A developing collaboration with Follett Corporation to oversee all textbook sales at lower costs and the ongoing concerns with full-time faculty numbers were topics of conversation at Wednesday’s Academic Senate meeting on Oct. 11. 

Follett is a retail bookseller, with its operating group Follett Higher Education Materials specializing in providing course materials and store merchandise to colleges and universities.

“Essentially, one of the outcomes is that the students will be paying less money for books than they currently are,” Maria Villagomez, vice president of academic affairs, said. 

Villagomez presented her report for the meeting, which contained details about the Business Service’s current work with Follett in regards to having them take over textbook operations by January 2024.   

The Senate plans to review Follett’s contract with City College by November.

The Senate also discussed concerns with faculty hiring at City College. The Senate addressed the effects of empty positions and the de facto hiring freeze on student achievement and staff well-being. 

“A lot of students are not going to be able to complete their degrees, because they have to wait, in a timely manner,” said Tara Carter, past president of the Senate. 

The board outlined that the student demand for classes exceeds the capacity of the departments at City College, which in turn overloaded full-time faculty with excess work. 

Currently, there are temporary hires in the Disability Services and Programs for Students, Parent-Child Workshops and Marine Diving Technology. Positions within the associate degree for nursing program, art history, American sign language, biology and ethnic studies departments have yet to be filled.

The group plans to meet again on Wednesday, Oct. 25.