Grant Overview

CT OER Grant Program

The CT OER Grant Program is designed to strategically support Connecticut higher education institutions' efforts to increase access, affordability, and achievement for students through the incorporation of OER.  This grant program will focus on OER opportunities in "high impact" areas - courses with high enrollment and high textbook costs for which high-quality OER already exists.  

High Impact Areas

In 2019, the CT OER Coordinating Council surveyed Connecticut's higher education institutions to determine the courses areas statewide that had the highest enrollments and highest associated textbook costs. The following lists the Top 22 course areas identified (with associated CIP Code designation). 

Categories of Award

1. Review  – Evaluate an openly-licensed textbook or other open content related to your course(s)/ discipline and write a review for public display. Where possible, student involvement in the review is strongly encouraged.

• Individual Reviews – For an individual faculty member writing an OER review - $500 stipend

• Department Reviews – For a department writing a single review as part of the curriculum review process. Faculty involved may determine how to allocate the work and the funds amongst themselves - $750 stipend

2. Adoption – Adopt an existing open textbook or open course content with little to no changes made to the content. Applications should detail the work involved in the proposed OER adoption and the resulting benefits to students. Where possible, student involvement is strongly encouraged. This is for an individual faculty member seeking to transform their course by adopting OER materials - $1,000 stipend

3. Supplemental – Develop missing ancillaries for currently adopted OER such as quiz question banks, lecture slides, or lab manuals. Applications should include information on the need for the proposed supplements and the resulting benefits to students.  Where possible, student involvement is strongly encouraged. This is for an individual faculty member seeking to substantively supplement their adopted OER materials - $1,250 stipend (For applicants requesting non-stipend funds, please provide a detailed budget in the application).

4. Impact – For proposals to create OER and for collaborative, large scale proposals not covered by the categories above that demonstrate a high impact on student success using OER. Cross-institutional collaborative proposals as well as student involvement are strongly encouraged. This award type requires a detailed budget as part of the application. Examples include (but are not limited to):

• Course Wide Adoption – For a group of two or more faculty members, seeking to transform a majority of the sections of a course by adopting OER materials at a systematic and department-wide level. Faculty involved may determine how to allocate the work and the funds amongst themselves. 

• Collaborative Creations – For a group of two or more faculty members, seeking to create supplemental materials in support of currently adopted OER at a systematic and department-wide level. Faculty involved may determine how to allocate the work and the funds amongst themselves.

• Creation/Significant Revision – For the development of openly-licensed materials that are designed to stand on their own (versus supplemental materials that are used in conjunction with existing OER). Proposals can consist of 1) significant revisions of existing OER content, or 2) newly created OER content. Creation/Revision grants are for individual Faculty work or for Faculty collaborations. Faculty involved may determine how to allocate the work and the funds amongst themselves.

* Awards may be subject to standard payroll deductions.

Eligibility

The CT OER Grant Program is open to all eligible faculty from Connecticut institutions of higher education.

The awards are targeted for "high-impact" courses (as defined above). Proposals may be submitted in other disciplines, provided the course(s) meet the definition of high impact relative to their institution.

Eligible applications must demonstrate that students enrolled in the high-impact course(s) will realize direct savings as a result of the current or future use of the OER.

Awardees must teach the OER-enabled course(s) during the grant period.  Review grants are exempted from this requirement.

Applicants will be required to attest (within the application) that they have received permission from their institution, and that they are not already receiving compensation (grants, release, sabbatical) for the proposed work. Any related funding should complement but not duplicate funding for work proposed in this grant.

Requirements

Adoption, Supplemental, and Impact Grants all have some similar components, such as:

• Implement proposed work within the specified course section(s) no later than Fall of the grant year.

• Teach the OER-enabled section(s) of course(s) no later than Fall of the grant year.

• Openly license any new or derivative works, preferably “CC BY” if allowed.

• Ensure that OER content meets accessibility standards.

• Report the OER adoption to local bookstore in accordance with the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) reporting requirements.

• Implement a student survey within the specified OER course section(s) to gain student perspective (see Qualitative Analysis section for recommendations).

• Submit a grant report, due no later than December 31st of the grant year.

To view the full CT OER Grant requirements, please visit the link below.

• CT OER Grant Requirements

Documentation

• Grant Overview Presentation

• Grant Requirements & Best Practices Presentation

• CT OER Grant Program – Colleague Review Rubric