Textbook prices rise 10 percent annually
Publishers, bookstore markups figure heavily in costs
By Debbie Myers
■ The University Daily Kansan
U. of Kansas
When it comes to textbooks, Josephs Lara shops
around.
Lara, a senior at the U. of Kansas, said she checked
prices at the KU bookstores and other places to find
the best deals on books each semester
Like thousands of other college students, I ara is frus
trated by high purchase prices and low sell-back prices.
Charles Thodt, director of industry information and
research for the National Association of College Stores
in Oberlin. Ohio, said the pnces textbook publishers
collected and the amount bookstores added to cover
their costs made up the largest part of textbook pnces.
Those pnces have nsen by 10 percent each year dur
ing tiie past 10 to 12 years, Thodt said.
He said the average student at a four-year institution
spent about $463.35 for a year's supply of books dunng
fiscal year 1988.
Undergraduate students at KU spend about $300 each
semester on books and basic supplies for a 15-hour class
load, said Bill Getz, assistant manager for books at the
campus bookstores. Currently, in state tuition at KU
runs $1,564 per year. Textbook costs there equal about
19 percent of total tuition costs annually
Mike Reid, manager of the KU bookstores, said stu
dents could keep textbook costs down by buying used
books, selling their books at the end of the semester
and using the student dividend program, which allows
KU students to receive a percentage of their bookstore
receipts back at the end of the semester
Reid said during the 44 years the KU bookstores have
used the dividend program, more than $2 million has
been paid to students. Since 1988, the bookstores have
paid students 7 percent of the amount of a semester's
cash register receipts, he said.
Used books at the campus bookstores cost about 25
percent less than new books, Reid said.
He said the bookstores buy books back for half the
new book value if they will be used the next semester.
If the books are not being used the next semester at
the university, a wholesale book company buys them
for 10 to 40 percent of their retail value.
Senior Kurt Skinner said he was disappointed with
low sell-back prices, especially for soft-cover books.
"One semester's use and they’re practically valueless
to the student, and the bookstore is able to sell them
back and get their value many times over," Skinner
said.
Stephen Goldman, associate professor of English, is
the co-author of a textbook that has been available at
the bookstores for three years.
Goldman said any royalties he receives from sales of
his book at KU are sent to the New York Zoological
Society.
“1 don't feel that I should get any royalties for any
book sold at KU, and this was my way to avoid a con
flict of interest," he said.
Textbook Costs
What makes up the cost of the average textbook? Here's
a breakdown of coats for texts published by companies
that are members of the American Association of
Publishers or the National Association of College Stores.
SOURCE: IU Collin *l»m »»mn> ul tiillUlill F»a»S«li»«
BRETT BRENNER. THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN. U. OF KANSAS
Goldman said he thought most faculty members
wrote textbooks so they could teach their classes the
way they wanted.
“Things have just gotten horribly out of control,”
Goldman said. "(The cost of textbooks is) very definitely
a factor in what it costs a student to go to school now.”
Picking and choosing
Customized reeding... Rather than spending a large
amount of money on a tremendous number of books
— books they likely will read only a few chapters of
— students at the U. of Colorado might see a new
idea take hold that would allow them to buy only
one book per class. The idea for “custom textbooks'
is being marketed by McGraw-Hill, the second
largest college textbook publisher, and would
allow professors to choose sections from different
books and have them compiled into a single bound
text. Some professors are skeptical, however, claim
ing the new method would take longer to order the
custom texts from the publisher than it would to
have copy centers prepare packets of material for
students. ■ Beth Potter, Colorado Daily, U. of
Colorado
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Continued from page 12
The outlook is encouraging. According
to Moore, the default rate that was high
er than 20 percent only five years ago is
now down to 15.3 percent.
Moore cited an increase in the
nationwide student body, more than 1
million since 1980, plus a growing
number of non-traditional students
who only qualify for loans, as addition
1 al reasons for the growth in the student
loan program.
Moore said the dramatic increase in
the cost of higher education is primarily
due to the rising cost of living.
At NMU, several financial aid pro
grams are already depleted for the year,
including the Perkins supplementary
grant, the Michigan Educational
Opportum ty Grant and the general fund
scholarship.
Help could be coming
Pecotte said that in 1992 the federal
government is scheduled to “reautho
rize" the annual amount of federal aid
granted to students. The last time the
amount was set was in 1986.
“I think we’ll see a major shift in the
amount and type of financial aid avail
able to students," he said.
Kitty
Continued from page 12
But going nationwide is only the start.
Talkington is negotiating with distribu
tors in Japan and Europe.
“My goad wasn’t to conquer the world,"
she said. “It was just to make a tape for
my cat."
Talkington is currently working on a
sequel to “Kitty Video.” She hopes to
release it in the spring.