In a statement by the Students’ Union (SU) on April 8, students were updated on the possible privatization of the University of Calgary bookstore. The university is considering using a third party the American company Follett to provide services to run the bookstore.
The statement reads, “Follett has a negative reputation on many campuses where it operates bookstores. It has raised the cost of textbooks on students while also often decreasing student choice on where to purchase books by having students pay for books up front when they pay their tuition. The bookstore currently sells textbooks as close to cost as possible and maintains a book loan program. The SU is concerned that this is at risk if the university pushes forward on privatization.”