University of Kentucky - Kentuckian Yearbook (Lexington, KY)

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By Mary Bolin I refuse to sell my textbooks back to Kennedy's or the University Bookstore each semester. I think we students are getting the short end of the deal when it comes to reselling books ' said senior Jay Peter. Bookstores are pictured as big rip-off joints, but we provide a legitimate function in book distribu- tion, said Joe Kennedy, whose store has sold thou- sands of textbooks to UK students since opening in 1950. We have operating expenses to cover. Mark- ups are needed to survive. Wiliam T. Eblen, manager of the University Book Store, explained its policy on book buying and selling. The publisher sets the new book price and we usually A Fair Exchange? Kennedy's Bookstore prepares for the first of the semester by setting up extra cash registers and having an excess of employees to help the multitude of students find their required texts. Photographs by Tom Moran purchase it at a 20 percent discount. So if the book sells for $10, we purchase it for $8. But freight charges have gone up over 200 percent in the past two years and now freight and operating costs average 23 percent of the publisher's list price. So we are taking a three percent loss on each book on the average. The value of a textbook varies on return because of several factors. If a text has been reordered for use the next semester, and sufficient stock does not exist, the student is paid one half of the original price of the book as a rule. The bookstore then has a one-third mark-up before resale. A book costing $10 new is pur- chased from the student for $5 and resold for $7.50. If a faculty order for the text has not been received, the value of the book depends on the Textbook Buy- ers Guide value listing. To the distributor, a book may be worth over half its new price or may have abso- lutely no value. Because almost half of the faculty book orders are received after the bookstores' deadline, many stu- dents must sell their books at the distributor's value. Eblen stated that book orders for spring semester were still arriving two months after the Nov. 1 deadline. We get book orders late and sometimes not at all We tried to contact one professor four times, but he never returned our calls, so we had to reorder based on past sales and the order size for the class in past years. Teachers like that do a real disservice to theii continued on page 7' I could see the cash register ringing it up in my mind” said Connit Widman after considering which books to buy. Widman, a soil scienct junior in agriculture education, bought over $5 0 worth of books the week before the spring semester started. 16-BOOKSTORES

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Reasonable tuition, tradition and sports lead students In search of UK By Pat Zappala Sheer panic. Most high school seniors find themselves overwhelmed when the time comes to make a college choice. I wanted to give myself a fresh new start, said Mike Berling, a biology major from Ft. Mitchell, Ky., who, like other indecisive freshmen, finally settled on the University of Kentucky. Indeed, freshmen flocked to UK for reasons ranging from superior academic programs to excellent partying potential. Sharon Shepard came to UK from Marietta, Ohio, because the broad academic program encompassed her needs as an undecided major. She also felt there was a great degree of organization because there may be 22,000 people at UK, but if you need a question answered, or some help, it's easy to find. John Davis,who recently moved from Louisville to Virginia Beach, Va., returned to Kentucky because he wanted to attend college with his high school friends. Davis also selected UK because his father, an alumnus, strongly recommended the academic program. Recreation major Tracy Durso, a Covington native, came to UK so that she could experience life on her own. In fact, Durso had decided on UK seven years before when her family vacationed in Lexington. Charmed by the campus and the friendly atmosphere, she knew she wanted to return. Women in Lexington are warm, declared Jimmie Johnson, an undecided major from Richmond. Although Johnson's academic goals remained uncertain, his reasons for coming to UK were not. Specifically, his priorities included getting away from home and finding a wife. He hoped UK would satisfy his expectations in both categories. Regional preferences played a part in helping Cindy Schmidt, computer science major from Glen Ellyn, 111., decide where to go. She had a Southern school in mind because winters are nice down here compared to up North. Her brother also attends UK. Mitch Luy, a chemical engineering major from Richmond, chose UK because it was the nearest school offering his major. Like many others, however, Luy's interest in UK sports influenced his choice, too. In addition to liking the academic program and reasonable out-of-state tuition fee, Molly Moore, pre-vet major from Murraysville, Pa., decided on Kentucky because of the equestrian team. Her interest in horses enticed her to become a member of that team. In addition to thinking that UK is the best party school in the U.S., Greenville native Nicky Sparks also thought Kentucky is the most outstanding school in this part of the country. Lexingtonian, Barb Seelye selected UK after touring the department of her major interest, chemical engineering. Low tuition fees and Kentucky sports also played a part in Seelye's decision. Kappa Alpha pledge and Louisvillian Jim Taylor chose UK because of the great tradition for basketball, women, and booze. Eventually Taylor admitted that the academic program constituted the main reason for his opting for UK. Each of UK's freshmen, 4,883 of them, were motivated differently in choosing Kentucky. Neverthe- less, they all sought justification for that decision through academic success, athletic achievement, or other reasons. For one more year, the panic was over. WHY UK?-15

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