This panel provides the perspectives of faculty, staff, and administrators at a public community college on the implementation of a “zero-cost textbook”, two-year transfer degree or “z-degree”. Midway through implementation at Century College, the project faced significant challenges including rapid organizational change and previous miscommunication within the college about the project. After six months of implementation, the project had to be “reset” under leadership and staff new to the institution and the state college system. Rather than aggressively force project implementation under paths previously planned, the reset allowed a broader faculty task force to create paths forward that naturally drew upon existing faculty and staff expertise within the institution and the Minnesota State System. Communication was more broadly established, which, in turn, enabled greater data gathering on existing capacity to support open educational resources among faculty. The task force worked through issues of intellectual property and made recommendations for supporting faculty in ways consistent with institutional norms and practices. Task force members worked with mentors and informal contacts within the state system to learn from other institutions that successfully implemented “z-degrees” and how they met common barriers. Even though Century was not an early adopter in comparison to other colleges, this collaborative approach allowed the institution to make rapid progress in making open educational resourced courses available to students.
Learning Outcomes: 1. Explain how the context of an institution and a related higher education system may shape implementation of open educational resources. 2. Analyze the kinds of organizational dynamics that may challenge use of open educational resources. 3. Evaluate solutions to potential barriers in using open educational resources related to faculty compensation, intellectual property, and governance. 4. Create strategies to identify and create alliances to support use of open educational resources.
Randi Madisen is the OER Librarian for the Minnesota State system office and is also a librarian at Century College, promoting open and affordable content. She has certificates in OER Librarianship and Creative Commons Licensing.
Dr. Eric Riedel has served in administrative, teaching, and research roles in higher education for over 25 years with specific interests in assessment, online learning, and civic education. He is currently the Dean for Nursing, Continuing Education and Customized Training, and Online... Read More →
