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Volume 114, Issue 000
DAILYNEBRASKAN.COM
Bookstore buyout reduces student options
B A C K TO S C H O O L , 2 0 1 5 EMILY MCMINN DN
The snaking lines at the Nebraska Union’s University Bookstore may be longer this year, as Lincoln now has one fewer source for students to buy textbooks. Following the June closure of the Nebraska Bookstore on 13th and Q streets, the Nebraska Book Company sold its entire retail store division to its rival, Follett Corporation, which owns and operates the University Bookstore in the Nebraska Union. On June 12, the Nebraska Board of Regents approved the purchase of the Nebraska Bookstore building, which the university acquired for $4.75 million in mid-July. In June, NBC spokesman Bill Bonner told the Lincoln Journal Star that Nebraska has good reason to be interested in the site because of its strategic location near the Van Brunt Visitors Center and Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center. University of Nebraska-Lincoln spokesman Steve Smith said it will be several months before any preliminary decisions on the site’s future are announced publicly. “At this time, the university is still considering options for the future of the former Nebraska Bookstore building,” said Smith. Smith said, however, that the University Bookstore will remain at its current location in the lower level of the Nebraska Union. To keep up with a rise in demand, the University Bookstore has increased its target staffing level and is ordering more textbooks than in the past. Store director Jeni Fuchs said the bookstore’s goal is to make sure books are available to students when they want them. “We are preparing the same as every other back-to-school season, but we are scaling our operation up to cover the gap left by the Nebraska Bookstore,” Fuchs said. “We want our students to know we will have all their back-to-school needs: textbooks, school supplies and, of course, Husker gear.” Sophomore athletic training major Robby White said he thinks the bookstore will be just as prepared as previous years. He said he hopes the waiting in line doesn’t last more than 15 minutes. “The lines are terrible to wait in, but the Union (bookstore) does a good job opening
CRIME IN THE
CAPITAL
CITY PHOTO BY TYLER MEYER | DN more check-out stands during the peak book buying times,” White said. The best way to avoid lines and get books stress-free is to order online through MyRed, Fuchs said. Students can view necessary materials for each of their courses and pay online with a credit, debit or Ncard. The University Bookstore will then ship textbooks and
supplies directly to the student or have them ready to pick up in-store, typically within a few days. For those who wish to find and purchase their textbooks in person, Fuchs said she suggests shopping over the weekend, early in the day or later in the evening. She said the store’s peak hours are typically from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
As far as how Nebraska Bookstore’s closing will affect the University Bookstore in the coming months, Fuchs isn’t sure. “It’s really difficult to predict,” she said.
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