2023 Online Course Development Program
What is the OCDP?
The 2023 Online Course Development Program (OCDP) provides a funding opportunity for faculty Principle Investigators (PI's) to develop robust, engaging and student centered, online and hybrid undergraduate courses. Through this opportunity, faculty can receive funding for summer salary + graduate student assistance to create course content.
Courses developed through this program carry the requirement to offer the course three times in three years. Summer offerings are allowed but do not count toward the offering requirement. Instructors who receive OCDP Awards are required to conduct assessment and continuous improvement related to the effectiveness of the delivery environment. For proposals awarded during the Spring 2023 RFP, courses must be offered for the first time no later than the Fall 2024 semester.
PI's may submit as an individual or a team, a department chair, or a department’s undergraduate curriculum chair. The 2023 OCDP funding is available for courses that have already been approved by UGC for the teaching modality in Summer or Fall 2023 or which have been submitted for consideration for these delivery modalities for Spring or Fall 2024.
Proposals for course development funds will be accepted for the following types of requests:
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Design and development of fully online courses as defined by UGC (0% of course contact hours are delivered in person and 100% are delivered online or via other distance education technologies. There are no in-person meetings.).
- Transforming a face‐to‐face course to a fully online course
- Developing an entirely new fully online course
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Design and development of hybrid courses as defined by UGC (Fewer than 70%, but more than 0%, of course contact hours are delivered in person with the outstanding percentage of contact hours (30% or more, but less than 100%) delivered online or via other distance education technologies. This delivery modality should reflect a reduction in the need for in-person class meetings by blending online and face-to-face delivery.).
- Transforming a face‐to‐face course to a hybrid course
- Developing an entirely new hybrid course
UGC definitions of online and hybrid delivery modalities can be found on page 4 of this policy. PROCEDURES AND POLICIES FOR APPROVAL OF NEW UNDERGRADUATE COURSES AND UNDERGRADUATE COURSE CHANGES Revised September 2, 2022 – Policy effective September 2, 2022
(Approval of the hybrid or online course modality by UGC is required before any funds are distributed.
Submission Prioritization
Proposals for new GE courses, high enrollment and/or gateway courses will receive prioritized consideration. Additionally, proposals representing collaboration among PI's and departments and intended to serve students in multiple departments are strongly encouraged.
Important Dates and Deadlines
The timeline below shows the important dates for the OCDP Award RFP.
Deadline | Date |
---|---|
Submission Window Opens | February 2023 |
Submission Window Closes: | March 16, 2023 11:59PM, Pacific Time |
Review Window: | March 17 – April 3, 2023 |
Notification of Approved Awards: | April 15, 2023 |
Submissions received after the initial submission window closes will be accepted but not reviewed until after the initial notification of awards and only if funds are still available.
Submission Requirements
A course syllabus, letter of departmental support and supplemental questionnaire must be submitted with the initial proposal. As part of the approval process, a detailed budget will be required. Approval of the hybrid or online course modality by UGC is required before any funds are distributed.
Download the Departmental Support Agreement 2023
The submission form can be found at: https://ucmerced.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_b7Mw5rVZMIFU5T0
What Funding is Available?
Funding amounts are limited to the equivalent of 1 summer 9th + funds for graduate student assistance to develop course content. A small amount of funding is available for the purchase of a laptop or tablet if necessary for course development work. If a proposal is selected for funding, budgets will be refined in consultation with PIs and OCDP administrators. This program is funded by UCOP’s ILTI initiative.
More Information
Eligible UC Merced campus members interested in learning more about online and hybrid course development or teaching an online or a hybrid course are encouraged to discuss their proposals with the Teaching Commons. Consultations conducted by Teaching Commons pedagogical and course design experts are available and can be requested through this link: Online Course Proposal Consult.
Once projects are approved, Teaching Commons resources will be available to assist with project management, online and hybrid course design, active learning strategies, instructional video production and the use of CatCourses/Canvas.