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Free college textbook rentals for students at Alamo Colleges

The district said AlamoBOOKS+, through the Barnes & Noble College campus bookstore, will go into effect for the spring and summer semesters of 2022.

SAN ANTONIO — The Alamo Colleges District announced some great news for its students. They're offering free textbook rentals for new and returning students in 2022.

The district is moving to this new course material model, called AlamoBOOKS+, through the Barnes & Noble College campus bookstore. It will apply to the spring 2022 and summer 2022 semesters.

The district said it will eliminate the cost of books for students and ensure students will have all textbooks and instructional materials across all courses by the first day of class. The free textbooks will be available by rental-only.

"This Spring 2022 and Summer 2022 offer to promote student success and completion will be made available through COVID relief funds," Alamo Colleges District said in a social media post.

More information will come at a news conference scheduled for 10 a.m. Wednesday at St. Philip's College, the district said.

The Alamo Colleges District is comprised of five independently accredited community colleges — Northeast Lakeview College, Northwest Vista College, Palo Alto College, St. Philip's College and San Antonio College. Its the largest institution of higher education in South Texas with more than 90,000 students annually.

Here are some relevant facts about the cost of textbooks, according to the Education Data Initiative:

  • In 2021, the average cost for full-time, undergraduate students at a four-year university for books and supplies per year was approximately $1240.00, with students spending the most (average of $1420) at public two-year colleges compared to $1220 per year at private four-year colleges (average of $450-$625 per semester).
  • When possible, nearly 66% of students will avoid buying course materials due to the steep prices.
  • In 2020, 25% of students indicated they worked extra hours to pay for their books and materials and 11% skipped meals in order to afford books and course materials.

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