Julio Zetter Patiño
“I knew a fair amount about OER and CC before I took this course, but I have now deepened my understanding and also engaged in fascinating discussions with people from the global network. I recommend it to every educator – no matter how much you already know.” -Alison Mead Richardson
“The CC Certificate Course gave me the confidence to apply my now in-depth understanding of CC-licensing to my work. Participation in the course has encouraged me to think more deeply about copyright and the power of Creative Commons to liberate knowledge and has inspired me to get involved with the global movement.” -Katya Henry
“All the resources and information you could ask for about the creative commons landscape in a collegian, interactive, and rigorous format. Highly recommended.” -Jennifer Collins, Summer, 2019“The Certification course is quite the eye opener. I could not have spent this time understanding CC better. I have greatly enjoyed the structure of the class. The modules were presented with a graduation that allows anyone to find their feet. My facilitator was great – and kept in touch every single week, there is no moment I felt left out. I spent countless hours reading comments from my classmates and the wealth of knowledge and experiences could not be more perfect for me. Thank you CC for the scholarship!” -Brian Ssennoga
“Take this course and receiving this certificate is the difference between thinking that I understand OA/OER and CC licenses and knowing that I understand!” -Cindy Gruwell
“This is a course that every educator should undertake! It should be a requirement for teachers, lecturers and policymakers. It is important for anyone working in the world of Open Educational Resources (OER) to gain a good grasp of Creative Commons licences. The course is presented in such a way that one can do the work at times that suit individual time schedules.” -Paul West
“This course should be required by all faculty and instructional designers. Critical content. I now make my students learn Creative Commons.” -Robert Gibson
“I would recommend the course for any interested academic librarian. It was very thoughtfully designed, engaging, and presented clear and reasonable expectations. Thank you for creating this excellent resource and learning opportunity.” -Merinda McLure
“The Certificate course for Librarians has been a great way to learn more about copyright and creative commons licenses. The international aspect has been equally rewarding since we live in a global digital environment. If you have an interest in OA and OER, this course ties right in with it. The course is well organized, well paced, and the perfect way to interact with other librarians and educators and learn how copyright law is addressed in many different countries. Creative Commons licenses provide a standardized way to grant copyright permission.” -Susan Tsiouris
“The CC Certificate course is a practical (and amazing!) way to ground yourself in the open world of CC licenses. Moving through the course with a group of peers that are invested in learning about how to utilize and apply what we learned back at our own institutions was an inspirational and motivating experience.” -Walter Butler
“This course was fantastic. Well organized with just the right amount of reading and work. The assignments forced some digging and research, but also allowed a creative approach to the topic which made it fun! I learned so much. It was a great compliment to the SPARC Open Educational Leadership Program that I am also taking.
-Dawn (Nikki) Cannon-Rech
“I appreciated the opportunity to learn with and from others enrolled in the course as I developed a more robust understanding of CC licenses, open access, and the dedication to growing a population of creators and audiences invested in celebrating curiosity, creativity, collaboration… community.” -Anonymous
“I registered for this course to be able to better serve the faculty at my university. The CC Certification course accomplished that goal and so much more. My fellow cohorts and facilitator were encouraging and provided well thought out responses. Our section had conversations full of growth and meaningful questions. This course is set up to not just memorize details, but learn and apply those details into real, open resources. I will be using what I learned and the contacts created in this course for the longevity of my career. 10/10 would recommend to anyone working with openly licensed materials.” -Elizabeth Batte
“This course has made all the fuzzy parts of copyright, Creative Commons licenses, and OER so much more clear. I feel empowered to advocate for change on my campus, and I know my students will benefit from all I’ve learned. If you want to rethink why you create what you create, why you teach what you teach, and all the pieces in between – this course is for you.” -Sybil Priebe
“I have had a long love affair with Creative Commons licensing, and worked independently to learn all I could. But I was never confident about what I knew. I was so excited to learn about this certificate program as I wanted something more to help show my knowledge level. This course met and exceeded all my expectations. Be prepared to work, and be sure you can dedicate the time; you’ll need it! But once you finish you’ll feel a great sense of accomplishment and a higher level of knowledge about the open movement and Creative Commons licensing.” -Penny Pearson
“The CC Certificate course was amazing! I have tried to find and use OER in the past, but I didn’t know how to find the most effective resources or what options I had for customizing the material. Now, I feel confident that I can use this new knowledge to provide accessible, effective OER for my students. Thank you Creative Commons!” -Jessica Traylor
The content and resources included in the Creative Commons Certificate Course for Librarians are great! I already knew a good bit about CC before taking the course; yet, I was never bored. The course includes the basic concepts and delves into detailed intricacies without being overwhelming. I appreciated having an engaged instructor and lively discussions with librarians. -Denise Dimsdale
“Going through the CC Certificate for Educators course was an enjoyable journey for me. (Yes, because learning is a journey!). The course was very well structured, fun, informative, and full of meaningful reflections and useful assignments -renewable assignments rather than disposable assignments-. I felt so productive. Most importantly, the course clarified some misunderstandings I had previously about copyright, CC licenses, and Open Educational Resources. Now I am much more confident to advocate and share my knowledge on these issues in my local contexts.” -Wahya Setioko
“I really enjoyed the Creative Commons Certificate for Librarians. It was a great overview of the Creative Commons licenses and the world surrounding it. Through the course assignments, I was able to develop resources that I can reuse in teaching about copyright and Creative Commons licensing. Relevant feedback was provided by instructors and facilitator, and it’s a great opportunity to dialogue with other librarians around issues related to Creative Commons and Open Access, and Open Educational Resources more generally.” –Roger Gillis
“The Creative Commons Certificate provided me with a fantastic peer-based learning opportunity. I had a great time learning more about CC, copyright and open values. I look forward to sharing my knowledge with my peers and getting more involved in the conversation and the community moving forward.” -Kylie Burgess
“The Creative Commons Certification program helped me to develop a much more in-depth appreciation of the concepts of copyright, open access, and Creative Commons licenses. It is a sizable time commitment, but the understanding I have developed has been invaluable in helping me as I work to establish an open access institutional repository at the library for the university. The content of the course and the related links and resources are exceptional. The discussions have helped me acquire a broader perspective and a better sense of what direction open access needs to take on my campus to catch up with this movement. I found the Uber Webcasts with the lawyers to be especially helpful. I would recommend this certificate to anyone working with open access resources.” -Sue Czerny
“Campuses often have well-meaning, enthusiastic volunteers looking to utilize, create, or promote open initiatives like OER or Open Access. An understanding of copyright and CC licenses is often a missing component to the knowledge that could turn that enthusiasm into actionable passion. This course bolstered my knowledge, and I know I’ll be recommending it to those on our campus who know they support the missions, but don’t quite have the nuances and vocabulary around copyright and open licensing down.” -Barry Bailey
I have taken the Creative Commons Certificate for Educators and have enjoyed the course greatly. In my opinion, the course was very well organized, well structured, and very informative. It was great to receive feedback on assignments from the CC Certificate team. It was also helpful to have the opportunity to provide comments on each assignment and to discuss course-related matters on Slack.—Mayya Revzina
This course opened doors for me the moment it began, and I see no signs of this stopping. It is a tremendous source of education, opportunity, and inspiration.—Maran Wolston
The course content is well organized. The topics in this course almost cover the entire ecosystem of Openness. Excellent references and case studies. I highly recommended this course for open education practitioners and the ones who are willing to join the open movement. The support and feedback provided by the course staff are commendable. Completing the performance assessments and sharing it with others gave me a sense of satisfaction.—Lokesh Rajendran
The CC Certificate course gave me the opportunity to learn more about the intricacies of license compatibility. But it was more than that: through the course and conversations with my fellow classmates, I came away with new ideas for opening up my community.—Colleen Cressman
“A well structured and diverse course. Do you think you know everything about Creative Commons? Well, enroll in this programme and see if you can pass the quizzes. I guarantee you that you will have some surprises and, for sure, you will learn new things.” —George Hari Popescu
“I wasn’t sure at first if I should take this course because I thought I knew a lot about Creative Commons and CC licenses already. I’m very glad I did take the course because I learned quite a bit more than I had already known. The information is just the right amount, with lots of additional resources if one wants to go further. The assignments were particularly helpful in solidifying my understanding and providing resources that I can reuse in my own advocacy work!”—Christina Hendricks
“The course took the general information about Creative Commons I had already acquired and expanded it into areas that I’d not experienced such as open resources. It rounded out an incomplete mental picture. If you already know something about CC, this will take you farther, but if you are new to CC you’ll leave with a working knowledge and the resources to grow your own mental map.”—Carol Simpson
“The fundamentals of copyright, open licensing, and cultures and technologies of sharing creative intellectual products are of absolutely fundamental importance in the everyday lives of scholars and educators today. Creative Commons’ Certificate Program is an intensive but engaging and illuminating way to master these intricacies. This stuff is so important and the CC Cert Program is so powerful that I encourage every single educator and educational policy person I know to take it!” Jonathan Poritz
“I’m so glad I got the chance to take the CC Certificate for Librarians course in its beta version. It has been an amazing learning experience. As somebody who leads our OER initiative on campus, the opportunity to learn more about Creative Commons licenses on a much deeper level, engage with our instructor and the rest of the cohort to dispel our misconceptions about the licenses enabled me to have a better understanding of what each CC license means.”—Regina Gong
“This certification is a ‘must have’ for librarians working with Open Access and Open Educational Resources. The content is thorough and engaging, and you will feel your confidence growing as you work with the CC licenses each week.”—Jennifer Cournoyer
“I work with minority language speakers as they promote and develop their languages. For the literacy division of our organization, using CC licenses is already a standard procedure, but I wasn’t aware of this until recently. I would like to help develop a consistent way to consolidate our knowledge of Open Education Resources and OER ideals within our organization.”—Anonymous
“The peek I had into Open Education Resources was exciting and inspiring! OER can be the building blocks in a movement to change the way education and literacy are done around the world, providing access to those who are cut off due to lack of finances, while at the same time empowering them to adapt resources to fit their needs and cultures or create their own new resources.”—Anonymous