ZTC Listserv Communications

We are pleased to share College of the Canyons as the new Technical Assistance Provider for the statewide ZTC Grant Program. We look forward to providing additional information and support in the coming months.

In order to support colleges that are developing ZTC pathways and to inform our approach to supporting colleges, we are sharing a ZTC Pathway Readiness Assessment. This assessment is intended to be a tool for your college to determine the status of your local ZTC progress. It can inform your local planning and assessment of how prepared your college is for ZTC pathway development and competitive funding opportunities. The submitted information will help shape the technical assistance support for colleges and ZTC pathways.

Ideally, the assessment will be completed collaboratively by those who are leading your local ZTC efforts. If at all possible, we are encouraging colleges to complete the short assessment by June 30, but understand that some members of your ZTC team might not be available during the summer, so the assessment will be open through the beginning of the fall term in the hope that you will be able to solicit input from key constituencies.

Click on the following link for the ZTC Pathway Readiness Assessment.

For questions about the assessment, please contact ztctap@canyons.edu

Greetings, 

Please see important Zero Textbook Cost Grant Program updates and reminders below, please email questions to ztc@cccco.edu 

ZTC Grants 

• Phase 1 Planning Grant
  • Reminder, the Fiscal Report in NOVA is due June 30, 2023. Please report expenses for the $20,000 grant allocation, if the funds are unspent, report on how the funds will be spent. 
  • The “Program Report” previously included in NOVA has been removed. No program narrative report is required for Phase 1. 
• Phase 3 Implementation Grant
  • Colleges received $180,000 through apportionment beginning in March 2023, for reference please see Memo ESS 23-04. 
  • A Phase 3 work plan will be due October 31, 2023 in NOVA. A work plan template will be shared out on the ZTC listserv in June for college to begin collecting the work plan information. We will share an update when the work plan is available in NOVA. 
• Phase 2 Acceleration Competitive Grants 
  • Grants will be released in Fall 2023, a release date has not been determined. 

ZTC Pathway Readiness Assessment 

Last week a ZTC Pathway Readiness Assessment was shared out, this assessment is intended to be a tool for your college to determine the status of your local ZTC progress. It can inform your local planning and assessment of how prepared your college is for ZTC pathway development and competitive funding opportunities. The submitted information will help shape the technical assistance support for colleges and ZTC pathways. If possible please complete the assessment by June 30, however it will remain open through early fall term if your college is unable to complete by June 30. Questions? ztctap@canyons.edu 

ZTC Listserv
To subscribe, visit https://listserv.cccnext.net/scripts/wa-cccnext.exe?INDEX

• On the home page of the listserv website you will see a list of archives of all the non-confidential listservs hosted by the CCC Technology Center listserv, locate and click on the ZTC list.
• You will see a message stating “Not Authorized” or “Login Required” (or similar). Ignore that, and instead click the 3-line “hamburger” icon to open a short menu
• Click on the option Subscribe or Unsubscribe, which will open the Subscription Management page for that list
• Fill in your name and email address and click Subscribe
• Some lists require you to confirm your email address prior to your request being forwarded to the list owner(s) for final approval
• Once you have been approved you will receive a notification email from listserv about your new subscription

ZTC Office Hours 

Ongoing ZTC drop-in office hours occur on the last Friday of the month from 9:00-10:00 am. The next scheduled office hours are June 30, July 28, August 25 and September 29th. To join, use this link. 

Hello!

As ZTC Technical Assistance Provider, we’re excited to announce our first professional development course: Making the Case for ZTC: Pathways to Equity, July 10-August 5. Registration is now open!

Registration

• Register at the following link: https://formfaca.de/sm/dhiogDvMB
• Registration is first-come, first-served. This section has an enrollment limit of 30, so register today! The deadline to register is July 7 @noon PDT.

 Course Description

This 4-week course explores the fundamental connections between Equity, Open Educational Resources (OER), Guided Pathways, and Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) programs. You will employ an equity cognitive frame to examine the impact of textbook costs on student success, and the disproportionate impact on historically underserved students. You will also dig into research on OER efficacy, consider the “what” and “why” of Guided Pathways, and review case studies on successful ZTC pathways, across the state and beyond. You will leave this course understanding how OER and ZTC pathways promote student success and reduce equity gaps, supporting the Vision for Success of the California Community Colleges.

Course Format

• This online asynchronous course covers 4 modules and will have two co-facilitators.
• Participants will connect weekly through asynchronous discussions and activities, and should expect to spend up to 8 hours per week interacting with one another, the course materials, and the facilitators.
• The course will be offered in the CVC instance of Canvas; many thanks to the CVC team for their support!
• Register at the following link: https://formfaca.de/sm/dhiogDvMB

Future Courses

We plan to offer this and at least two other professional development courses during the fall term: Training OER Support Specialists and Teaching with OER and Open Pedagogy for Equity. We’ll announce when we have dates set for those course offerings. Another version of this course – designed to be self-paced (no facilitator required) – is also being developed and will be posted to Canvas Commons. We’ll let you know once it’s available.

Questions?

• If you have questions about the course Making the Case for ZTC: Pathways to Equity specifically, please contact: Aloha Sargent aloha.sargent@cabrillo.edu.
• If you have questions about the ZTC professional development course offerings in general, please contact: ztctap@canyons.edu.

Thank you!

James

ZTC Office Hours

An error has been brought to our attention on the dates of the regular ZTC Office hours. We apologize for any inconvenience for those that tried to join this morning.

For clarification,  ZTC drop-in office hours occur on the last Friday of the month from 9:00-10:00 am. The next scheduled office hours are June 30, July 28, August 25 and September 29th. To join, use this link to the ZTC drop-in office hours.

In the meantime, if you have any questions or need assistance, please feel free to reach out to ztc@cccco.edu.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Please note, the following ZTC message was distributed on the SEA Program listserv.

---

Good afternoon ZTC Programs, 

Thank you to the 72 colleges that have submitted their ZTC Phase 1 fiscal report. If you have already submitted, please review the important notes below to ensure it was submitted correctly. 

For colleges who have not submitted, this is a friendly reminder that the ZTC Phase 1 Fiscal Report is due tomorrow, June 30, 2023 COB in NOVA. If your college needs an extension, please email ztc@cccco.edu to request one. 

A few important things to note:

• The fiscal report will need to account for the entire $20,000 Phase 1 grant allocation, the “Total Remaining” in NOVA will need to be zero $0.
  • If you have spent the entire $20,000, please include all expenses. 
  • If you have spent a portion of the $20,000, please report funds expended AND report how you plan to spend the remaining funds in the various categories as well. 
  • If you have spent $0, please report how you plan to spend the $20,000. 
  • If you have already submitted and did not report on the entire $20,000, please “un-submit” your report, revise and resubmit. 
• Only people listed as Project Lead Contacts will have the ability to edit and submit the Fiscal Report in NOVA. Alternate Lead Contacts will not have the ability to edit the Fiscal Report.
  • Adding additional Project Lead Contacts:
    • The person that is already designated as the Project Lead Contact will need to open ZTC Phase 1 Plan
    • Click on the Contacts tab of the workflow
    • Click on +Add Contact located beneath the list of Alternate Project Lead Contacts.
    • Click on the drop-down menu and select Project Lead Contact and then click Next
    • Enter the email address of the person that you would like to designate as a Project Lead Contact
    • Click on Add Role
    • Once listed as a Project Lead Contact, you will then have the ability to edit and submit the Fiscal Report in NOVA.
• The “Program Report” previously included in NOVA has been removed. No program narrative report is required for Phase 1. 
• Questions, support, extension requests, please email ztc@cccco.edu 

ZTC Office Hours 

Ongoing ZTC drop-in office hours occur on the last Friday of the month from 9:00-10:00 am. The next scheduled office hours are June 30, July 28, August 25 and September 29th. To join, use this link. 

 Contact Us

Please don’t hesitate to contact us at ZTC@cccco.edu  if you would like to be added to the ZTC listserv. 

 Many thanks for all that you do and have a splendid day!

Hello,

Thank you to everyone who attended today’s first information session to learn about the ZTC Acceleration Grant Program Plans.

Attached here is a PPT that I used to share information about ZTC Grant Program funding to date, Acceleration Grant program plan timeline, and technical assistance/support.

Additional ZTC Acceleration Grant information sessions are scheduled for Tuesdays, 12 – 1 pm on:

• August 22
• August 29
• September 5
• September 12

Via Zoom: Join ZTC Acceleration Grant information sessions

The Chancellor’s Office will continue to host Ongoing ZTC Drop-in Office Hours

• Last Friday of the month from 9:00-10:00 am.
  • August 25
  • September 29
  • October 27
• Via Zoom: Join ZTC Drop-in Office Hours

Thank you!

James

——————————–

James Glapa-Grossklag

Dean, Educational Technology, Learning Resources, and Distance Learning

Technical Assistance Provider, CCC ZTC Program

OER Fellow, Michelson 20MM Foundation

College of the Canyons

Santa Clarita, CA 91390

661.362.3632

Dear Colleagues:

We are pleased to announce that the Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) Acceleration Grant Program Plan is now available in NOVA.  The Chancellor’s Office strongly encourages all colleges interested in developing and implementing ZTC programs by Fall 2026 to apply for the Acceleration Grant by submitting their program plans by September 15, 2023.  The Chancellor’s Office recognizes that there are limiting factors locally that may make the one-month turnaround time to submit a final Program Plan challenging for some colleges; therefore, the Chancellor’s Office has built in flexibility to allow for the submission of a partial Program Plan (i.e., at minimum the Contact Information and Intent to Apply section) in NOVA by the September 15^th deadline. Please see attached for an example of the Program Plan for your reference.  The Chancellor’s Office will distribute a guidance memo with additional details by Monday, August 21, 2023. 

Please see below for the key Acceleration Grant dates for Fall 2023

Acceleration Program Plan Release	August 15, 2023
Acceleration Program Plan Information Sessions  12:00 – 1:00pm;  Join Zoom Accerleration Program Information Sessions	August 15, 22, 29 and September 5th & 12th
Acceleration Program Plan Submission	September 15, 2023
Award Selection and Awardee Notification begins	September 22, 2023
Grant Allocation through Apportionment begins	October 2023

The Chancellor’s Office will host four more information sessions to support colleges’ submission of the ZTC Acceleration Program Plans. They will be offered on August 22, 29, September 5 and 12 from 12:00 – 1:00pm (use link to join).  In the meantime, if you have questions regarding the ZTC Acceleration Grant, including access to NOVA and/or adding a new program lead contact, please contact us at ZTC@cccco.edu.   

Collegially,

Chad Funk

Program Specialist

Equitable Student Learning, Experience and Impact Office

Educational Services and Support Division

( (916) 445-1774

* cfunk@cccco.edu

Dear Colleagues:

Attached, please see the guidance memo from the State Chancellor’s Office regarding the Zero Textbook Grants Program and Acceleration Grants.  Also, the Chancellor’s Office will host four more information sessions to support colleges’ submission of the ZTC Acceleration Program Plans. The next sessions will be offered on August 22, 29, September 5 and 12 from 12:00 – 1:00pm (use link to join).  In the meantime, if you have questions regarding the ZTC Acceleration Grants, including access to NOVA and/or adding a new program lead contact, please contact us at ZTC@cccco.edu.   

Collegially,

Chad Funk

Program Specialist

Equitable Student Learning, Experience and Impact Office

Educational Services and Support Division

(916) 445-1774

* cfunk@cccco.edu

Hello everyone,

As the ZTC Grant Program Technical Assistance Provider, I’m pleased to let you know that our Fall 2023 ZTC professional development courses are available for registration. Thanks to our colleagues with CVC, you can register for our courses via the @ONE catalog of classes: ZTC Professional Development Fall 2023. Completers will earn an @One badge.

Descriptions of the ZTC courses are below. More details, including course outcomes and dates, are available in the @One catalog of classes: ZTC Professional Development Fall 2023.

Making the Case for ZTC: Pathways to Equity

• This course explores the fundamental connections between equity, Open Educational Resources (OER), Guided Pathways (GP), and Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) pathways. You will employ an equity cognitive frame to examine the impact of textbook costs on student success, and the disproportionate impact on historically underserved students. You will also dig into the growing research on OER efficacy, consider the “what” and “why” of Guided Pathways, and review successful ZTC pathways, across the state and beyond. You will leave this course understanding how OER and ZTC pathways promote student success and reduce equity gaps, supporting the Vision for Success of the California Community Colleges.
• This data-rich course will help colleagues advocating for OER adoption and ZTC pathway development to make their case.

Building a Team: Training OER Support Staff

• This course is tailored for those overseeing OER projects. Anchored in the OER Competency Framework, this course delves into the foundations of OER, including citation, licensing, and technical requirements like accessibility and formatting. Participants will also learn the intricacies of sharing and managing OER effectively.
• This process focused course will benefit colleagues directing or supporting OER and ZTC projects or establishing an OER support team.

Teaching with OER and Open Pedagogy for Equity

• This course explores the connections between equity, Open Educational Resources (OER), open pedagogy, and culturally responsive pedagogy. You will look at a variety of real-world examples (e.g., non-disposable assignments, open student projects, open course design, culturally-relevant OER) and be asked to consider: how might you implement these approaches in your own teaching? What are some concrete actions you can take in your own course to create more culturally responsive spaces for your students and transform your teaching and learning using OER or open pedagogy?
• This pedagogy-focused course will benefit teaching faculty and those supporting innovation in teaching (e.g., instructional designers and teaching and learning center staff).

Please let us know if you have any questions.

James

——————————–

James Glapa-Grossklag

Dean, Educational Technology, Learning Resources, and Distance Learning

Technical Assistance Provider, CCC ZTC Program

College of the Canyons

Santa Clarita, CA 91390

661.362.3632

Hello,

Thank you to those who were able to attend the ZTC Acceleration Grant Information Session last Tuesday, 8/22.

Attached here is a PPT used to share information about ZTC Grant Program funding to date, Acceleration Grant program plan timeline, and technical assistance/support.

Additional ZTC Acceleration Grant information sessions are scheduled

• Tuesdays, 12 – 1 pm
  • August 29
  • September 5
  • September 12
• Via Zoom: https://canyonsonline.zoom.us/j/83575289954

The Chancellor’s Office will continue to host Ongoing ZTC Drop-in Office Hours

• Last Friday of the month from 9:00-10:00 am
  • September 29
  • October 27
• Via Zoom: https://cccconfer.zoom.us/j/87302202896

Thank you,

James

——————————–

James Glapa-Grossklag

Dean, Educational Technology, Learning Resources and Distance Learning

CCC ZTC Technical Assistance Provider

College of the Canyons

Santa Clarita, CA 91390

661.362.3632

Hi everyone,

Seats are still available for our first fall sections of ZTC professional development courses, starting next week! Please see the details below and at the relevant links.

As the ZTC Grant Program Technical Assistance Provider, I’m please to let you know that our Fall 2023 ZTC professional development courses are available for registration. Thanks to our colleagues with CVC, you can register for our courses via the @ONE catalog of classes: ZTC Professional Development Fall 2023. Completers will earn an @One badge.

Descriptions of the ZTC courses are below. More details, including course outcomes and dates, are available in the @One catalog of classes: ZTC Professional Development Fall 2023.

Making the Case for ZTC: Pathways to Equity

• This course explores the fundamental connections between equity, Open Educational Resources (OER), Guided Pathways (GP), and Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) pathways. You will employ an equity cognitive frame to examine the impact of textbook costs on student success, and the disproportionate impact on historically underserved students. You will also dig into the growing research on OER efficacy, consider the “what” and “why” of Guided Pathways, and review successful ZTC pathways, across the state and beyond. You will leave this course understanding how OER and ZTC pathways promote student success and reduce equity gaps, supporting the Vision for Success of the California Community Colleges.
• This data-rich course will help colleagues advocating for OER adoption and ZTC pathway development to make their case.

Building a Team: Training OER Support Staff

• This course is tailored for those overseeing OER projects. Anchored in the OER Competency Framework, this course delves into the foundations of OER, including citation, licensing, and technical requirements like accessibility and formatting. Participants will also learn the intricacies of sharing and managing OER effectively.
• This process focused course will benefit colleagues directing or supporting OER and ZTC projects or establishing an OER support team.

Teaching with OER and Open Pedagogy for Equity

• This course explores the connections between equity, Open Educational Resources (OER), open pedagogy, and culturally responsive pedagogy. You will look at a variety of real-world examples (e.g., non-disposable assignments, open student projects, open course design, culturally-relevant OER) and be asked to consider: how might you implement these approaches in your own teaching? What are some concrete actions you can take in your own course to create more culturally responsive spaces for your students and transform your teaching and learning using OER or open pedagogy?
• This pedagogy-focused course will benefit teaching faculty and those supporting innovation in teaching (e.g., instructional designers and teaching and learning center staff).

Please let us know if you have any questions.

James

——————————–

James Glapa-Grossklag

Dean, Educational Technology, Learning Resources, and Distance Learning

Technical Assistance Provider, CCC ZTC Program

College of the Canyons

Santa Clarita, CA 91390

661.362.3632

Good Afternoon All:

It has come to our attention that there are two known problems in the NOVA Acceleration Grant program plan application.  Both issues are due to the publication of a template in NOVA that was one-version-old; this was not discovered until the data collection instrument had gone live. We are unable to correct this issue in NOVA now because it would reset the information that colleges have already submitted.   

1. In the budget section, Question #9 (and #19 & #29 for colleges that are submitting multiple program plans) shows the 6000 line as “Indirect Cost.”  For clarification, 6000 is for any Capital Outlay in the budget and 7000 is for Other Outgoing Indirect Cost.  If your college will have Capital Outlay expenses, then it is recommended that a description of the capital outlay expenses be included for explanation in the attachments section.

2. For colleges that are submitting a third program plan in NOVA, Question #22 is limited to 100 characters.  For this section, colleges can provide the number of courses that are already available to students in the program pathway.  If the character space allows, then the courses descriptions can be specified.  However, if the space is not sufficient, then please provide as much information as possible (e.g. “6 courses: MATH 15A, PSYC 200, HIST 1A, ETHN 100, and two others.).

Thank you for your understanding,   

Dear Zero Textbook Cost College Leads/Plan Approvers:

The purpose of this email is to provide valuable information updates regarding the ZTC Implementation Grant.  Thank you to the colleges that submitted ZTC Acceleration Grants or are in the process of submitting ZTC Acceleration Grants.

ZTC Implementation Grant Program Plan submission updates

The Chancellor’s Office issued $20K in July 2022 (ZTC Planning Grant) and $180K to every college in March 2023, via apportionment, to support the development and implementation of at least one ZTC Program Pathway per college to increase low-cost educational opportunities for students.  As a condition of receiving the ZTC Implementation Grant funds, every college shall submit their ZTC Implementation Grant Program Plan in NOVA by October 31, 2023.  The ZTC Implementation Grant information must not replicate the ZTC Acceleration Grant program plan that your college may have submitted or may be preparing to submit.  The ZTC Implementation Grant will be available in NOVA on September 22.  If you need access to NOVA, please contact us at ZTC@cccco.edu. 

ZTC Implementation Grant Program Plan Key Dates

ZTC Implementation Grant program plan available in NOVA	September 22, 2023
ZTC Implementation Grant program plan deadline	October 31, 2023
ZTC Implementation Grant progress and fiscal report #1	December 31, 2024
ZTC Implementation Program Pathway active at college	Fall 2025 semester
ZTC Implementation Grant progress and fiscal report #2	December 31, 2025
Final program and fiscal report	December 31, 2026

ZTC Implementation Grant Program Plan Professional Development and Technical Assistance

The Chancellor’s Office will continue to provide program guidance and compliance expectations through webinars and direct communications to program coordinators (please see Guidance Memo ESS 23-27).  If NOVA guidance is needed, there are NOVA video tutorials available online.  For a new login or access to NOVA, please visit the request access page.  If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the ZTC Program at ztc@cccco.edu. 

Collegially yours,

Dear ZTC Colleagues:

Thanks to all colleges that submitted ZTC Acceleration Grant program plans requesting funds to develop and implement zero cost textbook program pathways.  Due to the positive response and creativity demonstrated by the colleges, we had a significant number of program plans submitted by the September 15, 2023 deadline.  The Chancellor’s Office has started providing notification to colleges that were selected as initial recipients of ZTC Acceleration Grant fund awards.  If your college has not yet received a response to your program plan(s), or if your college only received a response regarding specific program plans that were submitted, this is because the program plan review is still in-process.  We will continue to announce additional awards to colleges on a rolling basis as we proceed to review the significant number of program plans that were submitted.

Good Morning Colleagues:

We are continuing to review ZTC Acceleration Grant program plans and have made approvals as recently as this morning. Only two program plan denials have been made due to submitted certificates not being CTE as required to meet legislative requirements. Otherwise, all remaining program plans are still active and remain in the review process. To date, 22 colleges have received award notifications with 43 program plans being approved.  Colleges in each region of the state, school size (small, medium & large), and service area (rural, suburban & urban) have received awards. We are continuing to conduct program plan reviews and will continue contacting colleges when determinations for approval can be made. 

If your college is still awaiting response for some (or all) of your submitted program plans, the delay is likely due to other colleges submitting program plans that has a potential for duplication related to degrees/CTE in similar subject matter areas. At the time that colleges submitted their respective program plans, it was not possible to know which program plans would be submitted by other colleges throughout the state. Thus, colleges understandably submitted program plans that resulted in potential duplication.  The legislation (78052) requires that the “Chancellor’s office shall ensure that a grant does not result in the development or implementation of duplicate degrees for a subject matter to avoid duplication of effort and ensure the development and implementation of the greatest number of degrees for the benefit of the greatest number of students.”  As such, we are collecting program plans that have potential for duplication and are working on a solution that will still lead to program plan approvals.  So far, the most duplicated degree/CTE subject matter areas include:

• Early Childhood Education
• Psychology
• Sociology
• History
• Business Administration (or Business-related programs)
• English
• Political Science
• Teacher Education
• Administration of Justice
• Biology
• Multimedia, Television, Film, Visual Arts
• Journalism

To address this issue and support colleges in the development and implementation ZTC Program Pathways, the Chancellor’s Office is partnering with the ASCCC OERI to develop a means to have colleges work together in a facilitated cohorts corresponding to degree/CTE certificate subject matter areas. This will likely include a review of each college’s curriculum to determine areas of duplication, an exploration of available OER by subject matter, and coordination of colleges’ course conversion work to “avoid duplication of effort.” By working with the OERI to develop coordination cohorts, our goal is to maximize approvals of ZTC Acceleration Grant program plans and meet the requirements of the legislation.  More information will be provided as the details of this effort are solidified. As has been stated in our presentations and in the ZTC Office hours, our goal is to work toward “yes” for colleges’ program plans (including those already received and those that are yet to be received) and most importantly – to reduce the cost burden for our students. Many thanks to each of you for your patience, dedication, time, and contributions to this highly important work!   

Collegially,

Chad Funk

Program Specialist

Equitable Student Learning, Experience and Impact Office

Educational Services and Support Division

Dear ZTC Leads:

We’re excited to share with you a collaborative approach facilitated by the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office (CCCCO) and the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges (ASCCC) to help colleges proceed with the development and implementation of zero textbook cost (ZTC) program pathways. The CCCCO and the ASCCC have developed a solution to address the legislative restriction against permitting duplication of ZTC program pathway grants in a subject matter. Ed Code § 78052 states that the CCCCO shall “ensure that a grant does not result in the development or implementation of duplicate degrees for a subject matter to avoid duplication of effort and ensure the development and implementation of the greatest number of degrees for the benefit of the greatest number of students.” Colleges are encouraged to establish ZTC pathways for all their degrees and CTE certificate programs; however, a means for allowing ZTC program pathways creation in the same subject matter at multiple colleges created a significant challenge. 

Colleges that submitted (or will submit) ZTC program plans that are likely duplicative within a subject matter will be invited to participate in a Collaboration Cohort, organized by academic program, for the purpose of determining if collaborative work that avoids duplication of effort is warranted. As part of Collaboration Cohort, colleges will learn more about what open educational resource (OER) options exist for courses, discuss their specific needs, learn what other colleges are planning, craft a joint plan to address gaps in pathways, and potentially co-create OER to fill these gaps. If collaboration across colleges is warranted, a plan will be developed for submission by all participating colleges to obtain any additional funding that is required. The goal is to identify opportunities for collaboration, when appropriate, and share workloads where beneficial.

Colleges that submitted a potentially duplicative ZTC program plan are encouraged to participate in a Collaboration Cohort. For colleges that opt-in, the initial grant award shall be in the amount of $30,000, per program plan, that has been identified as being potentially duplicative. Of the $30,000 amount initially awarded, $5,000 will be allocated to the ASCCC Open Educational Resources (OERI) to facilitate the Collaboration Cohort. If collaboration across colleges is warranted, a plan will be developed for submission by the participating colleges to obtain any additional funding that is required. Following the outcome of the Collaboration Cohort, colleges will be provided the opportunity to request additional funds, up to $170,000, for work that could still exist to complete the specific ZTC program pathway.

The CCCCO identified the ASCCC Open Educational Resources Initiative (OERI) as having the experience supporting both individual instructors and groups of faculty to curate, adapt, and author online educational resources (OER). The OERI possesses a network of OER liaisons and Discipline Leads across the state, and the OERI is deeply connected to the ASCCC’s work on curriculum. In short, the OERI is the ideal organization to lead collaboration efforts amongst colleges that will result in creation of ZTC program pathways across the State. 

Colleges that do not opt-in to participate in a Collaboration Cohort will be required to wait for the resulting report developed by the cohort and review work plans to ensure against duplication of effort before their submitted program pathways can be considered for funding. Therefore, it is highly recommended that colleges take advantage of the opportunity to work strategically with other colleges and have an advanced opportunity to begin development of the respective ZTC program pathway(s).

I have provided a visual description of the Collaboration Cohorts process in the attached flowchart (please note, a remediated version of the chart will be sent via the ZTC listserv as soon as it is available). The flowchart outlines the steps that the CCCCO, the colleges, and the ASCCC OERI will follow to ensure that potentially duplicative program remain true to the legislative mandate. The Chancellor’s Office will be inviting colleges to participate in Collaboration Cohorts between November 20 – November 30 based upon their respective academic programs. The college’s ZTC Program Leads and Program Approvers who are listed in NOVA will receive an email, per duplicative program plan, that provides a Collaboration Cohort document that is to be signed and returned to the ztc@cccco.edu email account. Using the Collaborative Cohort agreement document, colleges can agree to proceed with participation in Collaboration Cohorts and building ZTC pathway programs in the respective duplicative subject matter area. Colleges that do not wish to participate in a Collaboration Cohort will have the opportunity to decline participation on the Collaboration Cohort document.

Collegially,

Chad Funk

Program Specialist

Equitable Student Learning, Experience and Impact Office

Educational Services and Support Division

Hello everyone,

I’m happy to announce our Spring 2024 ZTC professional development courses. Thanks to our colleagues with CVC, you can register now for our courses via the @ONE catalog of classes: ZTC Professional Development Fall 2024. Completers will earn an @One badge and may elect to earn continuing education units.

I’m also excited to let you know that we’re adding a new course, dedicated to exploring Generative AI and OER (see below).

Making the Case for ZTC: Pathways to Equity

• This course explores the fundamental connections between equity, Open Educational Resources (OER), Guided Pathways (GP), and Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) pathways. You will employ an equity cognitive frame to examine the impact of textbook costs on student success, and the disproportionate impact on historically underserved students. You will also dig into the growing research on OER efficacy, consider the “what” and “why” of Guided Pathways, and review successful ZTC pathways, across the state and beyond. You will leave this course understanding how OER and ZTC pathways promote student success and reduce equity gaps, supporting the Vision for Success of the California Community Colleges.
• This data-rich course will help colleagues advocating for OER adoption and ZTC pathway development to make their case.

Building a Team: Training OER Support Staff

• Designed for those who coordinate or aspire to lead OER programs, “Building a Team: Training OER Support Staff” will help you to understand and implement key elements of an OER/ZTC workflow, ranging from searching for and sharing OER to formatting documents, using appropriate attributions and licensing, as well as ensuring accessibility. 
• This workflow-focused course will benefit those leading or preparing to lead local ZTC programs.

Teaching with OER and Open Pedagogy for Equity

• This course explores the connections between equity, Open Educational Resources (OER), open pedagogy, and culturally responsive pedagogy. You will look at a variety of real-world examples (e.g., non-disposable assignments, open student projects, open course design, culturally-relevant OER) and be asked to consider: how might you implement these approaches in your own teaching? What are some concrete actions you can take in your own course to create more culturally responsive spaces for your students and transform your teaching and learning using OER or open pedagogy?
• This pedagogy focused course will benefit teaching faculty and those supporting innovation in teaching (e.g., instructional designers and teaching and learning center staff).

Navigating the Future: Open Education with Generative AI

• This course explores the connections between Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), Open Educational Resources (OER), and Open Pedagogy. You will gain essential AI literacy and practice using one or more AI tools as well as review the basics of OER and Open Pedagogy. Then, you will explore strategies for harnessing AI to create or adapt OER, while identifying opportunities to collaborate with students. You will also dig into the ethical considerations related to employing AI in open education as well as evolving practices for licensing and attributing work created with generative AI.
• This exploratory course should benefit anyone involved in creating, discovering, or re-mixing OER.

More details and enrollment are available in the @One catalog of classes: ZTC Professional Development Fall 2024.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Thank you!

James

——————————–

James Glapa-Grossklag

Dean, Educational Technology, Learning Resources and Distance Learning

College of the Canyons

Technical Assistance Provider, ZTC Grant Program

California Community College Chancellor’s Office

Good Afternoon Colleagues:

We have had a number of questions from the field regarding Collaboration Cohorts, and we have captured many of these questions and answers for you. Our hope is that this Q &A list will provide additional guidance and information for your institution regarding participation in the Collaboration Cohorts. Please note that there are some areas of redundancy in the Q & A, but we have attempted to capture the important points of information for your review.

Q. What is the purpose of a Collaboration Cohort and why has my college been asked to participate in one? Why is the college being provided with $25K to participate?

A. The $25K that is allocated for participation in the Collaboration Cohort (per subject matter area), is meant for compensation of the staff that the college identifies to participate in the planning work of the specific cohort. This will involve reviewing the current curriculum and textbook options that are available in current OER, exploring what is available or is already being developed through the efforts of other colleges, and establishing a work plan where colleges either collaborate on the development of OER textbooks, adapt textbooks collectively, or work independently where non-duplication is determined. At the point that the work divisions are determined, then colleges can modify their original program plan financial requests (for more or less funds from the original $25K) depending upon the work that must be done with all colleges that are contributing to the cohort.

Q. What, exactly, are faculty committing to when they sign the cohort document and accept the $25k?  

A. The college is agreeing to participate in the cohort by providing information about ZTC for courses that your institution may have already created, reviewing other OER/ZTC information that is available at other colleges or from other resources, and to participate in OER/ZTC curation when possible. In cases where faculty cannot contribute to collaboration on OER development, they can at minimum review and make determinations to adopt or adapt currently available resources when they are available. The $25K is meant to fund the time of the individuals to discuss available resources, share their work plan approach, and examine areas where collaboration to avoid duplication of effort is possible.

Q. Will each individual college be able to determine how to compensate the staff working in the cohort? Or will there be a standard that all colleges must follow?

A. How staff are compensated, whom to send to the cohorts and any fiscal decisions with the $25K are at the discretion of the college. The CCCCO is providing the $25K for the college to use for the purpose of participating in the Collaboration Cohorts, and it is a local decision by the college for how to best use those funds on ZTC related work. Likewise, any additional funds that are requested after the culmination of the Collaboration Cohorts is a local decision and can be spent according to the needs of the institution as long as the funds are spent specifically on ZTC Degree Grant Program related work.

Q. When you say that colleges can modify their original program plan for more or less funds from the original $25K, does this mean that the college can give back any remaining money if they choose not to participate beyond the initial cohort meetings (Feb – May)?

A. The “more or less” funds is in reference to the originally requested amount that the college submitted in the program plan in NOVA. It was the original intent of the college to complete the ZTC program pathway when they submitted the program plan in NOVA, and the work of the collaboration cohort is simply to ensure that the work being performed by multiple colleges in the same academic area will not be duplicative with other institutions. When a college agrees to participate in a collaboration cohort, they are affirming that their institution will proceed beyond the collaboration cohort to complete the ZTC program pathway in the subject matter area. There should not be any reason for a college to return funds or to not proceed forward to complete the program pathway for which they submitted a ZTC Acceleration Grant program plan.

Q. Is it expected that the textbook development work be completed prior to Summer 2024 and with only $25K available to the college?

A. No – the Collaboration Cohorts will initiate the review of resources that various college bring to the cohort and facilitate the planning of development of resources within the subject matter area. After the cohort has ended, then colleges will be able to modify their original ZTC Acceleration program plan, as needed, and can request additional funding to complete the textbook development work in a manner that avoids duplication of effort with other colleges – either by direct collaboration with other colleges’ colleagues or independently based upon the specific situation with each course and textbook development need. 

Q. How much time will the collaborations take (weekly meetings, out of meeting time, etc.)? 

A. The purpose of the Collaboration Cohort is, initially, to share resources and plans. Once the cohorts are established, colleges will be asked to provide information related to how currently ZTC sections achieved ZTC and their specific plans for the courses that they are planning to convert to zero. After this initial phase, the compiled information will be shared with the cohort members and next steps will be determined. In other words, the work will begin with asynchronous sharing of information – the scheduling of meetings would then follow, where warranted. At least one meeting of each cohort is likely to provide a forum for discussion. Weekly meetings are not anticipated – the funding provided is expected to greatly exceed the compensation that would be required to pay cohort participants for their time.

Q. What happens if we do not “opt-in” into a Collaboration Cohort?

A. Colleges that “opt-out” may have a challenge later trying to demonstrate how their program plan is not duplicative of the work that occurred as a result of the cohort planning and collaboration efforts. Also, they will have less time to develop their ZTC program pathway as it will still be required for students to start in Fall 2026. Colleges that wish to still create a program plan in a subject matter area where cohorts have already occurred will be required to review the planning and collaborative efforts of the Collaboration Cohort’s colleges and demonstrate how their work plan and efforts are not duplicative of the work that occurred through the Collaboration Cohort. Additionally, colleges will not have immediate access to other subject matter cohorts.

Q: If we designate a single discipline lead, is it OK to have other team members participate in the cohort?

A. Yes – the college is opting into the Collaboration Cohort, so it is the college’s discretion regarding whom to send to the Collaboration Cohort. The college can send faculty from the academic department, staff from the library, administrators, or other identified staff as deemed necessary to ensure that the current ZTC/OER assets can be communicated and work plans can be determined. Colleges are, however, expected to identify a specific person to be the college’s primary contact for the work of a specific cohort.

Q. What if the designated person for the collaboration cannot make the meeting time from my college? 

A.  The goal of the Collaboration Cohorts is to reduce workload by providing resources and options that reduce duplication of effort and allow “work sharing” where possible. Most likely, a college will only need to work on resources for a select number of courses and can gauge their level of involvement in the cohort accordingly. It is the college’s decision for whom they send to the cohort as long as the information obtained, and the work distribution, can be confirmed by the person who is present. 

Q. If there are funds remaining from the collaboration can those be used for other ZTC-degree related activities—i.e. supporting ZTC course redesigns, professional development? 

A. Yes – funds allocated to the college are to initiate the planning of ZTC program pathway development in a specific subject matter area that avoids duplication of effort with other colleges. How the college utilizes the ZTC Degree Grant Program funds is a local decision, but the funding must directly support the ZTC development purposes. 

Q. How many cohorts will there be and can we have a list of all the colleges participating in each cohort? 

A.  The CCCCO and ASCCC OERI have identified 30 subject matter areas where formal Collaboration Cohorts are needed to support colleges in the development of their respective ZTC program pathways without duplication in a manner that can be documented to demonstrate compliance to the legislative requirement. 

Q. Can colleges participate in the cohorts even if not invited? 

A. Unfortunately, due to the timelines and work that must be accomplished in the cohorts, colleges that were not invited will not be able to join. However, following the cohorts’ work and reports, all colleges will have access to the collaborative planning information.

Q.  Is the $25,000 used to create OER, or if ZTC already exists, can those funds be used to purchase materials (such as lab kits) to make the courses ZTC? 

A. The $25K, per academic program, is available as initial funds to begin work on the ZTC pathway by participating in the Collaboration Cohort(s). It is a college-level decision for how the funds will be used, but it should align with the expenditures that were outlined in the original program plan submitted in NOVA. The example of “lab kits” would need to be better defined; however, only textbooks and lab books are required to be zero cost for students to achieve a ZTC pathway. Additional instructional materials such as goggles, gloves, shoe covers, etc. are not ZTC Degree Grant Program expenses and are not required to be provided at no-cost to students for a program to meet ZTC requirements. 

Q. Who will be running the cohorts?

A. The OERI will be identifying an individual to lead each of the cohorts. A faculty member either in the discipline and/or with curriculum and OER experience will facilitate the work of each cohort.

Q: Our “content” classes are already ZTC.  We were hoping to get the last few classes outside of that area converted. Should we still join the collaboration?

A. Yes! A college that already has achieved ZTC for all core requirements will first share out the OER/ZTC that they currently are using, be informed of additional OER/ZTC that other colleges might be using and explore opportunities as a professional cohort for improvements of currently existing resources (text materials, ancillaries, etc.) that can be made. After this, cohort participants can interact with other cohorts for courses that they may still need to develop in other subject matter areas. The opportunity to see and potentially collaborate on what is being created and is available state-wide (both within and outside the major) is a unique opportunity. Your college can choose whom they choose to send to the Collaboration Cohort – it can be your ZTC lead or the subject matter faculty. Often, seeing what is being developed can spark inspiration and opportunity to contribute to the improvement of available resources.  

Q: What if we joined this cohort and attended the meetings, but it looked like this was becoming too much of a commitment or the meetings were scheduled at times when we had class or other committee obligations, and we wanted to step down?

A. The goal of the collaboration cohorts is to reduce workload by providing resources and options that reduce duplication of effort and allow “work sharing” where possible. Regular meetings would only be scheduled if needed to work out the details of a planned collaboration. A college that agrees to participate is agreeing to proceed forward and complete the ZTC program pathway by Fall 2026.  A college cannot go to the cohort(s), use the funding to review content in the subject matter area, and then not complete the program pathway for their students. This was originally noted in the assurances when the program plans were submitted in NOVA. Most likely, a college will only need to work on a select number of course textbooks and can gauge their level of involvement in the cohort accordingly. It is the college’s decision for whom they send to the cohort as long as the information obtained and work distribution can be confirmed by the person who is present.

Q: What if other colleges were not interested in our project or did not support this idea?

A. If colleges, after reviewing the available resources and work plans, determine that they want to go a different route in the creation of their ZTC textbooks, then this is allowable as long as the work can be documented to be reasonably unique. The work plan reports from the OERI will need to demonstrate how the work was non-duplicative. The intent is not to “box” in the faculty members regarding “who” must do particular aspects of the work, but it is rather to demonstrate that the work performed by the colleges was collaborative with other institutions or that the work completed by the college was unique. Therefore, another college will not be able to dictate to your faculty the work that they must do. Instead, this is a partnership with areas of uniqueness being documented and demonstrated.

Q: What if we have very different ideas on how to develop the project?

A.  In situations where significant differences exist between colleges, then unique work will be done by each college to achieve their objectives, and this will be documented by the OERI to cover the colleges and ensure that they were compliant with the grant funds. 

Q: Are there any penalties when things do not work out? 

A. When the colleges submitted the original program plans requesting funds to complete the program pathway, it was done with an assurance that the program pathway would be completed by Fall 2026. The Collaboration Cohorts will help facilitate collaboration toward this goal where possible, document where work is unique, and justify that the grant awards given to each institution to develop a similar major ZTC program pathway was not done blindly with duplication. Colleges need to complete the ZTC program pathway once the allocation is made – noting that the college can come back with a modified budget when/if the work plan changes because of possible work-sharing and collaboration within the Collaboration Cohort. 

Q:  Are our faculty/cohort attendees only committing to information sharing, discussion, and planning with the cohort group?

A. Yes, this is the work that will happen in the Collaboration Cohorts. However, your college is committed to completing the ZTC program pathway by Fall 2026. 

Q. What would happen if they decide to not proceed with the cohort? Do we refund all or part of the $25k? Do we pay our faculty for their time participating with the cohort and return the remaining funds?

A.  It is important to note that the Collaboration Cohorts will not be dictating work assignments to your faculty regarding the work that is needed. Instead, this is a partnership with areas of uniqueness being documented and demonstrated. If a college decides to not proceed to create the ZTC program pathway at their college after an award is made (either in cases of being awarded to participate in a Collaboration Cohort or when a college has been independently awarded), then the college might be required to return the funds.

Q. What if there are existing OER, but the texts are not acceptable to our faculty members? Will the CO fund the creation of another title for the same subject matter if it has a very different focus or theme?

A. Instructors are clearly the content experts for their courses, and we are hopeful that very positive collaboration will occur. The cohorts are being facilitated by the ASCCC OERI, so the expertise and recognition of faculty insights concerning the development of course texts and students’ needs will be honored. By instructors having the opportunity to work together, we are confident that places of mutuality, and also of diversity, regarding viewpoints and approaches to the work will be respected throughout the process. If colleges, after reviewing the available resources and work plans, determine that they want to go a different route in the creation of their ZTC textbooks, then this is allowable as long as the work can be documented to be reasonably unique. Ultimately, the college will need to produce a ZTC program pathway for the subject matter area, and the work plan reports from the OERI will need to demonstrate how the work done by the college was non-duplicative. The intent is not to “box” in the faculty members regarding “who” must do particular aspects of the work, but it is rather to demonstrate that the work performed by the colleges was collaborative with other institutions or that the work completed by the college was unique. Colleges need to complete the ZTC program pathway once the allocation is made – noting that the college can come back with a modified budget when/if the work plan changes because of possible work-sharing and collaboration within the Collaboration Cohort.

Q: If we were mostly going to adopt textbooks for our college’s proposed ZTC degrees, should we still accept?

A. Yes! Participation in the Collaboration Cohorts does not obligate your faculty to be involved in the creation of chapters of textbooks or ancillaries. The funding level, of course, would likely remain at the $25K for time of involvement in the cohort and for review of the created materials. One of the great benefits for colleges is the opportunity to glean from the work of others through the Collaboration Cohorts! Colleges that review and adopt OER that is either presently available or that is created by collaboration in the cohorts is non-duplication of effort. 

Hello all,

FYI, I’m sharing below information about a recent study showing that the cost of instructional materials can have a negative impact on student success. You might find this helpful as you articulate the case for your local ZTC projects.

Thank you,

James

——————————–

James Glapa-Grossklag

Dean, Educational Technology, Learning Resources and Distance Learning

College of the Canyons

Technical Assistance Provider, ZTC Grant Program

California Community College Chancellor’s Office

Subject: *EXTERNAL* Bay View Analytics Update: November 2023

Understanding the cost of course materials to students

The cost of course materials can have major academic consequences for higher education students. In a recent survey, students reported getting poorer grades or failing courses entirely, and even wavering between chosen majors or institutions, as they struggle to meet their financial obligations. This research, conducted in partnership with Affordable Learning PA (ALPA) and the Partnership for Academic Library Collaboration and Innovation (PALCI), surveyed 4,306 students from 14 participating institutions in Pennsylvania.

Researchers from ALPA and Bay View Analytics will present the full results and insights at a webinar on January 18; click here to register. You can learn more about the project on our website, or download the report (PDF).

Check out our recent presentations

We’ve presented our research at seven conferences in the last two months. In October, we presented at the 2023 EDUCAUSE annual conference to share faculty perspectives on the greater use of technology and learning at a distance — what they believe is working, what is not, and what they think the future will hold. You can download our presentation here (PDF). In late October, we shared our latest findings on the steady growth of OER use and awareness at OLC Accelerate, in Washington DC. You can download our presentation here (PDF).

Earlier this month, we partnered with the Canadian Digital Learning Research Association at the ICDE World Conference in Costa Rica to explore recent data on post-secondary education and educator-optimism for the future. You can download our presentation here (PDF).

As always, you can find more of our recent presentations on our website.

Connect With Us

Bay View Analytics is a statistical research and consulting firm that conducts research and delivers guidance on distance education, open educational resources, clinical trial statistics, and survey design.

Visit our website: www.bayviewanalytics.com. We welcome your comments and feedback on our contact page.

Good Morning Colleagues:

Due to the holidays and winter break schedules across our colleges and at the CCCCO, there will be no further ZTC Office hours for the 2023 calendar year. We will resume ZTC Office hours in 2024 beginning on Friday, January 26^th from 9:00am – 10:00am. The same meeting link will continue to be utilized during the 2023 year for consistency. The Zoom login information is listed below for your convenience. We will proceed meeting on the final Friday of each month at 9:00am during the coming year with the exceptions of May, November and December due to holiday/winter break schedules; however, we can consider alternative dates in these months, if needed. Wishing everyone a safe, peaceful and restful holiday season!

Join Zoom Meeting

Meeting ID: 873 0220 2896

Join by Telephone

For higher quality, dial a number based on your current location.

Dial:

+1 669 444 9171 US
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 253 205 0468 US
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 719 359 4580 US
+1 360 209 5623 US
+1 386 347 5053 US
+1 507 473 4847 US
+1 564 217 2000 US
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
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+1 689 278 1000 US
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 305 224 1968 US
+1 309 205 3325 US
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)

Hello ZTC advocates,

Please see below for a great opportunity to learn about Universal Design for Learning and accessibility, specifically as it pertains to OER and ZTC efforts. A modest stipend is available for participants. Please direct questions to the contact information in the linked website.

Thank you, and happy Friday!

James

Technical Assistance Provider, ZTC Grant Program

California Community College Chancellor’s Office

—————————————————————————–

ISKME invites California Community College faculty and staff who have experience using Open Educational Resources (OER) to participate in a pilot that will critically analyze OER during a professional learning series this Spring. 

The series will support faculty and staff in making OER more accessible by using the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) guidelines. The UDL guidelines help faculty evaluate and adapt  course materials to reduce barriers and increase accessibility, so that all students can engage in rigorous and meaningful learning. Often, UDL leads to the co-creation of resources with students and ongoing iteration to customize and localize resources.

More details and registration can be found in this Adapting OER to Incorporate UDL information sheet.

The ASCCC OERI is reviewing the ZTC data provided by the colleges that are participating in ZTC Acceleration Grant Collaboration Cohorts. While we are still in the process of gathering information from all participating colleges, we know the impacted colleges are anxious for this work to begin.

The OERI is aware that the timing of the information ask was challenging since it came at the end of the fall term and so we will continue to accept new and updated data. Please don’t hesitate to continue gathering ZTC data and submit it as soon as possible. If you are not involved in this work, please share this communication with those who are. Information about the data collection and submission process can be found on our ZTC Acceleration Grant Collaboration Cohort Information page (tinyurl.com/ZTCCohorts).

As additional information becomes available, the page will be updated. Please also consider attending the upcoming Friday Forum Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) Collaboration Cohorts (February 2, 10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.). The hour-long webinar will be archived and followed by an office hour. Please register for the webinar to attend the office hour.

If you and your colleagues are looking for ways to get started on your ZTC work, please consider engaging in related professional development opportunities. ZTC pathways are made of courses and while some courses may have readily available OER texts, others may not. In the well-established OER landscape of the California Community Colleges, there is often content that someone, somewhere, created for faculty use in courses. Venturing into the OER space without a guide can be challenging.

The ASCCC OERI has a back-to-the-basics OER series starting this Thursday, February 1. Over the next five weeks, every Thursday from 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m., faculty will get a chance to gain knowledge, resources, and guidance on the following:

• OER, Copyright, and Fair Use
• OER Licensing
• Searching for OER – best practices and resources
• Evaluating OER for accessibility
• Advanced Licensing for curation and adaptation.

• OER Basics Series •

The OERI is pleased to offer a series of webinars addressing the foundations of using, adapting, and developing OER to support your local ZTC work.

Thursday, February 1, 11:30 am – 1:00 pm

Understanding Open Educational Resources (OER), Copyright, and Fair Use

Are you new to OER and interested in learning more? This webinar is an introduction to what OER is and the difference between “open” and “free” resources, copyright basics, and the concept of fair use.

Register for Understanding OER, Copyright, and Fair Use

Thursday, February 8, 11:30 am – 1:00 pm

Introduction to Creative Commons Licensing

Understanding Creative Commons licensing is critical when working with open educational resources (OER). In this interactive webinar we’ll explore the nuances of the various Creative Commons licenses for when a resource is used, adapted, or created.

Register for Introduction to Creative Commons Licensing

Thursday, February 15, 11:30 am – 1:00 pm

Searching for Open Educational Resources (OER)

Looking for OER? This interactive session will cover search strategies for finding OER. Participants will search for resources and leave the webinar with some “go to” sites for locating OER.

Register for Searching for OER

Thursday, February 22, 11:30 am – 1:00 pm

Evaluating Open Educational Resources (OER) for Accessibility

Accessibility is not only a legal and ethical requirement, it is central to creating resources that are inclusive and support the education of all learners. In this webinar, we will provide considerations for accessibility and tools for evaluating content.

Register for Evaluating OER for Accessibility

Thursday, February 29, 11:30 am – 1:00 pm

Open Educational Resources (OER) Curation and Advanced Licensing

How do you remix and attribute content with different licenses? How are collections and remixes different and why does it matter? This interactive session is intended for those who are familiar with the Creative Commons licenses and would like to expand their understanding. Bring your questions and licensing challenges.

Register for OER Curation and Advanced Licensing

Hello ZTC advocates,

As Technical Assistance Provider for the ZTC Grant Program, I’m pleased to share an overview of support available to you as you embark on developing your ZTC programs. You can find more information on our website at ztctap.org.

Help Desk: Searching for OER

• Are you seeking OER to support courses in your ZTC degree pathway(s)? The ZTC TAP team can help you locate and adopt open educational resources for your courses. (Also, see the ASCCC OERI website for lists of OER by discipline, as well as OER created by CCC faculty.)

Help Desk: Open Licensing

• Are you seeking advice on assigning an open license to OER you have adapted or created? The ZTC TAP team can help you better understand the landscape of Creative Commons licenses and more.

Coaching

• Would your college benefit from coaching by experienced faculty, administrators, and staff who have successfully led OER and ZTC initiatives? Request to be paired with a coach.

Professional Development

• We’re thrilled with the strong response to our professional development courses offered via @One. All spring classes are full. Please watch for an announcement about our summer classes.

Save the Date

• College of the Canyons will host a statewide ZTC event on Friday, May 3. Attendees will:
  • Learn about ZTC success stories that can inform their work
  • Deepen awareness of support services and networks
  • Discuss common challenges and identify opportunities to move forward together

You can find more information about these supports on our website at: ZTCTAP.org.

Thank you all!

James

——————————–

James Glapa-Grossklag

Dean, Educational Technology, Learning Resources and Distance Learning

College of the Canyons

Technical Assistance Provider, ZTC Grant Program

California Community College Chancellor’s Office

Hi everyone,

Please see below for a webinar on documenting impact of OER projects. The speakers are well-respected leaders of OER projects from around the country. I’m confident you’ll find their perspectives useful.

Thank you,

James Glapa-Grossklag

—————————————————————————————————

From: Julie Curtis <julie@pressbooks.com>
Sent: Thursday, February 15, 2024 9:04 AM
To: Glapa-Grossklag, James <James.Glapa-Grossklag@canyons.edu>
Subject: [Webinar]: How to Demonstrate Impact and Effectiveness with Open Education

CAUTION: External Sender. Proceed Responsibly. <more details>

Gain expert insights about how to demonstrate impact, from cost savings and beyond

Are you looking to better understand the impact of your open education initiatives and how to move forward effectively? Do you need buy-in to start or advance your projects but aren’t sure how to get it?

Whether you’re just starting a new program or you’re already leading the way on a mature OER initiative, understanding impact is important. Join us for our next webinar as we dive into the topic of demonstrating impact and effectiveness.

Date: March 7, 2024 | Time: 3:00 – 4:00pm ET (12:00 – 1:00pm PT)

In this webinar we’ll explore the following questions:

What do key stakeholders care about, and which metrics and proof points will resonate with them?
As you build support for your initiative, what success stories are you trying to tell, and for what purpose?
How do you track these important metrics?

Register Now

For those who wish to attend but are unable to make the time, we will be sending a recording of the webinar to all registered attendees.

We hope to see you there!

Best,

Julie Curtis

Dear Colleagues,

I am reaching out to share an exciting opportunity in partnership with the National Association of Higher Education Systems (NASH).

Through philanthropic support, NASH has $220,000 available to award to institutions within California’s systems of higher education in recognition of interventions that remove cost as a barrier to higher education. This funding is available through NASH’s Catalyst Fund, which recognizes interventions proven to support student success locally that have the potential for replication and scale within and across public higher education systems.

Please see attached materials for more information, including the request for proposals overview. Successful proposals will receive a minimum of $5,000 that can be used flexibly in support of the awarded intervention. Proposals should detail interventions that are already being implemented to address problems of practice in equitable access and affordability, including but not limited to:

Making college accessible to low-income students by meeting their full financial needs, particularly needs that are unaddressed by traditional financial aid packages and policies.
Making college affordable to students by reducing the net price through reduced tuition rates or providing: differential tuition based on circumstances, fee waivers, need-based scholarships, last-dollar gap-filling awards, open educational resources (OER), and microgrants to attend to basic needs (e.g., food, housing, clothes, books, supplies, etc.)
Improving practices, timeliness, and transparency, related to communicating and demonstrating clear and standard information about cost and financial aid offers to help students and families assess college affordability.
Providing wrap-around support for non-traditional and/or low-income students through daycare and other social services, transportation, food banks, affordable housing, healthcare, legal assistance, etc.
Decreasing time to degree through efforts targeted to low-income, traditionally under-represented, and/or non-traditional students.

Applications for awards must be submitted using the attached Word document form (Catalyst Fund RFP Form – CCC) via email to catalyst@nash.edu by 12:00PM on Monday, April 15, 2024.

To answer any questions you may have, NASH is hosting a webinar at 10:00am PT on Friday, March 15. Those who are interested can register here to receive information on joining the meeting. Any questions concerning the proposal process can also be directed via email to catalyst@nash.edu.

You are welcome and encouraged to share this email with faculty, classified professionals, and administrators at your institution.

Warm regards,

James

---

James E. Todd, Ph.D. (he/him)

Dean

Equitable Student Learning, Experience and Impact Office

Educational Services and Support

jtodd@cccco.edu

California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office

1102 Q Street, Sacramento, California 95811

www.cccco.edu

ATTACHMENTS:

Catalyst Fund RFP – CCC

Catalyst Fund RFP Form – CCC

Hello ZTC advocates,

I’m passing along below an opportunity for colleges to participate in a study on the relationship between the use of no-cost/low-cost course materials and OER and time-to-credential. The study is organized by the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE).

Please direct any questions to Liliana Diaz, Senior Policy Analyst

Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education, at ldiaz@wiche.edu.

Thank you,

James

——————————–

James Glapa-Grossklag

Dean, Educational Technology, Learning Resources and Distance Learning

College of the Canyons

Technical Assistance Provider, ZTC Grant Program

California Community College Chancellor’s Office

Good Afternoon ZTC Colleagues:

During the February ZTC Office Hour, we shared that new opportunities for using ZTC funds are under development. The goal is to make these new opportunities available in NOVA between late April and early May. The submission period will remain open until December 16. There will be three types of grants: Acceleration II Grants, Impact Grants, and OER Expansion Grants. Please refer below for summaries of each opportunity.

Acceleration II Grants ($200,000 capped per eligible program) continue ZTC Program investment for pathways that are unique to the college or region that have not been awarded in prior phases. The goal is to provide colleges the opportunity to apply and receive awards to make these unique programs more accessible to a larger number of students while not duplicating existing programs. We recommend that colleges review growing enrollment programs and completion rates for students at their institutions to determine is these unique programs will benefit students.
Impact Grants ($200,000 capped per eligible program) support high impact programs that benefit a great number of students. Colleges that either missed out on Acceleration Grants and associated Collaboration Cohort efforts, or colleges that elected to wait until their colleague colleges had completed their work in the Collaboration Cohort process should apply. To avoid duplication, Impact Grant programs are required to document how they leverage the efforts and materials from the Acceleration Grants Coordination Cohorts to the maximum degree possible. The following are factors to consider in avoiding duplication:
At the culmination of the Acceleration Grants Collaboration Cohorts, documentation regarding work efforts to specific courses will become available for review.
Colleges wishing to submit a potentially duplicative type of Impact Grant will be required to await the completion of the Collaboration Cohorts’ legacy documents, which will become available by mid- to late-summer.
Colleges that are able to implement high impact grants in a subject matter area that has a high potential for duplication will be able to submit a program plan in the Impact Grants.
Colleges should consider their programs that have the highest enrollment and completions to maximize the benefit to students.
Colleges must commit to reviewing available resources while prioritizing newly developed/developing OER and seek adoption or adaptation where possible.
In places where unique factors are present, colleges will have the opportunity to provide a brief explanation of the variance from the collaboration cohorts and how they will develop the program pathway in a non-duplicative manner.
OER Expansion Grants ($20,000 capped per eligible course) provide OER curation support for additional courses that can further enhance the scale and impact of all the ZTC programs that are developed or underway.
Courses that can enhance the scale and impact of awarded ZTC Grants (i.e., Implementation Grants, Acceleration Grants, Acceleration II Grants, and Impact Grants) may apply.
Additional eligibility will be detailed in the next Chancellor’s Office guidance memo.
A memo containing additional details, such as eligibility criteria, timelines, and reporting requirements will be forthcoming.

Collegially,

Chad Funk

Program Specialist

Equitable Student Learning, Experience and Impact Office

Educational Services and Support Division

Hi all,

As a reminder, one support available to you in developing your ZTC pathways is a Help Desk on OER Licensing.

As part of this, we’re pleased to offer two OER Licensing Open Office Hours. When developing ZTC pathways using OER, you might encounter questions about open licensing such as Creative Commons licenses. During this OER Licensing Open Office Hour, pose those questions to Jonathan Poritz, veteran faculty member, multiple-OER author, and a facilitator of the Creative Commons certificate program.

• March 15: 12 – 1 pm Pacific
  • https://canyonsonline.zoom.us/j/83355485882
• March 22: 1 – 2 pm Pacific:
  • https://canyonsonline.zoom.us/j/83479206262

(We’ve tried to avoid conflicts with other events – if we haven’t succeeded, thank you for your understanding.)

Thank you!

James

——————————–

James Glapa-Grossklag

Dean, Educational Technology, Learning Resources and Distance Learning

College of the Canyons

Technical Assistance Provider, ZTC Grant Program

California Community College Chancellor’s Office

Hi all,

I’d like to invite you to a statewide ZTC Summit, hosted at College of the Canyons, on Friday, May 3.

• You will have the opportunity to:
  • Learn about ZTC success stories that can inform your work
  • Deepen awareness of support services and networks
  • Discuss common challenges and identify opportunities to move forward together

Please register early, as seating is limited. Watch the ZTC Summit website for more details.

We look forward to seeing you in-person!

James Glapa-Grossklag

Dean, Educational Technology, Learning Resources and Distance Learning

College of the Canyons

Technical Assistance Provider, ZTC Grant Program

California Community College Chancellor’s Office

Dear ZTC Colleagues:

We have arrived at the mid-point of the Spring 2024 semester, and I wanted to make you aware of important meeting dates and activities that are related to the ZTC Degree Grant Program until the end of spring. Below, I have provided dates, times and links to the ZTC Degree Grant Program meetings for Spring 2024 that will be helpful to have on your calendar:

• March 29, 9am – 10am                  ZTC Office Hour
• April 26, 9am – 10am                     ZTC Office Hour
• April 26, 10:30am – 11:30am      OERI Friday Forum (11:30 – 12:30 Q&A to follow with same link)
• May 3, 9am – 4pm                           ZTC Summit @ College of the Canyons
• May 7, 12pm – 1pm                        ZTC New Grants Info Session #1
• May 8, 12pm – 1pm                        ZTC Program Data Reporting Requirements Webinar
• May 16, 12pm – 1pm                     ZTC New Grants Info Session #2
• May 21, 12pm – 1pm                     ZTC New Grants Info Session #3
• May 31, 9am – 10am                      ZTC Office Hour

Please note: the ZTC Program Data Reporting Requirements Webinar should be attended by the college’s staff who support data acquisition and reporting. This could include Institutional Research staff, Instructional Office staff, and the ZTC lead to plan appropriately for the data collection requirements of the college.

ZTC New Grants Info Sessions: each will cover the Acceleration II, Impact and OER Expansion Grants, and the basic content in these sessions will cover the information. However, the Q&A may lead to different content being shared. Attendance at each session is not necessary, but it could be beneficial.

I look forward to seeing you at these upcoming sessions and events.

Collegially,

Chad Funk

Program Specialist

Equitable Student Learning, Experience and Impact Office

Educational Services and Support Division

( (916) 445-1774

* cfunk@cccco.edu

California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office

1102 Q Street, Sacramento, California 95811

www.cccco.edu

Good Afternoon ZTC Colleagues:

We need your help! Currently, we are in the process of building the new ZTC program plans for the upcoming ZTC phases in NOVA, and we need to ensure that your college’s NOVA contacts are accurate. We are asking each college to review your Implementation Grant program plans in NOVA, and please inform us no later than April 19^th if there are changes to any of the persons identified for these roles at your college (note: these roles can be fulfilled by the same person, if this is the structure at your college). Unfortunately, there cannot be multiple persons identified per role, so we need one name for who is responsible for each role:

• Project Lead Contact – makes final edits and submits the program plan in NOVA
• Plan Approver – reviews submitted program plan and certifies it on behalf of the college
• Institution Project Fiscal Reporter –assigns ZTC funds to college accounts

Once the new ZTC phases’ program plans are published and available in NOVA, then your ZTC Project Lead Contact can add additional Alternate Project Lead Contacts (APLC) who can assist with edits and updates to the program plans in NOVA; however, only the Project Lead Contact can submit the program plan, and only the Plan Approver can certify the program plans in NOVA on behalf of the college.

Thank you for taking a few minutes to review your college’s contact information in the ZTC Implementation Grant inside of NOVA and for providing the accurate role, name, email address and phone number for each individual to be identified in the new ZTC phases’ program plans. If there are no changes necessary, then there is no need to respond. However, if no response takes place and multiple names are currently in NOVA for the role of Project Lead Contact, Plan Approver and Institution Fiscal Reporter, then the first name in the list will be used when developing the new ZTC program plans. Please provide responses to the ztc@cccco.edu email account.

Many thanks,

Zero Textbook Cost Program

Hi everyone,

The ZTC Technical Assistance team is pleased to offer Open Office Hours for questions related to the intersection of Libraries and ZTC. Topics might include eBook licensing, reserve copies of ZTC/OER texts, Alma-D, cataloging OER, library roles on OER/ZTC teams, and more! Join us to ask a question or share what you are doing at your Library.

These office hours will be co-hosted by 2 California Community College Librarians, who have deep experience in OER and ZTC initiatives.

• Aloha Sargent, Technology Services Librarian & ZTC Coordinator, Cabrillo College
• Ame Maloney, Faculty Services Librarian & ZTC Coordinator, Skyline College

April 16: 10 – 11 am Pacific
https://cabrillo-edu.zoom.us/j/87926218398?pwd=32dygaPlVSQqVGHR5uaGu0Dq7R3T11.1

May 14: 10 – 11 am Pacific
https://cabrillo-edu.zoom.us/j/83341534412?pwd=XOQ6HsYdFxCOKYByQqPcaHBSa9myQm.1

 Thank you!

James

Dear Colleagues,

There are still seats available for the statewide ZTC Summit hosted at College of the Canyons, on Friday, May 3, from 9am until 2:30pm. Please register early, as seating is limited, and you may visit the ZTC Summit website for more details. The conference presents the opportunity to: learn about OER and ZTC success stories that can inform local efforts, deepen awareness of ZTC support services and networks, discuss common challenges, and identify opportunities to move forward.

For further information, please contact James Glapa-Grossklag (James.Glapa-Grossklag@CANYONS.EDU), Dean of Educational Technology, Learning Resources and Distance Learning at College of the Canyons. James also serves as the Technical Assistance Provider for the ZTC Grant Program.

Please share this with faculty, classified professionals, and administrators who might benefit from this important summit.

Warm regards,

James

Hello everyone,

I’m happy to announce our Summer 2024 ZTC professional development courses. Thanks to our colleagues with CVC, you can register for our courses via the @ONE catalog of classes: ZTC Professional Development Summer 2024. Completers will earn an @One badge and may elect to earn continuing education units.

Register soon – these classes fill quickly! 

Making the Case for ZTC: Pathways to Equity

• Explore how Open Educational Resources (OER), Guided Pathways (GP), and Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) pathways can support equity.
• This data-rich course will help colleagues advocating for OER adoption and ZTC pathway development to make their case.

Building a Team: Training OER Support Staff

• Designed for those who coordinate or aspire to lead  Open Educational Resources (OER) programs, This course will help you build and support OER teams to establish OER/ZTC capacity and sustainability.
• Understand and implement key elements of an OER/ZTC workflow, ranging from searching for and sharing OER to formatting documents, using appropriate attributions and licensing, as well as ensuring accessibility. 

Teaching with OER and Open Pedagogy for Equity

• Explore why and how to integrate Open Educational Resources (OER) and Open Pedagogy in your course, as a way to support equity-minded and culturally responsive teaching.
• This pedagogy focused course will benefit teaching faculty and those supporting innovation in teaching (e.g., instructional designers and teaching and learning center staff).

Navigating the Future: Open Education with Generative AI

• Explore the intersections of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), Open Educational Resources (OER), and Open Pedagogy, including practical, ethical, and licensing considerations.
• This exploratory course should benefit anyone involved in creating, discovering, or re-mixing OER.

More details and enrollment are available in the @One catalog of classes: ZTC Professional Development Summer 2024.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Thank you!

Dear Colleagues,

Please see the RFPs from Learning Lab and the announcement of their AI Challenge (below). Please share these opportunities widely with your campus and faculty to encourage participation and innovation!

Warm regards,

James

Dear Colleagues, Learning Lab is pleased to announce two groundbreaking grant opportunities aimed at harnessing the transformative power of artificial intelligence in education: the AI Grand Challenge and AI FAST Challenge!   Together these RFPs aim to promote AI-integrated innovation in teaching and learning while positioning California higher education faculty as thought leaders and changemakers to foster environments where AI not only enriches the educational experience, but also promotes student equity.  AI Grand Challenge will provide funding for an anticipated three to six grants of up to $1.5 million each over 24-42 months, in order to incentivize the development of AI use, understanding, and the capability to enhance teaching and learning and close equity gaps across California’s public colleges and universities.   AI FAST Challenge will provide grants ranging from $25,000 to $200,000 over 12-18 months for projects with accelerated implementation cycles, suited for agile projects aimed at swiftly advancing the integration of AI into teaching and learning. To all of our faculty and administrators at the University of California, California State University, and California Community Colleges— we invite you to help shape the future of AI in higher education! Please visit our AI Challenge webpage for details on the full RFPs and related resources.  Sincerely, The California Education Learning Lab

Good Afternoon ZTC Colleagues:

Please note: we have made a change to the Zoom link that we will use for the ZTC Data Requirements Webinar on May 8^th at 12:00 noon. Please find the new Webinar access information below. Thank you for making note of this change, and please update your calendars accordingly. It is highly recommended that your college have members of your Instructional Office and Institutional Research Office attend this Webinar to assist in data gathering efforts that will be required for ZTC data reporting in the forthcoming progress reports. Please ensure to pass this information to your Instructional Office and Institutional Research Offices as well.

Topic: ZTC Data Collection and Reporting Webinar

Time: May 8, 2024 12:00 Pacific Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting

https://canyonsonline.zoom.us/j/81438068306

Meeting ID: 814 3806 8306

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Meeting ID: 814 3806 8306

Find your local number: https://canyonsonline.zoom.us/u/kX2fGcujk

Collegially,

Chad Funk

Dear Colleagues:

In 2023, the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office launched a statewide Equitable Student Experience “Burden-Free Instructional Materials Task Force” (BFIMTF) to support a vision: when a course begins, students have everything needed, including all instructional materials, at no cost. The Task Force was charged with making system-level recommendations, including short and long-term strategies for shifting toward burden-free instructional items for every student at every college, leading to more students achieving educational, career and economic mobility.

The Task Force was comprised of systemwide representatives, including faculty, administrators, Open Educational Resources (OER) partners, and students who collectively explored student friction points for accessing instructional materials. This group engaged in productive, collaborative conversations to support system efforts and opportunities to further scale OER availability, review existing resources, and identify actions that support the local prioritization of burden free efforts.

The BFIMTF Report is now available for our system. The report provides recommendations to strengthen student financial stability, enhance equitable student engagement and success, reduce (and ultimately eliminate) instructional material costs for students, and provide alleviation of financial, administrative and psychological burdens related to acquiring required instructional materials before the beginning of an academic term. 

Many thanks to our Burden-Free Instructional Materials Task Force Members—especially to Michelle Pilati (ASCCC OERI) for her leadership as Co-Chair.

Warm regards,

James

Dear ZTC College Partner, 

College of the Canyons, in partnership with the The Research and Planning Group for California Community Colleges (The RP Group) is inviting you to complete a survey to document the progress and needs for the Zero Textbook Cost Acceleration Grant projects. 

This survey will take approximately 10 minutes, and you can skip any question you don’t want to answer. All information you provide will be kept confidential and only used to document the progress and needs of these grants. 

Please take a moment to complete this survey; and share it with anyone else at the college who is directly supporting the development and implementation of the program(s) for this grant.

Link to Survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/ZTC_Development_2024

For any questions about this survey effort, please contact Alyssa Nguyen, Director of Research and Evaluation, The RP Group at anguyen@rpgroup.org.

This survey will be available until Friday, May 17, 2024.

Thank you!

James

——————————–

James Glapa-Grossklag

Dean, Educational Technology, Learning Resources and Distance Learning

College of the Canyons

Technical Assistance Provider, ZTC Grant Program

California Community College Chancellor’s Office