SPARC Calls on Congress to Fund Open Textbook Grants in FY18 - SPARC

ab1630's bookmarks 2018-03-28

Summary:

"Update: Victory! On March 23, 2018 the FY18 omnibus bill was signed into law, including funding for a $5 million open textbook grant program. Read more here.

SPARC is calling on Congress to fund a $10 million open textbook grant program as part of its $2 billion commitment to college affordability and completion programs in Fiscal Year 2018. High textbook costs are a major contributor to the overall cost of college, and open textbooks are a proven solution that can reduce financial barriers and help more students attain their degree.

With FY18 negotiations entering their final stages this week, SPARC and our coalition partners are working hard inside and outside the beltway to make the case for open textbooks. This week, SPARC circulated the letter below signed by more than 60 of our member libraries spanning 30 states to key leaders in Congress. This call was echoed by our coalition partner USPIRG with a letter signed by more than 50 student associations. 

Join the effort to secure $10 million for open textbooks in FY18 by visiting our action page or sharing on social media with #opentextbooksFY18.

The time to support open textbooks is now. State-funded open textbook grant programs in Georgia and North Dakota have shown that each dollar invested in open textbook grants can result in ten times the student savings. By dedicating $10 million of the designated FY18 college affordability and completion funds to an open textbook grant program, Congress could save students $100 million or more.

SPARC’s longer-term advocacy efforts remain focused on Higher Education Act reauthorization and establishing a permanent open textbook grant program through the Affordable College Textbook Act. However, the opportunity to secure one-time funding through a FY18 appropriation could have a significant impact in the short term. Act now!..."

Link:

https://sparcopen.org/news/2018/sparc-calls-congress-fund-open-textbook-grants-fy18/

From feeds:

Open Access Tracking Project (OATP) » ab1630's bookmarks

Tags:

oa.new oa.usa oa.legislation oa.funders.public oa.policies.funders oa.policies oa.sparc oa.oer oa.education oa.textbooks oa.courseware oa.government oa.books oa.funders

Date tagged:

03/28/2018, 11:21

Date published:

03/28/2018, 07:21