Course materials for graduates and undergraduates may soon be available at all area bookstores if Thomas Jacobs has his way.
Jacobs, the store manager of The College Store, located at 60 Maple Road has, in his words, embarked on a "spirited campaign" in the last year to acquire the textbook adoption orders for all classes whose material is available at the University Bookstore on Lee Road.
Using the New York State Freedom of Information Law and legal precedent from a state appellate court decision involving SUNY Albany and a private bookstore in 2001, Jacobs has gone to the administration, departments and individual professors to make his case.
"All we want is the textbook information," Jacobs said, "We don't want the professors to tattoo our store information on their shoulders and flex."
"Professors need to be educated in the process," he added. "When a teacher adopts a book, the University Bookstore orders for 75 to 80 percent of the capacity of that class, and the professor needs to know that this is how they do business, if a professor wants to ensure that all students can have books, they need to sell books elsewhere."
Last summer, Kerry S. Grant, vice provost for academic affairs, sent two memoranda to the deans and departmental chairs regarding the applicability of the Freedom of Information Law to textbook orders. In the letter dated Aug. 21, 2002, Grant recommends that all faculty members send their textbook orders to both the University Bookstore and the College Store.
"We sought to do what we could," said Grant in a later interview. "Our situation differs with that at SUNY Albany, who was required to release its information, but we don't have a booklist. Every faculty member does it individually, and we've asked the departments to ask their faculty to give the information to all vendors."
The case referred to by both Jacobs and Grant involves Mary Jane Books, a private bookstore off-campus near SUNY Albany. The university publishes a textbook list that had previously been open to only on-campus facilities. The New York State Supreme Court Appellate Division ruled in November 2001 that such a list must be made available to private stores.
"If everyone got every order," said Greg Neumann, director the University Bookstore, "it would help us."
Neumann sees competition as driving the prices down for students somewhat, but believes the effects to be limited.
"Textbook prices are affected by national trends," said Neumann. "The more competition, there more likely prices will be driven downward due to retailer prices, but cost can only go down so far."
Jacobs believes that the release of such information will only be good for students and will not hurt anyone.
"We need the professors so we can exist," he said. "Another option is good for the students and the law protects it."
Ultimately as a legal matter, Jacobs contends that "professors don't have to like it, but they have to respect it."
Conversely, Jonathon Welch, owner of Talking Leaves Bookstore on Main Street in Buffalo, said the decision where to place adoption orders should remain with the professors.
"Textbook orders are the property and intellectual capital of the individual instructors," Welch said. "I would be opposed to any law that would make these orders public domain, if they want to share it with one store or twenty that it is their business."
"As an independent bookstore, my sympathy is still with the faculty," he added. "The argument I would make is that the lists are public in that they can be scrutinized but that they should make the determination, it is their decision to make them public, and that it is an issue of intellectual property."
Currently, student government officials are working to make sure textbook information is available to the student body.
"The Student Association is trying to work with Kerry Grant and Dennis Black to get a list on SA's Web site that lists all the courses and the course materials," said SA President George Pape, adding that a publicized list would "give students the chance to know what's going on."
The sentiments of Jacobs and Pape are echoed by students who want more options for where they buy textbooks.
"I think competition is absolutely necessary," says junior business major Sarah Anderson. "Because if you walk into the University Bookstore you can see how blatantly overpriced it is. They're taking advantage of poor college students. Even notebooks are expensive there."
"Everyone should have a fair shot at setting the lowest prices," she added. "I would rather the professors give the textbook lists to everyone."
"It's kind of inconvenient to go wherever the teacher sends it," said junior electrical engineering major Adam Halstead, who, in his freshman year had to go to several different stores before finding all of his textbooks.
The university administration has expressed a willingness to comply with what they see as the law, but do not believe that it is solely their responsibility to ensure the competitiveness of area bookstores.
"Best approach for all bookstores, which are in the sales business," said Dennis R. Black, vice president for Student Affairs, "is to sell themselves and their services to faculty members and students. They will choose where to go, based on convenience, cost, service (and) availability."
