In Spring 2018, the Textbook Affordability Task Force began purchasing high-priced textbooks for high-enrollment courses as part of a pilot program. The Textbook Purchase Program has now acquired more than 120 titles for courses from six colleges and more than 20 departments—putting those materials on two-hour Reserve for student use in Founders or the Music Library.
The financial impact of COVID-19 has encouraged the Libraries to tackle issues of textbook access in various ways, including promoting library-licensed materials; borrowing via I-Share and Interlibrary Loan; and adopting, adapting, and creating Open Educational Resources (OER). This Fall, the NIU Libraries’ Textbook Task Force will be accepting faculty requests to procure required course materials and place them on two-hour reserve in the library. To submit a request, please complete the Textbook Purchase Recommendation Form or contact Dee Anna Phares, Chair of the Textbook Task Force.
Criteria for Textbook Purchasing:
- Priority is given to high-priced books or materials which will be used in high-enrollment courses or courses with multiple sections.
- Precedence is given to materials that will be utilized for several semesters.
- Undergraduate and graduate course materials are eligible.
- Texts with single-user codes will not be purchased unless the faculty member notes that materials accessible only with a code will not be used in the course.
- Course packs and customized textbooks are not eligible for purchase.
- Loose-leaf and spiral-bound texts, which are easily damaged, are not eligible for purchase.
- Multiple copies of textbooks will not be purchased.
- Not all materials requested will be purchased; selection is contingent on the available budget.
There is no deadline for submitting Textbook Purchase requests; however, please consider when the materials will be needed and request in advance to ensure adequate time for ordering, shipping, and processing. If the mate-rials you have selected for your course do not meet the criteria, speak with your Subject Specialist librarian about your options.
Dee Anna Phares
