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textbook issues

The Dallas County Community College District relies on its Textbook and Bookstore Advisory Committee for input about textbook issues and the District's contracted bookstore operator, Follett.

The committee includes students, faculty and staff from all campuses and several District offices. These representatives welcome input from everyone in the campus community and they've noticed that concerns on one campus generally are shared at other campuses.

Steve Ledford, auxiliary business services manager for DCCCD, leads the committee; Joe Bishop is North Lake College's faculty representative; and Casey Cavalier is the NLC student representative.

North Lake students should share their concerns about bookstore services and textbook issues with Cavalier, via e-mail, at ccavalier@dcccd.edu. Instructors can reach Bishop at joe.bishop@dccccd.edu.

The new Listening Boxes offer a channel of communication for sharing comments.

Identifying best candidates

The Textbook and Bookstore Advisory Committee is currently working on a request for proposals, anticipating the end of Follett's current contract as operator of all DCCCD bookstores.

The Follett Corporation is a privately held company headquartered in Illinois. Forbes magazine puts Follett's 2005 sales in the neighborhood of $ 2.2 billion, up 10 percent from 2004. One of their primary competitors is B&N College Booksellers.

Campus bookstore operators, including Follett, will bid on the opportunity to service all DCCCD campuses.

Follett is also the sole vendor to which the District's eCampus system is linked.

Broader textbook issues

After selecting a company this fall to operate DCCCD bookstores, the committee has an opportunity to consider broader textbook issues.

To date, students have registered concerns about textbook prices, frequent revisions and the “bundling” of extra materials that contribute to price increases.

Textbooks accounted for almost threequarters of the cost of attending a community college in 2003-2004, according to the Government Accounting Office in Washington, D.C.

Much is said about low-income senior citizens who forgo groceries to afford their prescription medication. But, what of students who find it difficult to afford textbooks totalling hundreds of dollars each semester?

Wishing textbook prices to fall is a bit like wishing for cheaper gasoline. There is no simple solution and many parties are involved.

But, students have called for improvements and the issue appears to have gained traction nationally.

With rising tuition costs, legislation changes that increase the cost of acquiring student loans, and the ever-climbing cost of living, college is becoming a financial challenge that prohibits some from attending.

Publishers, booksellers, colleges, faculty and students would all need to work on a solution. The District's advisory committee has a challenging mission.

— From Staff Reports