The burden of textbook costs will finally be alleviated, but not all on its own. A number of people have been, and will be, hard at work to ensure that the textbook rental plan is fully implemented for the fall 2019 semester.

The process behind this achievement has been years in the making. Student Senate members of years past initially brought recognition to the strain of textbook costs. Their attentiveness to the student body is what created a foundation for everything that has now been set to motion.

While the end results weighed heavily on participation from students during the voting period, a large handful of people had been working incessantly to certify that it was a favorable one.

The Vote Yes Campaign Committee coordinated aspects, like information tables, to ensure students were fully knowledgeable about the referendum. Members included Deanna Bradshaw, Maia Lathrop, Jake Timmerman, and Campaign Manager Christina Marshalek.  Others who collaborated in the earlier stages include Mai Der Vang and Ousman Darboe.

If it wasn’t for the Vote Yes Campaign Committee’s commitment to educating everyone on the rental plan, there wouldn’t have been such successful involvement from students.

While former Student Senates brought awareness to the matter, our current Student Senate and Student Activities Board really pushed to have the issues resolved. Keeping the college on the topic of low-cost textbooks brought forward many achievements. Their efforts include funding of the campaign (over $5,300), arranging locations for the campaign workers and their materials, and also providing volunteers to assist.

Those volunteers were composed of Steven Ansorge, Zach Borleske, Moustapha Cisse, Jhoan Cosme-Torres, Itziar Flores Ramirez, Keyiona Johnson, Jon Jones, Cat Larsen, Maia Lathrop, Fiona Maxwell, Shawn Padley, Jake Timmerman, Katrina Willis, and Kalia Vang. Considering the outcome of the rental plan decision, all their work is to be congratulated.

In addition, student leaders at regional campuses who helped make their classmates aware of the textbook rental plan need to be thanked as well. The regional representatives of the campaign consisted of Erica Zimmerman from Portage, Fiona Maxwell from Watertown and Fort Atkinson, and Zach Borleske from Reedsburg. Additional volunteers include Jesus Garza-Noriega, Mintesinote Urban, Sarah Schultz, Ayla Lopez, and Henry Beasley.

A final appreciation goes out to all others involved in the grand process of bringing this textbook rental program to fruition: the bookstore staff and manager Scott Heiman, college faculty and staff, especially former Student Senate advisor Jackie Dahlke and current advisor Ellie Rome, college administrators and President Dr. Jack Daniels, and the District Board.

It was no simple endeavor to establish such a comprehensive textbook rental plan, but all of the hard work put in by these folks has resulted in a promising referendum.

Money can be a struggle for college students, so the hope is this new program brings easier accessibility for all. A big thank you to everyone who took part in the progression of Madison College’s textbook affordability, without you we wouldn’t have been able to attain such a beneficial conclusion.