Students enrolled in large Emory College courses can now check out required textbooks at the Robert W. Woodruff Library for three hours at a time under a revamped Textbook Lending Program, which debuted this semester.
The lending program originated in 2016 with the student-driven Campus Life organization FLIP (First-generation Low-income Partnership). FLIP collected textbooks donated by students at the end of spring semesters and later worked with Emory Libraries to host the collection and manage checkouts to other FLIP students.
Over the years, the popular program grew, eventually exceeding the support capacity of its student volunteers. Recognizing the importance of the program, advisors from Campus Life and Emory Libraries collaborated with students from FLIP to develop a sustainable plan to institutionalize what had become a vital service.
Today, the Textbook Lending Program is supported by a partnership between Emory Libraries and Emory First, part of Belonging and Community Justice in Campus Life. Emory First serves all first-generation college students as well as students from low- and limited-income backgrounds.
Under the revamped program, textbooks required for large-enrollment courses in Emory College are purchased with funds provided by the Libraries and Campus Life. The books are made available via the Libraries’ Course Reserves service for a three-hour checkout by any student.
Kim Copenhaver, former director of Access Services, said the library formed a working group to discuss ways to address textbook affordability and consulted with peer institutions about textbook lending programs at their libraries.
“We were interested in exploring new ways to support student flourishing and making educational materials accessible and affordable to more students is one of the ways we can do that,” Copenhaver said. “We truly appreciate the funding from Campus Life/Emory First, which has enabled us to purchase textbooks for more than 30 Emory College courses this fall.”
Emory First director Mike Jones is also pleased with the pilot’s promise. “We are extremely proud of our partnership with Emory Libraries to institutionalize students’ access to textbooks,” says Jones. “This is one of countless examples of how Emory continues to listen to our students and make our practices more equitable as we promote opportunities for every student to flourish.”
Additional details about the pilot program include:
- The programs offer textbooks for 100- and 200-level Emory College courses with enrollments of 75 or more students when those course instructors have made their textbook information available to the library. (So far, 32 courses with 100+ sections are included.)
- Physical/printed textbooks will primarily be available, although e-books will be included when possible. Currently, 42 titles and 95 physical copies are cataloged, with more to be added.
- Physical textbooks can be checked out for three hours at a time. Due to high demand, textbooks cannot be renewed or requested online, but students can check them out again after returning them if no one else is waiting for the textbook.
- Two to six physical copies of required textbooks will be available for most eligible courses, depending on overall enrollment.
The Textbook Lending Program pilot is one of many ways — including through other course reserves, e-books and open educational resources — that Emory Libraries continues to support affordable student and faculty access to course materials.
More information, including links to which specific textbooks are part of the pilot, can be found on the Emory Libraries’ Textbook Lending Program webpage.