Barnes & Noble take over GHC bookstores
By Jake Carter
[email protected]
Staff Writer
The Georgia Highlands College bookstores are undergoing the process of being privatized.
Barnes & Noble will start providing bookstore services no later than Dec. 1, according to Dr. Wilbur Shuler, vice president of finance.
When Shuler came to GHC in 2004, he was put in charge of the project. �They were working on privatizing the bookstores before I came here,� he said.
In all there were four offers: Follet, Nebraska Book Company, College Book Stores of America and Barnes & Noble.
Privatizing the GHC bookstores is no easy process, however, both Barnes & Noble and the state had to accept the contract for the deal to be finalized.
A bookstore committee will be created to oversee the bookstores. The committee will include personnel from the fiscal, academic, technology and student departments and will advise Shuler. The bookstore committee will make sure things run as planned.
There will be several changes as a result of the bookstores being privatized, though not all of them will be visible to the students.
Some changes students will see are the prices. In some cases prices will be comparable to the current prices and in some lower.Shuler said, �The whole process of buying books with financial aid will be a lot more automated and more convenient for us.�
Barnes & Noble will be taking over but not accompanied by Starbucks.
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