A Report on the Feasibility of Textbook Rental - IBHE

Moraine Valley Community CollegeI just got a copy of the report and wanted to respond to you on behalf of Moraine Valley. I think you alldid a nice job on the report. You did extensive research and I certainly can’t argue with the facts. I dohave just a few comments to offer. In the executive summary, a comparison is made between averagecosts for books in non-rental programs and those in rental programs and this, of course, shows a prettybig gap. At least in our survey response (and I would venture to guess that other institutions reported thisthe same way), we gave you the average cost for all NEW books. This would be less if you bought bothnew and used books. However, in rental programs, you have both new and used books, which brings theprice down to both the student and the institution, for that matter. Therefore, when you make a quickcomparison between the two options, it makes it look like it is a straight comparison when in fact itprobably is more apples to oranges.I also think it would be good to point out that in some cases, like at Moraine Valley, we found that the costto students for books through either a rental program or a strong buy-back program were virtually thesame (with the exception that students would have upfront costs in the buy-back program and would notget their money back until they sold back their books at the end of the term). I think this is an importantpoint to make because otherwise it looks like the rental program is kind of a panacea and that allinstitutions should find a way to implement it regards of start-up costs and other challenges. I really don’tthink we want to put all our eggs in one basket and suggest that a rental program is the best option for allstudents at all institutions. I don’t think the report is saying that necessarily, but I do believe that somelegislators easily could interpret it this way because of the emphasis on this particular option in the bodyof the report.I also think a point could be made that legislation could be passed so that book costs could be coveredunder MAP grants, even though they are not currently but this is an option that could be considered. I saythat, but also am concerned with focusing in on MAP, even as it relates to mandatory book rental fees,because MAP has not been fully funded in recent years due to the state’s financial situation.I hope these comments are helpful to you. If I have others, I will send them to you. Happy New Year toyou.Sincerely,Nancy W. Bentley, Ph.D.Vice President of Student DevelopmentMoraine Valley Community College9000 W. College Pkwy.Palos Hills, IL 60465708-974-5209 Phone708-974-5269 Faxbentley@morainevalley.edu-112-