Since 2022, Hillsborough College has advanced Open Educational Resources (OER). We are now moving beyond textbooks to scalable Z-degree pathways as a way to counter publisher encroachment. Beginning with high-enrollment programs, Hillsborough College leverages its AI OER Creation Program to complete this work. With support from the Southern Regional Education Board’s (SREB) Open Capacity Building Grant, we are expanding our focus from producing faculty-authored, fully accessible open textbooks in under six months to developing fully mapped Z-degree pathways and programs for students. With the April 2026 ADA compliance deadline approaching, every textbook we produce now includes an accessibility statement confirming WCAG 2.1 Level AA or higher compliance, achieved through a self-hosted Pressbooks platform and AI-supported remediation tools. Participants will leave with a replicable framework for aligning affordability, accessibility, and sustainability in the evolving OER landscape.
