Students should never have to decide whether or not they can afford to take a class, especially at a school like U.Va. which they already pay thousands of dollars in tuition to each semester. And yet, across the country, high textbook prices continually act as a barrier to students’ success. A survey conducted by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group found that over 63 percent of college students have skipped buying at least one textbook because they couldn’t afford it. Decisions like these endanger students’ success in the classroom, and they disproportionately affect those who are already struggling with other serious concerns like food insecurity.
