FAIRFIELD –On February 19th, 2025, the SCC Governing Board met and discussed many things, including high textbook costs and new transitions at Solano.
Around halfway through the latest Governing Board meeting, Academic Senate representative Joshua Scott shared that the Associated Students of Solano Community College (ASSC) and the Academic Senate have been collaborating on common issues. One of these issues is how expensive some textbooks are.
Alexis Lusk, the Student Services Senator for the ASSC, shared that she spent almost $800 on textbooks, during the last Academic Senate meeting.
SCC and California itself have tried to make tuition close to free for students, but the cost of textbooks has always been expensive. Multiple committees/boards of the administration claim to be working on it, including the Academic Senate. They’re working with Atticus Fray, who’s a librarian and the zero textbook cost coordinator.
They are also currently working with the Spanish and Anthropology courses to make it a zero textbook cost program. One of the problems for teachers is that sometimes the free textbooks don’t have as good content or instruction.
Member of the board, Quinten Voyce, speaks up thanking Scott for taking textbook costs seriously. He also says no one is going to do dual enrollment if textbooks cost (relating back to the example from before) $800 dollars. They’re getting creative with how they are lowering costs, including getting older versions of the textbook.
Member of the board Karimah Karah, speaks up and says “We’ve been talking about textbooks for a long time now, so if students are coming and saying they have a problem with textbooks, that means we aren’t doing our jobs. I’m sorry, I was under the impression that it’s a priority. Is it not a priority?”
Superintendent President Kellie Butler explains that there is money in the budget for zero cost textbooks, and a grant that came from the chancellor’s office, that is also supposed to help with the cost of textbooks. Butler also says they’re working on book vouchers for students.
“No hassle; but hassle. For the last 6 years I’ve been here we’ve been talking about this…” says Karah “I say this all the time, we say this all the time; let’s just get this off our table and do it.”
Butler replies with “It’s going to take time.”
Karah says “Not 6 years, surely.”
Butler will work with the VP to get a report about this subject for a future meeting.
Butler says enrollment is strong. We have 9,040 students, compared to 8651 students last year. Leadership is discussing how executive orders can affect the students and the college. They’re keeping an eye on it.
Later in the meeting, the newest trustee of the governing board, Jaqui Nguyen Greer, took a moment to honor Lunar New Year, as many Asian countries, as well as the US celebrate.
She recognized the significance of Asian and Pacific Islander people in the country, especially in California, as 16% of California’s population is of AAPI descent.
The Governing Board moves to celebrate the Lunar New Year annually.
“Student leaders through the college’s Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Student Achievement Program, have created and led vibrant campus-wide Lunar New Year celebrations that educate, inform, and honor our diverse AANHPI communities. Establishing what promises to become a cherished annual tradition at Solano Community College.” says Greer.
