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‘Français inclusif’ curriculum named finalist for Open Education Awards for Excellence

Every year, the Open Education Awards for Excellence honors outstanding contributions in the Open Education community, recognizing exemplary individuals, distinctive open educational resources, and innovative open practices from around the world. Boise State’s Français inclusif has made the shortlist of 2023 finalists in the category of “How We Share: Open Reuse / Remix / Adaptation!” The awards received 174 nominations across 16 categories and winners will be announced on Sept. 13.

A collage of six headshots
First Row: Dr. Mariah Devereux Herbeck, Co-Project Director and Professor of French, Amber Hoye, Co-Project Director and Director of World Languages Resource Center, Brittney Gehrig, Lecturer of French
Second Row: Former Boise State Students Sharon Westbrook, Emily Blackburn, and Madelynn Ruther. Westbrook is a former K-12 instructor and now works as an Intensive English Program instructor at Boise State. Blackburn and Ruhter both teach high school French in the Treasure Valley.

Created by a K-16 team of French instructors and an instructional designer, Français inclusif is available as a complete curriculum for first-year and second-year French. The team not only revised and remixed an existing OER text, but also created significant ancillary materials including assessments, task-based activities, cultural reflections, slide decks and embedded authentic materials. The group was named a finalist for the 2023 Presidential Innovation Award, is a 2023 recipient of a College of Arts and Sciences Innovation Lab seed grant and a 2022 recipient of an INFUSE grant through the Center for Teaching and Learning.

More about Français inclusif

  • Français inclusif was created by Mariah Devereux Herbeck, co-project director and professor of French, Amber Hoye, co-project director and director of World Languages Resource Center, Brittney Gehrig, lecturer of French, and three former students who are now K-12 instructors.
  • The project eliminates the textbook costs for all first and second year French students. It’s estimated that Boise State students have saved over $37,000 to date.
  • Not only are the curricular materials highly interactive, but they are also customized for Boise State and Idaho students, valuing diverse representation of local students, as well as the francophone world.
  • The textbooks are already making an impact outside of Boise State with instructors from the College of Western Idaho, the Los Rios Colleges, Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, Grand Valley State University and Northeastern Illinois University using it in their classrooms.
  • Locally, Boise State Concurrent Enrollment instructors use the textbook in their classrooms at Mountain View and Capital High Schools.