College joins Online Education Initiative

Rammy The CCSF Ram Photo by Rammy The Ram

By Laurie Maemura

maemuralaurie@gmail.com

 

Education Technology department chair Carol H. Reitan announced in an email that City College was chosen in California Community Colleges’ Online Education Initiative on May 2, 2018.

“The Academic Senate voted to approve a resolution for our participation,” Reitan wrote in the email.

City College, along with 33 other community colleges, submitted a self-assessment to demonstrate their abilities towards online learning and student equity.

According to its site, “The Online Education Initiative represents a comprehensive and collaborative program that leverages best practices and technology to significantly increase the opportunity for higher education degree attainment in California.”

It is composed of three sections: high-quality online courses, resources for online students, and technology resources.

The Educational Technology department aims to provide programs for distance learning students and to use software such as Insight and Canvas to enhance students experiences.

City College has seen a rise in available online courses since Fall 2015 when 62 faculty members worked full-time, only 36 faculty members worked part-time, and 185 online sections were available.

Now this Spring 2018 semester, Educational Technology has reported 63 full-time faculties, and an increase in part-time faculty members (61), and online classes using Canvas (261).

“The OEI is sponsored by the Foothill-De Anza Community College District, in partnership with the Butte-Glenn Community College District and its CCC Technology Center at Butte College as recipients of a $56.9 million five-year grant disbursed by the California Community College Chancellor’s Office (CCCCO).”