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The Clarion \ Sept. 3,2010
Textbook rental: Is it an idea whose time has come?
You may have noticed when you went to buy your books this
semester that another option awaited you in Kings Creek Bookstore:
the option, in some cases, to “rent” your textbook, at often consider
able savings over the full purchase price of a new book.
In essence, this means you avoid the end-of-the-semester ritual
of packing up your textbooks—all $700 to $ 1000 worth in a typical
semester—and heading down to the campus bookstore to brave the
perils of “Buyback.” Instead of standing in line, wondering if your
chemistry textbook will be used again, or if your mass media text
book has somehow become obsolete in the span of just three-and-a-
half months, you can avoid the trepidation by basically “pre-seUing”
your book back to the bookstore at the begiiming of the semester
While the iPad and Kindle devices have been slowly changing the
way people read (and buy) books, including textbooks, they still have
not made a serious dent in the textbook pubhshing industry—though
it is likely that sometime in the next five or 10 years, the ebook will
become a standard in higher education textbook sales. What is really
preventing e-textbooks from taking off now, however, according to
an Aug. 31 article on insidehighered.com, is the fact that textbook
rentals have gone “viral” in just the past few months.
The Follett Higher Education Group, which operates Kings Creek
Bookstore at Brevard, expanded its seven pilot college bookstore
rental programs last fall to 22 in the spring. And this semester, the
number has expanded to include hundreds of the more than 800
THE Clarion
Esteban Diaz, ‘The Lariat’ at Baylor University via UWIRE
college bookstores run by Follett... including our own.
The most substantial savings for rentals are, of course, for
brand new books. Rental cost savings are less if used books are
available.
What do you think about the new rental program? Did it save
you money? Does it make you more likely to get your books
from the campus bookstore instead of ordering them online from
sources such as half.com? E-mail us at clarion@brevard.edu with
your thoughts about textbook rentals.
New cedar-shaved paths add
beauty, romance to BC campus
1 Senior Staff j
Editor in Chief
John M. Climer
IVIanaging Editor ....
Chris Novak
Business IVIanager. . .
Position Open
Copy Editor
David Alexander
News
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Opinion
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Arts & Life
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Photography
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Faculty Advisor
John B. Padgett
1 Other Staff j
Chantel Azevedo
Ashley Fortune
Parl Baler
Daniel Heyman
Karam Boeshaar
Jacob Liske
Sarah Bowers
Alex McCracken
Danielle Burch
Daniel Schreiman
Zack Christy
Krisma Sellers
Kathleen Crady
Caleb Welborn
John Dorner
The Clarion is a student-run college newspaper
produced by student journalists enrolled at Brevard
College. Unsigned editorials represent the collective
opinion of the staff of The Clarion. Other opinions
1 expressed in this newspaper
are those of respective 1
authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the
faculty staff or administration of Brevard College.
All correspondence should be mailed to:
1 The Clarion, Brevard Colleg
e. One Brevard College 1
1 Drive, Brevard, NC 28712, or send E-mail to 1
1 clarion@brevard.edu
1 www.brevard.edu/clarion |
By Zack Christy
Staff Writer
For those of us who are returning to Bre
vard it may have come as quite a surprise to
see the changes we had over the summer
These changes while aesthetic such as the
new paths.
The new paths are wonderful—I recom
mend anyone who has not yet ventured to
Ingle’s or down to the Villages, take a walk.
These cedar-shaved stairways to heaven are
well worth the trip.
Like many of my contemporaries, I have
often criticized and scoffed at the mainte
nance people who work on the grounds.
Primarily because of the overly loud sing
ing of the lawn mowers, but now I take
back any cross word I have ever spoken of
these men.
Senior Daniel Heyman says even if
they do happen to be superfluous, totally
arbitrary paths,” they add beauty and a nice
setting for possible romantic or even sexual
encounters. “The gravel at the cafe was a
huge step up,” Heyman said. He says he
could even see himself receiving a very spe
cial gift on the mulch there—a very intimate
sort of gift, if you know what I mean.
Daniel’s statements epitomize what the
paths mean to Brevard. While the path may
be a little superfluous—the one by the creek
is only about 50 feet long—^they add beauty.
And another bonus is that the paths give
an opportunity for a moonlit walk along
the banks of Kings Creek, and who knows
where the night may lead?
So when you see a maintenance person,
tip your cap to them for the hard work they
have put into making this campus beautiful.
And when you tread on the cedar shavings,
tread lightly because you are walking on
someone’s hopes and dreams.
E] Letters Policy
The Clarion welcomes letters to the editor. We reserve the right to edit letters for length or content. We do not
publish anonymous letters or those whose authorship cannot be verified. E-mail: clarion@brevard.edu.