Milked: California State University Channel Islands Offers the CSU’s First "Z-Majors"

It's no secret that textbook costs are soaring.

Since the late 1970s, the cost of college textbooks has increased by more than 1,000 percent. If the cost of milk had increased by this same rate, today we'd be paying over $17 per gallon.

Through the 1980s, textbook prices increased a staggering three times the rate of inflation, and since the 2000s, it surged four times the inflation rate. If the price of milk had risen similarly over this same time period, the average American family would be spending more than $10,000 a year on dairy products alone.

When it comes to the cost of course materials, it seems today's college students are being milked for every penny they have.

Brittany Jones, a student at California State University Channel Islands (CSUCI), recently shared a story about the hardships of rising textbook prices:

"There are more homeless students on this campus than most faculty realize. Halfway through my first semester, I learned that one of the students I'd often gone to for feedback in a class was homeless. I was shocked to learn of his situation because it was impossible to tell he was living that way. He told me he slept on friends' couches when he could and sometimes had to sleep in his car…. Professors need to keep in mind the students who may fall into this category when assigning required textbooks…. These students do not have a home to sleep in and often worry about where their next meal will come from. When they are required to spend hundreds of dollars on books, they are essentially spending the money they need to survive."

Another CSUCI student, Jessica Redding, discussed having to decide between buying textbooks for her class or gasoline for her car:

"Every time I have to buy a book for class I think about how much gas that book could equate to; it's very stressful…. Sometimes it comes down to the choice between having the gas to get to class, or having the book for class."

Sadly, stories like these are far too common among today's college students. This reality seems especially true within the CSU system, where over 40 percent of students reported experiencing food insecurity and 11 percent reported being homeless at some point over the past 12 months. Consequently, textbook costs have resulted in increased levels of stress for students during their academic studies, more student debt once they've finished, or worse, their decision to forgo college altogether.

Fortunately, it's not all bad news.

Instead of crying over spilled milk, CSUCI has recently emerged as a national leader in textbook affordability. Under the direction of Erika Beck (University President), Jill Leafstedt (AVP for Innovation and Faculty Development), and the entire Teaching and Learning Innovations group, CSUCI has taken notable strides to address rising textbook costs through a campus-wide initiative called openCI.

As part of CSU's Affordable Learning Solutions (AL$), openCI is an effort to help faculty members redesign their courses using open education resources (OERs) and other no- or low-cost course materials: e-textbooks, online courseware, TED Talks, government reports, open access journals, Khan Academy resources, or even original content like what Crissy Spencer and her colleagues at Georgia Tech created for their Biology 1510 course.

Since its launch in fall 2016, openCI has received an overwhelmingly positive response from the campus community. More than 50 faculty members spanning 18 programs have become official openCI Ambassadors by redesigning their courses with OERs or no- or low-cost materials. To date, these efforts have saved CSUCI students a staggering $1.4 million. This is a particularly impressive sum considering the university's total enrollment narrowly exceeds 7,000 students.

CSUCI also launched the CSU's first two "Z-Majors" this past year in communication and early childhood studies, with a third Z-Major in health sciences on its way. Once believed impossible to accomplish at a four-year university, Z-Majors offer students a pathway through their entire curriculum that does not require the purchase of a single textbook.

Shante Morgan, a lecturer of communication, reflected on the introduction of CSU's first undergraduate Z-Majors at CSUCI:

"I was a first-generation college student who had to work to support myself through college; I can remember times when I had to pick between a book and a meal. Many of my students are first-generation as well, so the efforts we're taking here support student success. They can worry less [about their bank account] and focus more on their education."

Other CSUCI faculty members appear to agree. In the words of Daniel Usera, "Having free and open-access readings has not only made my classes more accessible to students who are already short on cash, but it's also allowed me to cater courses specifically to my theoretical approaches to teaching…. It's been a win-win situation overall for my students and me." Similarly, Lisa Barry commented, "Students are more likely to actually read and engage [OER and no-cost] material because they have easy access to it." Vivian Henchy has found that students "overwhelmingly prefer the zero-cost option for their course readings," and Nancy Chen has discovered that moving away from traditional textbooks "not only helps minimize costs but also enables students to develop information literacy, a critical skill to have in our digital world."

openCI's launch of the CSU's first two undergraduate Z-Majors was achieved through a 5-step implementation process:

1. Engaging faculty innovators [https://web.stanford.edu/class/symbsys205/Diffusion%20of%20Innovations.htm] across campus via formal workshops, word of mouth, an openCI website, and the offer of special consulting contracts for course redesigns
2. Enlisting early adopters as part of an openCI Ambassador cohort, which focused on the pedagogical and curricular benefits of OER (in addition to cost savings)
3. Focusing on specific programs where openCI had achieved an early majority—in particular, the communication program—and then evaluating this program's curriculum class-by-class to identify any remaining barriers to becoming a Z-Major
4. Reaching out to the communication program's late majority by developing a three-tiered program-level action plan: (1) collaborating with current openCI Ambassadors in the program to extend their student savings to additional course sections, (2) collectively curating a no-cost reading/resource for COMM 101: Public Speaking, and (3) targeting additional courses with particularly high potential for cost savings
5. Engaging programmatic laggards by sustaining, scaling, and celebrating openCI's accomplishments

openCI's success demonstrates the innovative spirit of CSUCI's entire staff, faculty, and administration. Despite soaring textbook costs, the vision of Erika Beck and Jill Leafstedt is nothing short of inspirational, as is the genuine concern faculty members have shown for their students' wellbeing. In the end, one can't help but be hopeful about the future OER has in store for tomorrow's college student.

To learn more about openCI and its implementation at CSUCI, please contact the university's AL$ Campus Coordinators: Jaime Hannans ([email protected]) and J. Jacob Jenkins ([email protected]).

Until then, you'll have to excuse us while we go put a gallon of milk on layaway.

J. Jacob Jenkins is Associate Professor of communication at California State University Channel Islands and campus coordinator of CSU Affordable Learning Solutions.

Jaime Hannans is Associate Professor of nursing at California State University Channel Islands and campus coordinator of CSU Affordable Learning Solutions.