U-M’s XR Initiative is funding 13 new XR Innovation projects that work with faculty to develop course content using commercially available extended reality authoring platforms. Projects will be funded through the XR Innovation Fund and include experiences focused on architectural design, language instruction, supporting medical and nursing training, and diversity, equity and accessibility issues in the XR space.
After funding eight projects in 2020, the initiative will be able to support more projects by using existing platforms that don’t require custom programming, XR Initiative Director Jeremy Nelson said. “There are so many ways XR can support and enhance teaching and learning, and our faculty are coming to the table with amazing ideas. We believe it is important to plant as many seeds as we can across different programs to foster that innovation and sense of community,” Nelson said.
Projects receive awards ranging from $2,500 to $15,000 and provide faculty with access to 360-degree cameras, production equipment, access to XR authoring platforms and in-kind support for project management and learning experience design from the Center for Academic Innovation.
