2017 - 18: Letter, rostrum, breakout. An article entitled "The Value of Time: Going on Sabbatical? Try OER" was published in the October 2017 Rostrum.
Whereas, Curriculum, including the selection and development of instructional materials, is an area of faculty primacy under Title 5 §53200 and the development of open educational resources (OER) is a worthwhile curriculum-related endeavor that will benefit students;
Whereas, Assembly Bill 798 (Bonilla, 2015) encourages the use of OER, and zero-textbook-cost degree efforts are underway that seek to provide an opportunity for students to earn a degree with no expenses associated with instructional materials;
Whereas, Access to and use of textbooks and ancillary materials can facilitate successful course completion by students, and students may postpone or fail to purchase textbooks due to escalating textbook prices and other educational costs, which could impact their success and course completion; and
Whereas, According to the senate paper Sabbaticals: Benefitting Faculty, the Institution, and Students (2007) major purpose of sabbaticals “…is to provide opportunity for continued professional growth and new, or renewed, intellectual achievement through study, research, writing, and travel;”
Resolved, That the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges encourage local senates and bargaining units to work with their administration to allow the use of sabbaticals and other professional development opportunities for the development of accessible open educational resources.
MSC