Hey everyone, SU President Frank here.
Since finding out late on Wednesday about a possible deal between the university and an American company to operate the campus bookstore, the SU has been digging around to find more information.
My colleagues and I are deeply concerned about a company with a less than stellar reputation operating the bookstore. In particular, I am concerned that we will be paying more for books because of this deal, the transparency of the deal itself (why is this the first time we’re hearing about it?), and ensuring that we continue to have choice about if and where we purchase our textbooks.
Considering the continued increases to tuition, and the already huge amounts we pay for course materials, it makes no sense to follow that up with an increase to textbook costs. I brought student concerns forward at the U of C Board of Governors meeting this morning. My counterpart at AUPE (the staff union on campus) was very concerned about this as well, and members of the board vented some frustrations about this potential move.
All this to say we are going to continue investigating this and will fight to ensure that student interests are reflected in any potential outsourcing of the bookstore. This affects all of us and students should have been informed prior to discussions like this taking place. We are hearing conflicting views on how far along in the process the university is in this deal but we will find out. So stay tuned and I will update you as we get more info.
Frank Finley
SU President