NYS Investing $8 Million To Make College Textbooks Cheaper

New York State is investing $8 million in an effort to bring down the cost of college textbooks for SUNY and CUNY students.

Anyone who has attended college or is preparing to send a student to college knows that textbooks can be very expensive - costing as much as $1200 each year. Even buying used books doesn't cut the costs that drastically.

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced that $8 million has been allocated for the Open Educational Resources Initiative at SUNY and CUNY, cutting the high cost of textbooks for students. OER offers freely available, high-quality books and other materials that can be downloaded, edited and shared.

On-line textbooks can significantly cut costs for the average student - and can make the difference for families who are already struggling to afford college tuition. According to a press release from the Governor's office:

• In the current academic year, OER has replaced textbooks in more than 4,000 course sections with enrollments totaling nearly 100,000 students, saving more than a combined total of $12.3 million.
• By the end of the Spring 2019 semester, the initiative will have covered 260,000 students for a total savings of more than $28 million.

Do you think you'd like an online textbook, or do you prefer a classic paper textbook?

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