ZTC / OER Faculty Incentive Program

• The application is available via Microsoft Form. 
• Please submit one application per course/stipend level. 
• Applications are due by Thursday, October 2, 2025 at 5 PM. 

Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) is an umbrella term that encompasses Open Educational Resources (OER), Open Access (OA) books and articles, materials in the public domain, and library-licensed materials, such as library eBooks with unlimited user licenses.  

• While this program was initially supported with local funds in 2022-2023, the program relaunched in Spring 2025 with the support of state grant funds (review "ZTC Degree Program" section).
• Merced College was awarded funding to establish ZTC transfer degrees in Agriculture Business, Business Administration 2.0, Child Development, Criminal Justice, English, Psychology, Sociology, and Teacher Education.
• Not all class sections of a course need to be ZTC, but there should be at least one section of a course that can fit into a pathway to make it possible for a student not to incur textbook costs for the entire degree. 
• The state grant funds must be used to assist in the creation of these ZTC transfer degrees. 
• The degrees are due by Spring 2027. 

Adopt: $1000 stipend ​

• Adopting ZTC materials for use in a course​
• Must not already offer course as ZTC​
• Course must align with at least one ZTC transfer degree pathway​

Adapt: $2000 stipend ​

• Substantially modifying an OER textbook or curating OER content into a single source for use in a course​
• Course must align with at least one ZTC degree pathway​
• Content must be licensed CC BY 4.0 & deposited in COOL4Ed​

Author: $5000 stipend​

• Writing an original OER textbook from scratch for use in a course​
• Course must align with at least one ZTC degree pathway​
• Content must be peer-reviewed by two faculty members of the department
• Content must be licensed CC BY 4.0 & deposited in COOL4Ed

• Full-time and part-time faculty are eligible to apply for one or more courses.
• The courses need to be those which the applicant regularly teaches/is scheduled for, so deans will be notified of applicant interest. 

• ZTC course sections may still require a calculator, lab kit, art supplies, and/or fingerprinting.
• Required course reading materials relate only to textbooks, lab manuals, and courseware, and only these must be ZTC in order for a course section to be considered ZTC. 

• The Adopt ($1000) stipend is for a course that has not been previously taught as ZTC by the applicant. 
• The Adapt ($2000) and Author ($5000) stipends are available to applicants submitting courses that they have already offered as ZTC. 

• Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis.
• Dr. Jessica Moran and Lindsay Davis will meet approximately every two weeks to go over submitted applications.
• Initial notifications will be emailed by Lindsay Davis but the ZTC Instructional Support Coordinator will take this on beginning in mid-September. 

• Training will run Monday, October 13, 2025 through Monday, November 17, 2025
• There is no expectation that ZTC materials will be selected by November 17, but you will have the foundation to do the necessary research. 
• Lindsay Davis will continue to monitor Canvas through Thursday, December 11 but will be taking a hard break for the winter break; anything submitted after December 11 will be addressed beginning Tuesday, January 20, 2026. 

• The 5 learning modules cover:
  • Textbook requirements and definitions/examples of zero cost student resources
  • Copyright & Creative Commons licensing and attributions
  • Where to find OER
  • Library-licensed materials
    • eBook licensing
    • Access to EBSCO Collection Manager
    • Accessibility
  • Considerations for adapting OER
    • Printing OER
    • Accessibility
    • Artificial Intelligence 
      • Copyright; use in OER development

• Previous participants who may be selected to participate will not need to complete the 5 learning modules again.
• Previous participants will still need to submit their revised syllabus with ZTC materials, along with any accompanying materials depending on stipend level (e.g., checklists, links to newly-created OER materials, etc.).

• Due to the nature of the state grant funding the program, stipends may be dispersed only when:
  • Canvas training has been successfully completed.
  • Materials listed as required in the course syllabus have been verified as legal, zero cost materials for students. 
  • For the $2000 & $5000 stipends, accompanying materials may also be needed, such as checklists, links to newly created OER, etc. 
    • Requirements are currently being fleshed out. 
• Once verified, Lindsay Davis will contact Dr. Jessica Moran to generate a contract.
• Once the contract is signed, the faculty member must fill out a stipend timesheet available in Laserfiche.
  • The contract email sent by Dr. Moran contains the needed information.
  • The dean selected should be Dr. Moran, so it is routed correctly for signature.
• Stipends are paid on the10th of the following month but are dependent on timesheet deadlines for Payroll. 

• There is a survey for that the Office of Institutional Effectiveness (OIE) will conduct. 
• When you first / next teach the ZTC course:
  • a faculty survey will be sent by OIE directly to work email near the end of the semester
  • student surveys in each section of your ZTC course will be sent by OIE directly to student email near the end of the semester
  • OIE will also run an analysis for each section of your new ZTC course for student:
    • Course Completion Rate (CCR)
    • Course Success Rate (CSR)
    • Grade Point Average (GPA)

Joey Merritt (left MCCD in August 2023) and Lindsay Davis submitted the initial program proposal in October 2021, prior to the consideration and implementation of Smart Start, formerly called Follett Access, the district's automatic textbook billing program.  

As a best practice, ZTC courses should not be included in automatic textbook billing programs. At this time, students at MCCD will still be charged $21.50 per unit (formerly $25 per unit) regardless of the type of materials used in their courses unless they opt out of Smart Start (formerly Follett Access); students can opt out on a semester basis. Increasing ZTC adoption at higher rates may help to foster greater change. 

All course modalities follow the same textbook guidelines, so courses taught in any modality can use OER if adequate materials exist. 

• CCAP has been encouraging use of OER as high schools pay for textbooks, and it's been an increasing problem that materials are not always ready for the classes on the first day. 
• Rising Scholars faculty are also encouraged to use OER, though content would need to be printed for students to have access "all of the time." As the program relies on a grant to pay for the textbooks, it is a cost savings to have material printed for students; Rising Scholars has indicated that the program would pay to print material. 
• In-person classes can also use OER, but if students prefer to have material printed, they can print it themselves at an office supply store, at home, online printing service, etc.; the Downey Center and Los Baños Campus Library each allow for students to print up to 20 black and white pages for free a day. 

Contact Dr. Moran for special consideration. We do have a few faculty just completing the training component without a stipend or for a very reduced amount.