Working with the Bookstore

As student enrollment continues to climb, a few departments have been having a hard time finding enough textbooks on the bookstore shelves. Our dept. is one of those hard-hit ones. To solve this problem, the bookstore and our dept. have come to an agreement for spring 2008 textbook ordering.

1. The bookstore will not use its sales history data in ordering our textbooks. Instead, they will order according to the “enrollment estimate” that we list on each order form, a.k.a. textbook course adoption.
2. We will not make changes once a course adoption is ordered.
3. The bookstore will extend our course adoption due date one month later than for other department.
4. Both the bookstore and our dept. will assess the agreement results after spring 08 sales are complete.

Number one above is of particular significance because, as you know, the bookstore has chronically short-ordered our books, citing its historical sales data. Under this agreement, the bookstore will give up that old practice. However, we also now have an added responsibility for giving an accurate estimate of how many books are needed on each order.

The bookstore has also developed a couple of electronic ways for submitting book orders. Monica will soon let the coordinators know which way our dept. will go in ordering our spring 08 books.

Even if no books are required, a book adoption form still has to be filled out in order for the bookstore to offer that information to the students. If a class does not require a textbook, simply write “No Text Required” across the order form.

Frank Mendez, Textbook Manager (ext. 2225), and Juan Serna, Textbook Supervisor (ext. 2223), are still our best contacts in the bookstore. If the future, if a textbook is ever sold out again, please let your coordinator know the exact number still needed, and Frank or Juan will promptly place an order for you after receiving an email from your coordinator.

Concerned with the ever-rising textbook prices, lawmakers at state and federal levels have introduced legislative initiatives to require the prompt posting of textbook lists, among other things.

To find out the pricing information of your textbooks,

1. go to the bookstore’s website at this URL: www.palomar.edu/bookstore/
2. click on “Books” on the red navigational side bar on the left
3. click on “Textbooks” next
4. "select your term" (e.g. Fall 2007)
5. "select your division" (= location of the class; e.g. SM/ONLINE for San Marcos campus, plus all online courses offered by Palomar)
6. "select your department" (= ESL; NESL; or NCTZ)
7. "select your course" (e.g. 003; 034; 098.3, etc.)
8. "select your section" (= 5-digit class number).

Below is a partial screen shot of the current pricing information for ESL 3 (class number 72040) in San Marcos:

This is still without the ISBN numbers, but your students can get those from you. The important thing is that you can tell (or even show) your students how much money they expect to spend at the bookstore on your textbooks.