UT San Antonio is among the founding institutions in the newly launched Texas Open Source Program Office (Texas-OSPO), a University of Texas System initiative that will expand the use, development and stewardship of open source software across the state’s public research universities. This launch will support the UT San Antonio research portfolio in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, data science and high-performance computing.
Funded in part by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Texas-OSPO will serve as a centralized hub for open source training, consultation and collaboration, connecting researchers, students and developers across the UT System. UT San Antonio joins UT Austin, UT Dallas and UT El Paso in the coordinated system-wide network, which is built on the existing UT Austin OSPO and the UT System Research Cyberinfrastructure (UTRC) initiative.
“The UT System is dedicated to fostering innovation in research and education through open source software,” said Dr. Joan Bienvenue, associate vice chancellor for research and chief research security officer for UT System. “By integrating UTRC efforts with the UT Austin-OSPO and the planned system-wide Texas-OSPO, we will empower faculty, students and research teams with advanced tools and expertise, accelerating innovation across multiple disciplines.”
As a member institution, UT San Antonio’s faculty, staff and students will gain direct access to Texas-OSPO services and join a community of practice that spans one of the largest public university systems in the world — serving more than 260,000 students and supporting more than $4.7 billion in annual research expenditures.
“Open source software has become essential in today’s research landscape,” said Jessica Abel, co-principal investigator for Texas-OSPO at UT San Antonio. “Establishing an Open Source Software Office at our institution establishes the infrastructure to turn individual contributions into lasting, community-driven projects that extend our research impact across the world.”
Through Texas-OSPO, UT San Antonio researchers and students will gain access to a wide range of new resources, including training programs that range from introductory software skills to advanced open source project management. They will also gain access to a catalog of active software projects that connect students and community members with real-world research and software contribution opportunities. Additionally, a case study lecture series will feature leaders in open source innovation.
“This effort is a major step forward in building a connected, collaborative and sustainable open source ecosystem across Texas,” said Angela Newell, co-principal investigator and director of the UT Austin OSPO. “By working together, these institutions can expand their collective impact and accelerate innovation and discovery across research and education.”
Over its initial two-year phase, Texas-OSPO will expand engagement across UT System institutions and build partnerships with national and international open source organizations. Texas-OSPO will hold its inaugural Open Source Program Office Symposium (OSPOSIUM) on Sept. 23-24 at the Texas Advanced Computing Center. The system-wide event opens a new pathway for UT San Antonio students to engage with open source leaders from across the country.
