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TOUCHDOWN TIMES, SECTION C
THE DAILY ILLINI
THURSDAY August 29, 2013
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The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871
WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM
Vol. 143 Issue 4
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FREE
HIGH PRICES, LOW PROFIT
For most college professors, the money made from their own textbooks provides little more than pocket change BY JOHNATHAN HETTINGER
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STAFF WRITER
ruce Levine was taken aback. The award-winning history professor and author of five books assigned his students at the University of Cincinnati to buy his book “Half Slave & Half Free: The Roots of Civil War.” When one of his students objected that he was taking advantage of the
class, Levine, who was making 10 cents a copy for the 30 copies in the class, couldn’t believe the student’s outrage. In the last ten years, textbook prices have risen by 57 percent and, with the rising prices, Levine and professors at George Mason University, University of Kansas and countless other institutions have been accused of profiting off of books. Nationally, the American Associa-
BRENTON TSE THE DAILY ILLINI
A student browses the shelves of the TIS bookstore on Sixth Street in Champaign on Wednesday. Students have been paying higher prices for books in recent years.
Where does your textbook money go?
tion of University Professors addressed this problem in a 2004 report saying professors should be able to select the materials for their own courses. “Professors should assign readings that best meet the instructional goals of their courses, and they may well conclude that what they themselves have written on a subject best realizes that purpose,” the report read. The association takes a clear position on the profiteering of professors, telling them to “avoid any exploitation” of students. University journalism professor Brant Houston uses “The Investigative Reporter’s Handbook,” a book he co-authored, in his classes, but he gets none of the revenue for the book. The revenue goes to the Investigative Reporters and Editors organization, of which Houston served as executive director when he co-authored the fourth and fifth editions of the book. Houston said he’s never had anyone accuse him of profiting off his book, but his syllabus states that he doesn’t profit from the book to stop any accusations. “It’s a non-starter,” he said. Houston and Levine both said they have no problem with professors who use books that they get royalties from. “For the most part, no one is going to become a millionaire off of textbooks,”
77.4%
of the cost goes to the publisher, who uses this money to pay printing, publishing, administrative, marketing and author costs. In 2008, 11.7 percent of the revenue of the book went to the authors.
10.0%
of the cost pays college bookstore employees
Houston said. T h e National Association of College Stores collects inforof the cost pays for the operations mation about how and overhead each textbook dollar of the cost is costs of the is broken up. Overall, the income for the college bookstore. 77.5 percent of revenue college bookstore goes back to publishers, and the rest goes to the of the cost bookstore. The association goes to shipping stopped further diving into the the books publishers’ revenue five years ago, but, in 2008, only 11.7 percent SOURCE: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGE STORES SOURCE: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGE STORES of revenue went back to the authors. SCOTT DURAND THE DAILY ILLINI SCOTT DURAND THE DAILY ILLINI Melissa Peterson, a junior in AHS, said she has had two professors use textbooks that they wrote in their classes.
7.2%
3.7%
1.0%
SEE BOOKS | 3A
Police crack down on traffic violations
State Rep. advocates for Illinois students
BY SARI LESK STAFF WRITER
Students can expect a heavy focus by local police agencies on traffic violations for the first few weeks of school, no matter their preferred mode of transportation. At the start of each semester, the University, Champaign and Urbana police officers put a heavy emphasis on traffic safety while on patrol. The departments are currently watching for behaviors by motorists,
BY ELEANOR BLACK STAFF WRITER
State Rep. Naomi Jakobsson, D-103, was recently appointed as an Illinois delegate to the Education Commission of the States. During her time as an Illinois representative, Jakobsson said she has championed higher edu-$.2%6621 cation. She has served as a chairwoman of the House Committee on Higher Education and a member of the Appropriations-Higher Education Committee. Despite her work in higher education, Jakobsson said it is important to understand that the commission works in all levels of education — from preschool to post-secondary school to the workforce. “As many of us know, there are so many people who start out in higher education pursuing a degree and they may fi nd that they’re running into difficulty because they’re not very well prepared,” Jakobsson said. “That’s why we go back and bring in K-12 issues and even before that, the pre-k issues. This organization is one that recognizes that and makes sure that we see the whole picture.” As a national organization, ECS serves to provide policymakers around the country with information about education policy, she said. “The purpose of (ECS) is to help states develop effective policies and practices
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Pedestrians Q Violations by pedestrians are moving violations and they fall under the Illinois Vehicle Code. Q Pedestrians have the right of way in most scenarios, but not always. Q When a pedestrian crosses somewhere other than a crosswalk, the pedestrian must yield to traffic. Q When a pedestrian crosses at a crosswalk, the pedestrian must confirm that doing so will not create a hazard and that he has been yielded the right of way. Q “Jaywalking tickets” are not issued in the state of Illinois. The term is not used in the Illinois Vehicle Code. Instead one may receive a failure to yield as a pedestrian ticket and can be ticketed for disobeying a traffic control device.
BRIAN YU THE DAILY ILLINI
Calvin Lear, a graduate student in Engineering, hands a student an iClicker Wednesday on the Quad. The Illinois Student Senate loaned out more than 400 iClickers to students this semester at no cost.
Free i>Clickers given out Illinois Student Senate’s iRent program gives 400 free iClickers to students BY LIZ AMANIEH STAFF WRITER
Students on campus had the opportunity to save money on school supplies this year, courtesy of the Illinois Student Senate’s iRent program, which provides up to 400 students with free i>Clickers. For three consecutive days, starting on Aug. 26, student senators stood outside the Union in a booth promoting and distribut-
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SEE SAFETY | 3A
Common rules of the road
SEE JAKOBSSON | 3A
INSIDE
bicyclists and pedestrians that pose a hazard to everyone’s safety. “This is a public safety issue,” said Skip Frost, deputy chief of the University of Illinois Police Department. “People are getting injured and, unfortunately, killed.” Frost said his department takes a holistic approach to traffic safety, and his staff wants to educate people who violate
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ing i>Clickers. Students were only required to fill out a sheet with their contact information before they were given an i>Clicker. After the Illinois Student Senate’s first installment of the iRent program last winter, the senate looked to further expand the program. At the May 1 ISS meeting, Shao Guo, senator and junior in ACES, said that during the singular iRent distribution day last winter, more than 90 percent of the
senate’s 200 i>Clickers were given away to students. Members then passed a resolution that would allow the senate to purchase an additional 200 i>Clickers for fall distribution. Mariela Rodriguez, freshman in DGS, was one of the hundreds of students who was grateful to receive an i>Clicker at no cost. “It helps students to save money because tuition and going here can cost a lot,” Rodriguez said. The senate distributed approximately 350 to 400 i>Clickers to students over the span of the
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Motorists Q Violations by motorists fall under the Illinois Vehicle Code. Q Public Act 097-0829 amended the Illinois Vehicle Code to prohibit texting while driving. This act took effect on Jan. 1, 2013. Q Public Act 098-0506 amended the Illinois Vehicle Code to prohibit the use of an “electronic communication device” while driving, which does not include devices integrated into vehicles. This will take effect Jan. 1, 2014.
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Bicyclists Q When a bicyclist is riding on the street, the bicyclist must behave as a vehicle and abide by the Rules of the Road.
Q When a bicyclist is riding on the sidewalk, the bicyclist must behave as a pedestrian. Q Violations by bicyclists fall under both the Illinois Vehicle Code and city ordinances in Champaign and Urbana. The University also has a bicycle code, which students must also follow. Q Bicyclists are also required to have an operational light on their bikes when riding after sundown.
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