As she sits behind the circulation desk at the Thomas Cooper Library, Tucker Taylor ponders some intriguing questions.

"Say you're a student, and you just need to take a language course, any language, to complete your degree requirements," said Tucker, head of circulation. "The Swahili book is $25 and the Spanish book is $205. Which language would you take?

"Or if a business major must take a biology course but won't need to keep the book after the course is over. Maybe he could do just fine using the biology book in the Reserve Area," continued Taylor, who has a BA degree in international studies from Carolina. "It would save him the cost of the book, and he might then be better able to purchase books for his business courses, which he might keep on hand as references after those courses is over."

These scenarios and others are fueling the Textbook Turnstile Project, a Student Government (SG) initiative that makes some high-use, expensive textbooks available for students to use in the Thomas Cooper Library. The project's goal is to purchase textbooks that cost more than $100 for each course with an enrollment of more than 100 students. The books would then be put on reserve in the library.

"By purchasing a limited number of copies of required textbooks, Student Government hopes to relieve some of the financial burden Carolina students assume," Tucker said. "The budget for this program is provided through student activity fees, and the library will help as we can, primarily to give the project continuity because students graduate and move on. We're hoping to create more awareness of both this project and the greater issue of the expense of textbooks."

Former student body president Tommy Preston began the effort during his tenure. Incumbent president Andrew Gaeckle plans to support it and add an alternative avenue for students.

"One of my priorities next year will be trying to promote a textbook exchange program online," Gaeckle said. "The Web address for that is www.scbookexchange.com. It's a national program and we now have a USC affiliate. Students sign up using their Blackboard user name and password, and they can get help in finding the best prices for the textbooks they need.

"We've been talking with Tucky (Taylor) about continuing the relationship with the library, and we plan to do that," he said. "We're also glad that the library is now open 24 hours a day, which not only gives students extra time to study in the library but also extra time to use the textbooks on reserve."

The SG project comes at a critical time. According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, college textbook prices nationwide nearly tripled between 1986 and 2004. That is, according to that office, double the rate of inflation. Some reasons cited for the increase were frequent new editions of books, as well as "bundling" supplementary materials and CD-ROMs with the textbooks for sale.

For the past three years, the University has had the only Student Congressional Advisory Board in the country. That group assists the Congressional Advisory Board in talks with legislators. The Carolina group advocates for lower textbook initiatives and other financial help in higher education.

Lawmakers must be listening.

A bill that passed the U.S. Senate in February and is now being debated in Congress--the College Opportunity and Affordability Act--requires a publisher that sells a textbook and any accompanying supplement as a single bundled item also to sell them as separately priced and unbundled items, among other requirements.

At Carolina, there are a number of faculty who have long been concerned about the cost of course materials.

Geology professor Greg Carbone has put graduate course textbooks on reserve in the library for seven or eight years, largely to help students progress in their degree programs.

"In general, putting textbooks on reserve for all students is a good idea: it would allow students who can't afford books or who need to spend money on something else to have access to the books," said Carbone, who communicates with and orders textbooks from publishers several times a year.

"Price is one of several variables I use to choose textbooks," he said. "I consider three criteria--the quality of the text, its compatibility with our course, and its price--and I give them equal weight."

As for textbook packages that are "bundled," Carbone said he often orders textbooks that have accompanying CDs, provided the price isn't inflated simply because a CD is included.

"The CDs can add a lot to students' understanding of the material," he said. "Today's students are used to being hit with a thousand visual images a second and they just don't read anymore. I give my students an assignment from the CD early in the semester, so they realize they have a visual treasure chest at their disposal if they choose to use it."

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