Textbooks

The Rhodes Bookstore is the supplier of textbooks and supplies, required or recommended by professors for use in the classroom. Faculty are responsible for supplying course book and supply information to the textbook manager as requested.

How to Supply Course Information

Text Information Forms are supplied by the Bookstore for use in submitting course book information, including author, title and edition. Texts may also be adopted online via the Bookstore’s Web site. Instructions for the service will accompany the pre-printed adoption forms distributed each March and September.

The forms request the faculty member to designate a “required title” or a “recommended title.” Required titles are purchased in quantities necessary to meet full class enrollment, recommended titles are purchased in smaller quantities. Costs involved in receiving and handling materials ordered and not assigned will be billed back to the department. These costs will include freight in and out, handling; and in the event the books are nonreturnable, the ordering department will be charged for the books.

When to Order. The schedule for the submission of textbook information is as follows: for the first semester, roughly April 15; for the second semester, October 15. The Bookstore guarantees that textbooks ordered by these deadlines will be available in sufficient quantities for the start of class.

Special rush service is available for textbook orders that are ordered within 6 weeks of the first day of class. The cost of this service will be charged to the authorizing department.

Out-of-Stock Books. If the adopted textbook is temporarily out-of-stock, it may be possible to obtain permission from the copyright owner or publisher to photocopy a portion of the text until the book arrives. It is the responsibility of the faculty member to request this permission.

Out-of-Print Books. Resources are available in both the Bookstore and Barret Library to determine the publication status of the adopted title. The Bookstore will assist as much as possible in obtaining limited copies of out-of-print books, but the request for permission to copy for multiple use in the classroom is the responsibility of the faculty member.

Photocopying. Although copying all or part of a work without obtaining permission may appear to be an easy and convenient solution to an immediate problem, such unauthorized copying violates the rights of the author or publisher of the copyrighted work and is contrary to the academic mission to teach respect for ideas and for the intellectual property which expresses those ideas. It is the responsibility of the individual faculty member to obtain permission prior to photocopying. Failure to understand the copyright law, including elements such as the doctrine of “Fair Use” and its application and limitations in the educational setting places faculty members, copy centers, college stores, and colleges at risk for engaging in illegal photocopying.

The College Handbook contains guidelines for photocopying for academic use. Specific prohibitions within the doctrine of “Fair Use” are:

• Unauthorized copying may not be used to create, replace, or substitute for anthologies, compilations, or collective works, whether or not such unauthorized copies are collected and bound together or are provided separately.
• The same teacher cannot copy the same item without permission from term to term.

In other words, when in doubt, seek permission. For your convenience, the Bookstore and the Barret Library provide a form letter that can expedite a request for permission to copy.

Customized Course Materials. When permission to create multiple copies for use in the classroom is granted, the quantities to order, along with the selection of the copy center or printer may be coordinated by the Bookstore. Under these circumstances, the Bookstore assumes responsibility for the cost of any overstock.
 
Desk Copies. A Directory of Publishers is available from the Bookstore. The faculty member is responsible for placing the request direct to the publisher. Textbooks loaned to faculty while awaiting receipt of desk-copies will be charged to the department. Only that same book or a clean, unmarked copy will be accepted by the Bookstore for credit to the department.
 
Complimentary Copies. Rhodes College believes that the practice of buying and selling complimentary copies of textbooks contributes to higher book prices, denies authors royalties, and discourages the writing and publishing of new works. Therefore, the Rhodes Bookstore will not buy or sell textbooks marked, “complimentary copy, not for resale.” This policy also applies to books originally so marked and taped or bound over to conceal these complimentary copy markings. These markings include but are not limited to: “Complimentary copy, not for resale,” “Instructor’s copy, not for resale”, “Review copy, not for resale”, “Free book, not for resale.”