Dominique Lacey
MC Practicum Student
Classes have started and quizzes are ready to be taken, but some students are complaining that they still do not have the books they need to be successful in class.
Lester Willington, a junior biology major from Vicksburg, Miss., has been trying to get his book from the Jackson State University bookstore for two weeks but it is still not available.
“This is crazy! I have only been here two years and I still can’t get my books on time,” said Willington.
Other students complain that the textbooks are very expensive for a college student’s budget.
Skylar Hayes, a sophomore computer engineering major from Tunica, Miss., said she does not buy her books from the bookstore, preferring to order them online.
“The bookstore had the book I needed but I did not agree with that price. I refuse to pay that much. I would have to wait on my next pay check or refund to pay for those high books and that is why I’m ordering online,” said Hayes.
Mark Person, the store manager at Jackson State’s bookstore said there are multiple reasons why students may have trouble getting books from the JSU Bookstore.
How well the book sells determines its availability.
Students’ enrollment plays a big part, meaning if the enrollment numbers are late, the books will not be in the bookstore at the time expected.
The book might be out of stock because of lack of copies from the publisher.
Sometimes the lists from the professors are not received timely.
The book could be out of print, meaning the publisher does not want to make any more copies of that book.
“First off, all the information dealing with the books are coordinated through Academic Affairs. Every semester, we ask the professors to submit their list to the administrative assistants, who key in the book adoptions. We also ask the professors to send their list every semester,” said Person.
Person also explained the process of ordering the books once professors send their list.
“Every book has an ISBN, International Standard Book Number, and we key in those numbers to get the correct textbooks. Whatever we get from the professors is what we order. We also ask for requests and receive information,” said Person.
Person gave students other options for obtaining their textbooks.
“If students cannot get their books from the bookstore, I recommend that they go online to www.jacskonstateshop.com and find your book to place an order. A student can do a pre-order, which lets them pay for a book and we will either call or email them when it arrives.”
Person stated that students can also check the website to see if a digital version of the book exists.
The bookstore also has a textbook rental option available for students.
For more information on ordering books students can email jsu@bkstr.com.
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