THIBODAUX, La. — The Nicholls Department of Physical Science will save students campus-wide more than $100,000 in costs by offering some of its books for free online.
The department’s most popular entry-level courses, Astronomy 101 and 102, Chemistry 105 and 106, and Physics 101 and 102, will be accessible to students via open education resource providers OpenStax and LibreText.
“The cost of textbooks is extraordinary,” said Chad Young, physical science department head. “Students can spend more than a thousand dollars just for textbooks in a semester. Particularly, textbooks for lower-level introductory courses have skyrocketed with many books costing $200 each. Further, publishers have begun to bundle their books with online access codes, and students are forced to purchase new books.”
Though it does not include the lab, Young said this benefits the entire campus, as many undergrads are required to take two semesters of physical science. This initiative continues to help students on cutting book costs, as access to general education books are available in the Ellender Memorial Library for basic English, math, fine arts, humanities, science and social studies.
“As our students succeed, Nicholls will thrive,” Young said. “This initiative promotes student success by ensuring that every student has equal access to quality textbooks.”
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Aug. 23, 2018
CONTACT: Jacob Batte, Media Relations and Publications Coordinator, 985.448.4141 or jacob.batte@www.nicholls.edu
