In this episode of Open-Ed Mic, the hosts sit down with Dr. Lisa Young to discuss her journey from hydrologist to open education leader. After beginning as an instructor in the 1990s, she became interested in reusable learning objects and online teaching following a server failure that erased her course materials.

Young explains how international open education conferences expanded her view of openness beyond textbook affordability to include equity, collaboration and global access to knowledge. She shares examples of educators using open resources to overcome censorship and educational barriers. The conversation also examines the evolution of OpenMaricopa from a cost-savings initiative into a broader movement focused on open pedagogy, student-centered learning and institutional culture change. Young closes by discussing the future of open education through artificial intelligence, microcredentials and workforce partnerships designed to expand access and flexibility for learners.

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Dr. Lisa C. Young is faculty administrator of Open Education and Innovation for the Maricopa Community Colleges, where she leads strategic efforts in open educational practices, instructional innovation and equitable access to learning. She is a founding leader of the Maricopa Millions initiative, now OpenMaricopa, which has supported open, low-cost and zero-textbook-cost course materials, saving students more than $269 million. She serves on the board of directors of Open Education Global and has held multiple leadership roles with the Community College Consortium for Open Educational Resources, including vice president of professional development, outreach and co-president. Her expertise includes open education policy, faculty development, leadership, active learning and educational innovation. Her recent work includes co-leading Maricopa’s artificial intelligence task force, advancing digital transformation and supporting districtwide microcredential initiatives aligned with workforce needs. Her work focuses on equity, innovation and learner success through scalable, student-centered systems.

Faculty Administrator of Open Education and Innovation

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