There has been quite a bit of discussion in recent weeks about the use of customized textbooks at Southern Miss. Although the important points of debate have been well covered in the media, I thought I'd throw in my two cents.
Southern Miss is a place that has always met, head on, the intellectual and human issues of the day. That includes doing whatever we can to make a college education accessible and affordable for our students.
The spiraling cost of textbooks is an issue of great concern, not only in Mississippi, but at colleges and universities across the country. Our Faculty Senate has been discussing solutions to the problem and the Student Government Association is well-aware of the complexity of the issue. It is not an easy problem to solve but we will do all we can to minimize the impact of high textbook costs to our students.
At this point I am not prepared to call for an outright ban. When customized textbooks provide superior quality materials tailored to the unique needs of a course, they are worth the price. Any royalties and income that departments receive from customized textbooks and put back into the instructional process to provide for the needs of our students. One good example of these monies being put to good use is the purchase of computers for the Math Zone. The Math Zone is a project that has proven to help students by producing double-digit improvement in pass-rates in college algebra. Without the computers, the project would not have been possible.
Still, the use of customized textbooks must be reviewed carefully and should only be considered when suitable publications are not available. I have asked the Provost to work with the faculty to develop appropriate guidelines for their adoption.