LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES
Honors
Program
Top 12
Transfer
Choices
Cost-Saving Alternatives to Textbooks
OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES MAKING
COLLEGE MORE AFFORDABLE FOR RCC STUDENTS
SUNY Binghamton - 27
NYU - 10
SUNY New Paltz - 10
SUNY Stony Brook - 10
SUNY Buffalo - 8
Cornell University - 6
St. Thomas Aquinas College - 6
SUNY Oneonta - 6
CUNY Baruch College - 6
Columbia University - 5
Fordham University - 5
Dominican College - 5
Listed by number of RCC Class of 2017
graduates attending each school
STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK
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RCC students are saving thousands of dollars this year thanks to online alternatives to textbooks known as Open Educational
Resources.
R
ockland Community College students will save at least $150,000 this academic year
thanks to the growing use of alternatives to costly textbooks. A number of RCC
professors are using Open Educational Resources (OERs) in a variety of classes this
year, with the use of the materials only expected to grow in the near future.
A total of 31 class sections used OER materials in the Fall semester, saving RCC students
$67,400 in textbook costs. At least 33 sections will use OERs in the spring, for a projected
savings of over $83,000; that number could go even higher.
The movement toward OERs has grown in recent years as textbook costs continue to soar.
In the past 40 years, the cost of college textbooks has risen over 800%, more than three times
the increase in the cost of living. One survey showed that 65% of college students chose not
to buy a textbook because of the cost, even though nearly all of them feared that decision
could affect their grade.
Open Educational Resources are defined by the State University of New York (SUNY)
as “teaching, learning or research resources that reside in the public domain or have been
released under an intellectual property license that permits repurposing by others.” Faculty
can combine or modify OERs to create custom learning materials for their classes; students
can access them freely online or, if they prefer, print them at a limited cost.
SUNY received $4 million from the state government this year to promote the
development and use of OERs. RCC was awarded $20,000 from that grant to develop OER
curriculum and train faculty, and will receive additional dollars for each student enrolled in
an OER class section.
RCC faculty members are front and center in the OER movement. Dr. Katherine Lynch
and Stephen Burke have developed original modules for an English text, while Talia Lipton
has assembled resources for her Speech students and has helped other faculty members
convert their own course materials. Matt Matcovich and Kate Erwin are also playing key roles
in the effort, which has been strongly supported by the RCC administration.