Career and AI Readiness
while Remixing Open Textbooks through an Equity Lens (CA-ROTEL)

The CA-ROTEL Project is a multi-year, grant-funded initiative supporting faculty at three Massachusetts public higher education institutions: UMass Lowell, Framingham State University, and Northern Essex Community College. Through stipends, training, and ongoing support, faculty develop culturally inclusive, interactive, and career-aligned open ancillary materials. No prior knowledge of open publishing, career readiness, or generative artificial intelligence (AI) is needed to participate in the grant. The project’s goals are to reduce or eliminate textbook costs through the development of ancillaries for general education, career-focused, and/or high-enrollment courses, while enhancing student engagement and learning outcomes – especially for underserved populations. CA-ROTEL also aims to establish a sustainable model for developing, publishing, and revising effective, free educational materials.