HACC Foundation donors provided funding that was used to develop and add low-cost or free textbook options for HACC students. Instead of selecting traditionally published texts, HACC faculty created, adapted or adopted textbooks to better fit the needs of HACC’s students. In addition to including cheaper or free textbooks, this initiative also includes those that are more accessible, current, relevant and diverse than traditional textbooks. This is the Open Educational Resources (OER) project.
In a 2019 survey, students indicated that the cost of textbooks had negatively impacted their education, including preventing them from taking courses and purchasing the required text for courses. Two years later, these percentages decreased in every category, including the percentage of students paying $200 or more for their textbooks. This percentage decreased from 65% to 47%. Additionally, when students in classes with OER were surveyed in spring 2023, 93% of students appreciated the OER project’s impact on their textbook costs, and 92% indicated that OERs were important to their success in the course. This is a positive impact!
Through this initiative, the HACC Foundation has funded five science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics (STEAM) OER projects: one in English, two in math, one in science and one in web development. HACC continues to develop and select resources that provide the opportunity for unlimited student savings. As the OER program grows, HACC’s students will continue to have access to zero or minimized textbook costs and the College will continue to remove one more financial barrier students face while pursuing their education.