Earn a Degree With No Textbook Costs

West Los Angeles College using $600,000 state grant to eliminate textbook costs

West Los Angeles College (West) is using a recently received grant of $600,000 from the California Community College Chancellor’s Office to expand the number of degree and certificate paths it offers that a student can complete without ever paying for a textbook. The college currently offers seven degree and certificates that use only No-cost Open Educational Resources (OER), also known as Zero Cost Textbooks (ZTC) and more are on the way. Many individual classes already incorporate ZTC including Anthropology, Art, Business, Child Development, Cinema, Computer Science, Communications Studies, English, Environmental Science, Math, and Psychology.

KVPR recently reported that a California Student Aid Commission survey said that half of California college students pay $200 or more for course materials each semester. “This can be a barrier for many students,” explained Jeffrey Archibald, West’s Vice President of Academic Affairs. “Many of our students experience significant financial challenges while going to college, often balancing studying, working and caring for families. The college is committed to removing these obstacles to help them achieve their educational goals. When you couple ZTC degrees with the $0 Tuition Promise Plan available to freshmen of any income, there are real savings for students.”

An early adopter of ZTC classes is West’s Communications Studies programs. At least on class in this area is required for most students seeking to transfer to a university as a junior, or who want to earn a career Associate Degree or certificate. “I’m so proud of my colleagues' hard work vetting and adopting these texts. Students have repeatedly expressed their appreciation for programs like Comm Studies that can be completed without any textbook costs,” said Clare Norris-Bell, WLAC’s Chair of Language Arts.

West has a goal of offering 50 degrees and certificates that require no purchase of textbooks by December 2025, including a one-year to work certificate in Biotechnology. Current ZTC degree and certificate paths are:

• Associate Degrees: Communication Studies; English; Sociology; and Anthropology
• Certificates of Achievement: Climate Change Studies - Natural Science; Climate Change Studies - Social Science; and Cloud Computing-Amazon Web Services Certificate of Achievement

The Winter and Spring sessions at West start on January 6 and February 10, 2025. Open enrollment begins November 11, 2024. For more information, visit WLAC.edu/IAmReady .

About West Los Angeles College

West Los Angeles College is an ACCJC accredited California Community College that offers career certificates and Associate degrees and two Bachelor’s degrees, as well as paths to transfer to competitive universities as a Junior. Students can enroll full-time or part-time, in-person or in the college’s award-winning online program. West also boasts the first and only degree and certificate programs in Climate Change & Environmental Studies among the 116 California community colleges.

For more information, visit WLAC.edu. 

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