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Affordable Learning @ Franklin University

Information about the affordable learning program to reduce the cost of education for Franklin University students, and affordable learning resources for faculty and instructional designers.

Textbook Selection Process

  • Free via Library (FVL):
  • Open Educational Resource (OER):
  • Inclusive Access (IA):
    • Ebook or courseware is embedded in the course, and accessed through Canvas;
    • Ebooks are available through BNC’s Yuzu eReader;
    • Courseware access depends on the publisher, but is generally available through a link to the courseware in Canvas;
    • Students pay a flat rate unless they opt out ($49 ebook/$89 courseware).
  • BNC Bookstore Purchase
    • Where possible, Franklin University provides materials through inclusive access;
    • Some publishers are not willing to make their materials available through inclusive access
    • If material is not available through inclusive access, it cannot be embedded in the course and students will be asked to purchase the material from the University bookstore (BNC);
    • There is no flat rate for bookstore purchases, and students pay the bookstore directly or use financial aid.
       
  • If you’d like to find a Free via Library (FVL) or Open Educational Resource (OER) textbook for use in your course, submit a research project request:
    • A librarian will be assigned to work on your project;
    • They will provide you with a list of available (or potentially available) options for you to choose from.
  • If you want to review a potential VitalSource etextbook (either for use as an Inclusive Access textbook or a Bookstore Provided textbook):
  • If a book you want to use is not available on Vitalsource;
    • We can we check with the bookstore (BNC) to see if they can provide it;
    • Use the Textbook Request/Removal form to let us know about the book.
       
  • Availability:
    • Make sure the textbook will be reliably available for students to use;
    • A textbook must be able to be provided either through the bookstore (either as Inclusive Access or Student Purchase), with unlimited user access as a free via library etextbook (FVL), or as an OER.
  • Timeliness:
    • Preferably, textbooks will be published within the last 5-7 years (where appropriate for subject matter);
    • Publishers often retire older textbooks and they cannot be provided through the bookstore for student use. 
  • Cost:
    • Not excessively expensive;
    • Average price for the library to purchase FVLs is $148.20 (these books are free to students);
    • Average price of BNC bookstore books is $90 (but flat rates for students);
    • We can go above these numbers, put we do need to make a good effort to align with ODHE’s Textbook Affordability Policies and HEOA’s textbook provision.
  • Ebooks and Eresources:
    • Best serve our students located all over the country;
    • Ensures that materials are available to students before the class starts with minimal disruption. 
       
  • Please fill out the Textbook Information Update form whenever you have any textbook changes in a course. This will ensure:
    • That the proper textbooks are listed in a course;
    • That students aren’t charged for textbooks that aren’t used;
    • The proper textbook edition is coordinated with the bookstore.
  • When should you fill out theTextbook Information Update form? Fill out the form to notify us of changes when 
    • Adding a new book to a course;
    • Removing a book which was previously used from a course (even if no new book is being selected, to ensure that students aren't charged);
    • Changing editions to update the edition used.
  • The textbook request/removal form is only open during the phase of the course design schedule where textbooks are being selected.

Reviewing Potential Textbooks

Faculty can review potential textbooks using Vitalsource faculty sampling. For more information, see the helpdesk article:

Faculty located in Ohio can also see if a textbook is available through OhioLINK, and have a copy of the textbook delivered to the library for their review:

Guidelines for Library Etextbooks

The library only purchases library books to be used as etextbooks when the book

  1. is available for the library to purchase with an unlimited user license,
  2. is required for use as a textbook in a course,
  3. can be purchased within the library’s etextbook budget, and
  4. does not have an excessive cost.

If the price of a textbook is determined to be excessive, the library will work with faculty and/or course designers to identify an alternative which is not cost prohibitive. 

The library provides many library etextbooks through ebook packages the library subscribes to. For individually purchased library etextbooks, the average price is $148.20.

Ideally, books purchased as library etextbooks will be those published within the last 5 years. If you have questions about whether a book can be used as a library etextbook, check with the library.

Additional Information

© 2023 Franklin University Nationwide Library - Frasch Hall, First Floor 201 S. Grant Ave. Columbus, Ohio 43215 614.947.6550 or 1.866.341.6252 | Fax: 614.461.0957 | library@franklin.edu