U.S. Public Interest Research Group (U.S. PIRG): 60+ Student Leaders Call on Congress to Renew Open Textbook Pilot

From a Letter to Congress Posted in a U.S. PIRG (Public Interest Research Group) Announcement:

Dear Chairs and Ranking Members,
We the undersigned student representatives of America’s colleges and universities write to you today on the urgent need to address the skyrocketing price of textbooks, and to urge you to renew and strengthen the Open Textbooks Pilot in the FY19 Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill.
Textbooks and other materials are one of the largest hidden costs students experience in their pursuit of a degree. Students regularly pay hundreds of dollars each semester for books they can only resell for pennies on the dollar, and increased use of expiring access codes hides essential homework assignments behind an online paywall. Sixty-five percent of students have skipped buying a textbook at some point because of cost, and each year, $3 billion of federal student aid goes to pay for textbooks, according to the Student PIRGs.
Open textbook can get students the materials they need to succeed on day one of class, for free. These open course materials are high quality, peer reviewed educational resources that are published under an open copyright that makes them free to download and can be printed at cost. Studies from BYU and Achieving the Dream indicate that the use of open textbooks increases student learning outcomes, lets them take more courses, and graduate on time.
Thank you for making a $5 million investment in open textbooks in FY18. As you work towards a final FY19 bill, we urge you to maintain the additional $5 million investment for new grants in the Open Textbooks Pilot contained in the Senate-passed bill.
Signed,
Associated Students of the University of Missouri
Natalie Butler, Executive Director
Association of Big Ten Students
Sarah Henry, Director of Legislative Affairs
Robert Griggs, Executive Director
Berkshire Community College
Don Ross, Student Government Association President
Bunker Hill Community College
Cam Do, Student Trustee
CalPIRG Students
Sophie Haddad, State Board Chair
Central Washington University
Leah Mobley, Vice President for Legislative Affairs
ConnPIRG Students
Kharl Reynado, State Board Chair
Eckerd College
Marissa Bradley, Student Body President
Emory University
Sania Chandrani, Student Government Vice President
Emporia State University,
Michael Webb, Student Body President
Essex County College (NJ)
Nelson O. Ejezie, Student Body President
Holyoke Community College
Dylan Burns, Student Body President
Indiana University
Alex Wisniewski, Student Body President
Maryland PIRG Students
Tino Fragale, President
Massachusetts Bay Community College
Matthew Mori, Vice President for Student Affairs
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts
Declan Nolan, Student Government Association President
MassPIRG Students
Theresa Soldan, State Board Chair
Michigan State University
Katherine Rifiotis, Student Body President
Maysa Sitar, Executive Board Member
NJPIRG Students
April Nicklaus, State Board Chair
North Shore Community College
Nirwendjie Altidor, President
Ohio State University
Shamina Merchant, Student Body President
Oregon Student Association
Lamar Wise, Executive Director
OSPIRG Students
Darce O’Brien, State Board Chair
Pennsylvania State University
Cody Heaton, Student Body President
Public Higher Education Network of Massachusetts (PHENOM)
Zac Bears, Executive Director
Rutgers University, New Brunswick
Suzanne Link, Student Body President
Rutgers University, Newark
Sabrina Ahmed, Student Body President
Salem State University
Andrew Carden, Student Government President
Salem State University
Paul Wilkens, Student Trustee
Skidmore College
Riley Filister, Vice President for Academic Affairs
Southern Oregon University
Alexis Phillips, Student Body President
Students United (MN)
Sarah Berns, Director of Government Relations
Texas Tech University
John Getz, Graduate Student Body Vice President
Sean Lewis, Student Body President
University of California Council of Student Body Presidents
Michael Skiles, Chair
University of California Student Association
Caroline Siegel Singh, President
University of California, Berkeley
Nuha Khalfay, External Vice President
University of California, Davis
Edgar Masias Malagon, External Affairs Vice President
Jonathan Minnick, Graduate Student Association President
University of California, Irvine
Holly Woods, External Vice President
University of California, Los Angeles
Michelle Viorato, Graduate External Vice President
Claire Fieldman, Student Body President
University of California, Merced
Lindsey Huizar, External Vice President
Stacey Ascencio, Student Body President
University of California, San Diego
Kiara Gomez, Associated Students President
Melissa Vipperman-Cohen, Graduate President
University of California, Santa Cruz
Davon Thomas, External Vice President
University of Central Arkansas
Joshua Eddinger-Lucero, Student Government Association Executive President
University of Connecticut, Storrs
Ama Appiah, Student Body President
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Walter Lindwall, Student Body President
University of Iowa
Hira Mustafa, Student Body President
University of Maryland, College Park
Jonathan Allen, Student Body President
University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Timmy Sullivan, Student Body President
Nathalie Amazan, Student Government Vice President
University of Massachusetts, Boston
Katie Mitrano, Student Body President
University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth
Tyler Varda, Student Government President
University of Massachusetts, Lowell
Andre DiFilippo, Student Body President
University of Michigan
Daniel Greene, Student Body President
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Maxwell Hurst, Director of Government & Legislative Affairs
Simran Mishra, Student Body President
University of Missouri, Columbia
Andrew Goewert, Associated Students President
Julia Wopata, Student Body President
University of Missouri, Saint Louis
Adam Rapert, Associated Students President
University of Nebraska, Lincoln
Hunter Traynor, Student Body President
University of Pittsburgh
Maggie Kennedy, Student Government Board President
Cory Stillman, Vice President
University of San Diego
Chris Hermes, Student Body Vice President
University of Texas at Arlington
Yash Singh, Student Body President
University of Virginia
Alex Cintron, Student Council President
University of Washington, Seattle
Ritika Jain, Associated Students President
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Billy Welsh, Student Body President
WashPIRG Students
Madison Longbottom, State Board Chair

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Background
U.S. Congress Funds $5 Million Open Textbook Grant Program in 2018 Spending Bill (via SPARC; March 22, 2018)
 

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