Introduction to the U.S. Healthcare System provides undergraduate students with a thorough foundation to start degree programs in health administration, public health, health sciences, and more. With authors from across the country with a variety of backgrounds, this textbook provides the reader with the history of the U.S. healthcare system, government programs, financing and managed care, cultural awareness. technology, and health disparities. This text is provided as an open education resource, free to all students. Instructors can utilize the entire text or select individual chapters to apply to a wide variety of healthcare courses:
Overview of the U.S. Healthcare System
Primary Care and Other Healthcare Professionals
Inpatient and Outpatient Services
Public Health, Prevention, & Wellness
Population Health Management
Financing Healthcare in the U.S.
Government Programs
Managed Care & Reimbursement
Long-Term Care and Populations with Special Needs
Post-Acute Care
Quality & Safety
The Impact of Technology
Historic and Future Perspectives in Health Information Technology
Health Policy
Complementary and Alternative Care
Health Disparities
Cultural Competence
Healthcare: A Global Perspective

The United States government has a long history of supporting energy-related research and development (RD&D). However, federal support for civilian energy RD&D has declined significantly since the creation of the Department of Energy (DOE). Recent spending decisions prioritize fossil fuels over clean energy, hindering efforts to address the carbon problem and decarbonize our society.

Energy poverty is a significant concern in the United States, with over one in four households experiencing insecurity. Government programs like LIHEAP and WAP aim to address this issue, but funding levels often fall short of the need. A more comprehensive approach is necessary, considering the impact on well-being and addressing racial and socioeconomic disparities.

KICTCFT: Teachers have an in-depth knowledge of national policies and be able to design, modify and implement classroom practices that support these policies. Specific Objectives: By the end of this unit you should be able to:
1] Explain the principles of using ICT in education, 2] Analyze challenges of implementing the principles of using ICT in education, and 3] State solutions to the challenges of using ICT in education.

In this lab, students apply the concepts of earlier lessons to their own community. They begin by exploring economic, environmental, and social impacts of drought. Students then prepare for and stage a mock community meeting to draw up plans to face an upcoming drought.

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In this activity students explore how to reduce vulnerability to drought risk through mitigation strategies. Students investigate one or more of four technology-based mitigation strategies by reading articles or viewing short podcasts and completing hands-on activities. Students make a presentation or poster to communicate their findings to the class.

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This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview:

"In September of 2016, a violent storm left South Australia without power. At the time, 57% of the region's power came from wind and solar-a stark contrast to the coal-dominated energy mix of its neighbors to the east. To some politicians and backers of coal, it was proof that renewable energy couldn't be trusted. To renewable energy pioneers, it was a technical challenge: could a large-enough battery cushion the swings in wind and solar power? In a recent review article published in MRS Energy & Sustainability, energy experts weigh in, considering-among other factors-the political and legal ramifications of going big with batteries. The summer after South Australia's big blackout, the state government doubled down and announced the construction of the world's biggest battery. Within 100 days, the clean-energy company Tesla delivered a 129-MWh lithium-ion battery, all for $91 million without government subsidies..."

The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.

The primary purpose of this seminar is to enable students to craft approaches to so-called “First World”/ “Third World” city comparisons that are theoretically sophisticated, methodologically rigorous, contextually grounded, and significantly beneficial. Since there exists very little literature and very few projects which compare “First World” and “Third World” cities in a sophisticated and genuinely useful manner, the seminar is structured around a series of readings, case studies, and discussions to assist students in becoming mindful of the potential and pitfalls of comparative analysis, the types of data, the methods of analysis, and the urban issues or sectors which may benefit the most from such approaches. The course is designed to be interdisciplinary and interactive, and is geared towards masters and doctoral students.

Runway extension, construction of works in protected areas, subsidizing sustainable projects... they all happen within a design space, limited amongst others by legal rules and requirements. To make optimal use of the design space, you have to know about these rules and requirements. When does a contract have to be tendered out, what rules are then applicable, what can be subsidized and what are the restrictions, how to comply with air quality requirements and can a frog really block a project? What alternative designs can be given in order to avoid legal problems? These and other problems will be addressed in this course.

Conversations regarding research data often intersect with questions related to ethical, legal, and policy issues for managing research data. This lesson will define copyrights, licenses, and waivers, discuss ownership and intellectual property, and describe some reasons for data restriction. After completing this lesson, participants will be able to identify ethical, legal, and policy considerations that surround the use and management of research data.

The lesson activity titles are:

What are systems? (Purpose: to have students understand what a "system" is, in the broadest sense)
How is the natural environment of the tribal community a system? (Purpose: to tie what students learned during the year about the tribal community and its natural environment to the concept of what a "system" is)
How did settlers of European descent change the tribe's ecosystem? (Purpose: to explore the connections between what European settlers did to the tribe's ecosystem and what the effects have been on the ecosystem)
What can be done? What should be done? (Purpose: to explore and evaluate policy options for future environmental sustenance)

(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)

Students observe demonstrations, and build and evaluate simple models to understand the greenhouse effect, the role of increased greenhouse gas concentration in global warming, and the implications of global warming theory for engineers, themselves and the Earth. In an associated literacy activity, students learn how a bill becomes law and research global warming legislation.

Gain a systemic understanding of critical raw materials and learn about strategies and solutions to manage them in a sustainable way.

This course aims to get students thinking about politics and policy as a part of their everyday life. We treat politics as a struggle among competing advocates trying to persuade others to see the world as they do, working within a context that is structured primarily by institutions and cultural ideas. We’ll begin by developing a policymaking framework, understanding ideology, and taking a whirlwind tour of the American political system. Then, we’ll examine six policy issues in depth: health care, gun control, the federal budget, immigration reform, same-sex marriage, and energy and climate change.

The Malaysia Sustainable Cities Practicum is an intensive field-based course that brings 15 graduate students to Malaysia to learn about and analyze sustainable city development in five cities in Malaysia. The students in the Practicum will help determine the extent to which these efforts have been successful. They will identify specific projects or policy-making efforts that the following year’s cohort of International Visiting Scholars can examine more closely. 
Lead Faculty
Professor Larry Susskind
Teaching Assistants
Jessica Gordon
Yasmin Zaerpoor
Administrative Staff
Takeo Kuwabara
Selmah Goldberg

OER programs provide an opportunity for students to earn a certificate or associates degree without incurring the cost of textbooks for their courses. This can dramatically reduce the cost of attendance and has been estimated at 25% or more savings*. Most OER programs are developed to serve the neediest students who may otherwise have to defer college or take fewer courses due to prohibitive cost. Reaching the students who could most benefit most from enrolling in OER courses can prove to be a challenge in of itself. We will hear from speakers who have developed successful strategies at their colleges to create awareness and encourage underrepresented students to enroll in OER degree programs targeted at their academic success.

This course provides an introduction to public policy analysis. It is designed for students who may be planning a career in public or non-profit sectors. The primary goal is to help students understand the implications of public policy for different pursuits. The class examines various approaches to policy analysis by considering the concepts, tools, and methods used in economics, political science, and other disciplines. Students apply and critique these approaches through case studies of current public policy problems.

At the end of a six-week class or unit on global warming, students role-play representatives from various countries and organizations at an international summit on global warming.

(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)

This report provides a deeper look into how states are supporting OER implementation, and what lessons can be learned from the progress they are making. This CCSSO and New America report spotlights examples of new and different approaches for promoting and sustaining open, relevant, and high-quality instructional materials. It concludes with five key takeaways for state leaders to consider as they improve the quality and affordability of the materials teachers are using every day.

School Districts (Public or Private)

Participation in OER: Collaboration through Open Educational Resources (OER) is beneficial in many ways for the district and for the education community in Nebraska.  The Educational Service Unit Coordinating Council (ESUCC) and the Nebraska Department of Education (NDE) have provided a platform to share educational materials with OER designation which can be reviewed and aligned to Nebraska’s state standards.  The board authorizes the superintendent to allow staff members to participate in OER, at the superintendent’s discretion, both by incorporating OER materials into the curriculum adopted by the board and by sharing materials and resources owned by the district.  Those materials and resources include works made for hire by district employees. Unless the superintendent or superintendent’s designee(s) determines otherwise, materials owned by the district may be shared to the ESUCC-NDE OER Collection(s) with the Creative Commons Attribution License designation of either (1) “Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike,” which is universally noted as “CC BY-NC-SA”; or (2) “Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivatives,” which is universally noted as “CC BY-NC-ND.”

Participation in OER. Collaboration through Open Educational Resources (OER) is beneficial in many ways for the ESU’s member districts and for the education community in Nebraska.  The Educational Service Unit Coordinating Council (ESUCC) and the Nebraska Department of Education (NDE) have provided a platform to share educational materials with OER designation which can be reviewed and aligned to Nebraska’s state standards.  The board authorizes the administrator to allow staff members to participate in OER, at the administrator’s discretion, both by incorporating OER materials into the services provided by the ESU to member districts and by sharing materials and resources owned by the ESU.  Those materials and resources include works made for hire by ESU employees.  Unless the administrator or administrator’s designee(s) determines otherwise, materials owned by the ESU may be shared to the ESUCC-NDE OER Collection(s) with the Creative Commons Attribution License designation of either (1) “Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike,” which is universally noted as “CC BY-NC-SA”; or (2) “Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivatives,” which is universally noted as “CC BY-NC-ND.”