The Affordable Access Awards recognize faculty and staff who demonstrate a commitment to addressing textbook affordability and the principles of open education. We are excited to announce that starting in 2025, there will be two separate awards to recognize the various ways of contributing to the cause of affordability in higher education. To learn more and apply, please check out the Affordable Access Awards Requirements page here. 

 

2025 Recipients

A graphic with awards info and a photo of Diba Mani.

Affordable Access Advocacy and Adoption Award
Diba Mani, Ph.D.
Instructional Associate Professor 

Diba Mani has experience teaching small- and large-enrollment undergraduate- and graduate-level courses in-person, hybrid, and fully online. Diba emphasizes the need for accessible courses and content for especially STEM students, recognizing the exceptional schedules these students tend to have. Thus, maximizing the development of skills alongside learning subject matter is an emphasis in her courses: she integrates internationalization and virtual exchange, scientific communication through presentation development, using artificial intelligence as a tool, and authentic assessments as much as possible. 

A graphic with awards info and a photo of Ricky Wayne Telg.

Affordable Access Innovation and Design Award
Ricky Wayne Telg, Ph.D.
Lecturer

Ricky Telg is a professor in the University of Florida’s Department of Agricultural Education and Communication. In his agricultural communication, instructional technologies, and news writing courses, Telg integrates a hands-on approach to instruction that teaches students how to develop communication methods and digital media for the agricultural workplace. He has served as the director for the University of Florida/ Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences’ (UF/IFAS) Center for Public Issues Education in Agriculture and Natural Resources (PIE Center) since 2016. 

2024 Recipients

Matthew Traum, Ph.D.
Instructional Associate Professor 

Jason Nowell, Ph.D.
Lecturer 

Casey Rowe, Pharm.D.
Clinical Associate Professor 

2023 Recipients

Ashish Aggarwal
Instructional Assistant Professor
Department of Engineering Education
COP2271: Computer Programming for Engineers

COP3530 Course Development Team
Team Lead: Amanpreet Kapoor, Instructional Assistant Professor
Department of Engineering Education
COP3530: Data Structures and Algorithms

Melanie K. Veige
Instructional Professor, Director of General Chemistry
Department of Chemistry
CHM1020: Chemistry for the Liberal Arts

2022 Recipients

A photo of Han Xu.Han Xu

Senior Lecturer
Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Han Xu created a suite of introductory course materials for CHI1130: Beginning Chinese I, which includes an introduction to the Chinese writing and pronunciation systems. Innovatively housed in OneNote, these course materials replace a $63 traditional textbook. With over 200 students taking CHI1130 each year, these course materials have the potential to save UF students over $12,000 annually.
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A photo of Kevin JonesKevin Jones, Ph.D.

Distinguished Professor
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering

Dr. Kevin Jones co-led the creation of The Impact of Materials on Society (IMOS), a free full-length textbook for undergraduate students. Bridging STEM and the humanities, this book explores the complex interplay between human cultures and everyday materials like clay, glass, concrete, steel, and plastic. In partnership with the Materials Research Society, Jones also co-designed an IMOS course aligned with the text, which today enrolls about 175 undergraduate students each year at UF and an estimated 500 students nationwide.
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A photo of Sophia AcordSophia Acord, Ph.D.

Adjunct Associate Director
Center for the Humanities and the Public Sphere
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Dr. Sophia Acord co-led the creation of The Impact of Materials on Society (IMOS), a free full-length textbook for undergraduate students. Bridging STEM and the humanities, this book explores the complex interplay between human cultures and everyday materials like clay, glass, concrete, steel, and plastic. In partnership with the Materials Research Society, Acord also co-designed an IMOS course aligned with the text, which today enrolls about 175 undergraduate students each year at UF and an estimated 500 students nationwide.
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