Rent-A-Text, an innovative textbook rental program launched by Follett Higher Education Group, saved Delta State University students $24,764 on course materials this fall alone. Aimed at making higher education more affordable, Rent-A-Text saves students who shop in-store or online 50 percent or more off the cover price of the nation’s most popular textbooks.
“With our new rental option, we helped a record number of students save on the cost of course materials and have rented more than 650 textbooks,” said Griffin Hite, bookstore manager of The Jimmy R. Williams University Bookstore. “Because we offer so many choices for textbooks and are right here on campus, we are the most convenient and cost-effective solution for students.”
Nationwide, Rent-A-Text is projected to save students over $130m during the 2010 academic year. In addition to promised savings, Rent-A-Text offers many benefits, including:
- Same Day Service. Students can rent and return textbooks in-store or online, ensuring they have the right textbooks the day classes start.
- Real-life Usage. Students have the freedom to highlight and take notes all within the normal wear and tear associated with coursework.
- Greatest Number of Payment Options. Students can choose from a variety of ways to pay for their textbook rental, including financial aid and campus cards.
- Extra Spending. Up-front savings on the cost of textbooks can be applied to other school supplies students need to succeed.
Students also saved by using CaféScribe, Follett’s e-textbook and social networking platform available online and in participating Follett bookstores. The CaféScribe platform provides students the ability to read, search, highlight, bookmark and annotate digital textbooks, as well as share notes and discuss topics with peers in their classroom and with students around the world.
Launched three years ago, CaféScribe supports more than 10,000 of the most popular textbooks and additional digital titles can be added at the request of faculty. More than 100,000 students currently use the platform.
“At a time when other companies are scaling back, Follett is investing heavily in forward-looking initiatives that are designed to drive down the cost of course materials,” said Thomas A. Christopher, President of Follett Higher Education Group. “Through initiatives like Rent-A-Text and CaféScribe, Follett is pioneering a bookstore of choices that provides students with the greatest number of online and in-store options for affordable textbooks.”
For additional information on how to save money on textbooks at Delta State University, visit www.dlsu.bkstr.com.
Additional information about Follett’s Rent-A-Text program can be found at www.rent-a-text.com and on Twitter @rentatext and on Facebook at Facebook.com/rentatext. To learn about Follett’s CaféScribe platform, visit www.cafescribe.com.
About The Jimmy R. Williams University Bookstore
The Jimmy R. Williams University Bookstore is the official on-campus bookstore of Delta State University – offering products and services to students, faculty and the surrounding community both in-store and online via efollett.com. The bookstore is located in the H.L. Nowell Union Building and is open 7:45 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 7:45 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday.
About Follett Higher Education Group
Follett Higher Education Group of Oak Brook, Illinois, is the leading provider of bookstore services and the foremost supplier of used books in North America. Follett services five million students and over 400,000 faculty members through more than 850 stores. Follett also services more than 1,600 independent campus stores with its wholesale services, and has the most visited ecommerce collegiate website, efollett.com, that provides services and products through a network of more than 900 campus stores.
About Follett
Follett Corporation is a $2.7 billion, privately-held company that provides products, services and solutions to the educational marketplace. Follett Corporation was founded in 1873, and today is headquartered in River Grove, Illinois.
