Fall 2024, Resolution Number 105.02
Whereas, Title 5 §59404[1] of the California Code of Regulations mandates that districts take reasonable steps to minimize the cost and ensure the necessity of instructional materials, and the Burden-Free Instructional Materials Task Force has recommended structural changes to reduce instructional materials costs for students in the long term;
Whereas, The California Community Colleges Board of Governors and the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges have consistently supported efforts to decrease the cost of instructional materials for students, emphasizing the importance of sustainable solutions[2] to achieve Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) status[3] while preserving faculty’s right to select appropriate instructional materials (F23 17.01[4], S22 03.03[5]);
Whereas, The Academic Senate for the California Community Colleges recognizes open educational resources as the preferred and most sustainable mechanism for eliminating course costs but acknowledges that, in some cases, tangible instructional materials like printed lab manuals are necessary to achieve ZTC status (F21 03.05[6]); and
Whereas, The implementation of ZTC courses can be hindered by the cost of printing lab manuals that may be necessary for safety and practical reasons, which may be the only barrier to achieving ZTC status for certain courses;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges urge local senates to work with their administrative colleagues to allocate funds to cover the printing costs of lab manuals when such costs are the only barrier to a course achieving Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) status, thereby supporting students’ access to affordable instructional materials and facilitating the broader adoption of ZTC courses.
[1] https://www.law.cornell.edu/regulations/california/5-CCR-59404
[2] https://www.asccc.org/resolutions/ensure-sustainability-zero-textbook-cost-degree-program
[3] https://www.asccc.org/resolutions/textbook-automatic-billing-concerns
[4] https://www.asccc.org/resolutions/sustainability-and-institutionalization-zero-textbook-cost-pathway-efforts
[5] https://www.asccc.org/resolutions/oppose-reliance-textbook-publishers-achieve-zero-textbook-cost
[6] https://www.asccc.org/resolutions/zero-means-zero-textbook-cost