CCC Technology for Student Success News
Volume 1, Issue 2 - June 17, 2014
In This Issue
Letter
New Executive Director
OEI Update
EPI Update
CAI Update
 

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Dear Friends & Colleagues: 

 

We'd like to take this time to reiterate that the Online Education Initiative (OEI), the Education Planning Initiative (EPI) and the Common Assessment Initiative (CAI) have been moving forward substantially through the already well established and highly collaborative efforts of steering committees and work groups comprised of numerous representatives from throughout the California Community Colleges system.

For example, as noted in the initial OEI grant application, in order to ensure program success, we are required to work with a representative advisory group developed in consultation with the Chancellor's Office. In that spirit we have developed and continue to fully support a governance body "composed of state and local California Community Colleges leadership, including but not limited to the following: Academic Senate for CCC; Chief Instruction Officers; Chief Student Services Officers; and Chief Information System Officers; as well as representatives from the Chancellor's Office from Academic Affairs, Student Services, and Technology, Research and Information Systems."

In an OEI steering committee meeting held on June 6 it was noted by several of our esteemed colleagues that past online education initiatives in other parts of the country, as well as right here in our own state, ran into all sorts of challenges and less-than-stellar results due primarily to their failure to get faculty endorsement during important decision-making processes. We are doing everything conceivably possible to avoid repeating past mistakes by creating a participatory governance structure, and we feel confident in our total commitment to the statewide Academic Senate and all of our colleagues throughout the state of California.  
 
This is evident, for one, in our pre-established steering committees:
  • The CAI steering committee currently has 48 members, with representatives from 20 community colleges, Cal-PASS Plus, the Research & Planning (RP) Group for CCC, the Chancellor's Office and students.  
  • The EPI steering committee has 35 members with representatives from 18 community colleges, the Chancellor's Office, the RP Group, Teachers College at Columbia University and students.  
  • The OEI steering committee has 59 members with representatives from 27 colleges, the Chancellor's Office, the RP Group, the OEI Launch Team, and students.
As the pilot colleges are chosen for all three initiatives, more representatives from each college will be added to this group of active participants who will collaborate extensively and make key decisions concerning all aspects of the CAI, EPI and OEI. Additionally, work groups that focus on very specific elements of the CAI, EPI and OEI have also been formed or are in the process of being formed for all three initiatives. All told, several hundred representatives from the entire system are on board, working diligently toward the common goal of integrating, improving and evolving existing technology services for all of California's community college students.

Pilot College Selection 
In brief, as of June 17 the CAI selected 12 pilot colleges from a list of 37 pilot college applicants, and the EPI has selected 11 pilot colleges from a list of 13 pilot college applicants. A total of 58 colleges that applied to participate in the OEI pilot are currently under review. 
 
More detailed information about each of these initiatives can be found in the respective articles published in this issue of CCC Technology for Student Success News.

OEI Common Course Management System RFI Released & Committees Making Progress
An RFI was released on June 16 to identify and explore capabilities and practices of vendors that may be viable providers of products or services necessary to support an OEI common course management system for use among the California Community Colleges. In addition, the Student Services, Professional Development, Academic Affairs and Common Course Management committees and work groups have all made significant progress toward common goals that would allow the OEI to move forward with some initial fully online and standardized courses and program offerings with extensive student services by the fall semester.

New Executive Director 
We are also very pleased to announce that the OEI search committee has selected Pat James to be our new executive director. Please see the article below for more information about Pat.

Interest Grows 
Finally, we are happy to report that in only one month more than 700 educators from the entire state of California have self-subscribed to this electronic newsletter. We feel this is an outstanding number and are glad to see that so many community college professionals have taken an interest in the CAI, EPI and OEI.

Please stay tuned, and please continue to share this information with your colleagues, as we continue to report out on all these initiatives in future issues of this electronic newsletter.

Respectfully yours,

Joe Moreau, Executive Sponsor, OEI
Tim Calhoon Executive Sponsor, CAI, EPI 
Pat James Appointed
Executive Director of the CCC OEI

 

The California Community Colleges (CCC) Online Education Initiative (OEI) is pleased to announce that it has selected Pat James as its new executive director.

 

OEI Sees Overwhelming Interest from Colleges

 

The Online Education Initiative (OEI) received an outstanding and unexpected 58 responses to its call for pilot colleges, giving the steering committee and launch team plenty of variables to consider before identifying the pilot colleges for the first phase of this initiative. 

 

EPI Gears Up for Launch

 

Having received responses from 13 colleges - three of which were from the same district - 11 pilot colleges were chosen for the Education Planning Initiative (EPI). 

 

CAI Leadership Selects
Pilot Colleges

 

After careful review of 37 pilot-college applications for the Common Assessment Initiative, the CAI leadership team recommended 12 colleges to participate in the pilot, which begins with work group meetings during the second week of July.