Students who order their textbooks from the AACC Bookstore can pick up them curbside through Friday.
Bookstore Manager Christopher Wirth said students can order their textbooks online from www.aaccbooks.com. Once an order is ready, the student will receive an email explaining when to pick up the books or equipment in the lower A parking lot.
Alternatively, students can choose free UPS shipping, but Wirth warns delivery often takes longer than pickup.
“There’s the possibility that if you order it Thursday night or possibly Friday morning that by midday Friday it would be available for pickup,” he said. “If I were to mail it out … on a Friday, it probably won’t arrive … until Monday or Tuesday.”
Curbside pickup is available Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. until 7 p.m. and Friday from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m.
Wirth said students who come to campus to pickup books should not get out of their cars when they arrive in the parking lot.
“We ask them to … remain in their car and leave their trunk open,” he explained. “We’ll place the order in their car.”
AACC’s Basic Needs Coordinator Caitlin Silver said students who can’t afford their textbooks may apply for free books through a campus program called HelpLink.
But Silver said HelpLink is a last resort.
“When students are having trouble with [money] we always first recommend that they contact the Office of Financial Aid,” she explained. “However, if a student is in a situation where they do need that type of assistance … they would fill out an online application and we would work with them one on one to find a solution.”
Silver said HelpLink will respond to student requests within three business days.
Students can also rent equipment for free from AACC’s library, which has laptops, external webcams, headsets with microphones and Wi-Fi hotspots to lend.
Access Services Librarian Christine Vasica said AACC students enrolled in 15- and 13-week courses can contact the library circulation desk at circdesk@aacc.edu to rent equipment.
“As long as they return the devices on time and without any damage, we’re not charging them anything,” she explained.
Students can rent equipment as long as they are enrolled at the college, Vasica explained.
She said the library coordinates equipment delivery with the bookstore.
Some students said they are glad the college is accommodating them with curbside delivery.
“People still need to get their books,” Jacob Campbell, a third-year computer science student, said. “I think it’s a good idea you know … if we can keep it as contactless as possible.”
Second-year transfer studies student Raquel Smith agreed.
“If people working in the bookstore and students feel comfortable with [curbside pickup], it’s a great option for those who don’t feel comfortable going completely online for their order,” she said.