How Virginia is Scaling the Z-Degree Across All 23 Colleges Richard Sebastian Director, Teaching & Learning Technologies Virginia Community College System

A Z-Degree is a pathway to a degree or credential that has zero textbook costs by using course materials made up of open educational resources (OER). What is a Z-Degree?

OER are teaching, learning, and research resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits their free use and re-purposing by others. Open educational resources include full courses, course materials, modules, textbooks, streaming videos, tests, software, and any other tools, materials, or techniques used to support access to knowledge. What is OER?

OE R * Universe of Traditional Course Materials

What is so great about open educational resources?

A multi-institutional study of the impact of open textbook adoption on the learning outcomes of postsecondary students 5,000 postsecondary students using OER 11,000+ control students using commercial textbooks ten (10) institutions across the United States fifteen (15) different undergraduate courses 1.course completion 2.final grade of C- or higher 3.course grade Students whose faculty chose OER generally performed as well or better than students whose faculty assigned commercial textbooks --Fischer et. al.(2015)

VCCS & OER

8 Zx23 Project Grant $200k from Hewlett Foundation $380k Match from VCCS

9 Virginia is an OER trailblazer and Z-Degree leader Hewlett (potentially) funding a national Z-Degree project

OER Adoption At Scale Is A Human Change Process

Engaged Champion Leaders VCCS Chancellor Glenn DuBois

Adapted to Existing Ecosystems

Successful Trailblazers

Built Infrastructure & Support

April 2015 Hewlett Foundation Zx23 Grant Awarded

16 Request for proposals, contracts, project planning Vision Why this degree program? How is cabinet supporting the vision? Vision Why this degree program? How is cabinet supporting the vision? Communication Plan With whom? How? Project management Broad awareness Communication Plan With whom? How? Project management Broad awareness OER Review Full courses Existing resources Difficulty to create OER Review Full courses Existing resources Difficulty to create Enrollment Plan Courses Current sections Timed transition Faculty Metrics Enrollment Plan Courses Current sections Timed transition Faculty Metrics Support and Faculty Development Plan Faculty Program leads Campus support staff Institutional leaders Support and Faculty Development Plan Faculty Program leads Campus support staff Institutional leaders May 2015 Project Development

June 2015 Zx23 Program Manager hired Cheryl Huff, GCC

July colleges awarded Zx23 grants 6 degree programs 1. Business Administration 2.Business Management 3.Criminal Justice 4.General Education 5.Liberal Arts 6.Social Science 1. Business Administration 2.Business Management 3.Criminal Justice 4.General Education 5.Liberal Arts 6.Social Science

August 2015 Webinars, webinars, and more webinars (+ blog posts)

20 August 2015 OER Courses Tab in Blackboard Learn

August 2015 Faculty development

September 2015 FA15 z-courses underway SP16 z-courses being developed

September 2015 FA15 z-courses underway SP16 z-courses being developed 100+ courses

25 Zx23 Interim Results 354 faculty members

26 October 2015 Zx23 Interim Results Projected Enrollments Fall ,691* Savings $1,469,100

27 Zx23 Interim Results Projected FA-SP Savings $4,140,400*

28 Perspective Intro Biology $3,400,000 Zx23 Interim Results

29 Zx23 Interim Results Other OER data sources NVCC SDV 100 8,000+ SIS Course Attribute 4,423 “Rogue” OER courses

Links Candela VCCS catalog Zx23 Course Spreadsheet fKayGEw/htmlview# Pathways OER Course Zx23 webinar archive Lumen Learning OpenVA