TIFTON – Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College continues to prioritize accessibility and affordability in higher education by expanding access to course selections requiring little or no additional cost for materials.
“It is important for our students to get a high-quality education that is affordable,” said ABAC President Tracy Brundage. “We believe this adds to the value proposition that makes ABAC a great choice for students. Our faculty work tirelessly to find ways to alleviate the financial burden on our students, and we’re proud that this dedication enables more than half our students to graduate free from student loan debt.”
ABAC offers a range of cost-saving resources, including open educational resources, online textbooks, library materials, and other accessible resources to alleviate the financial burden on students. According to data collected by Affordable Learning Georgia (ALG), an initiative of GALILEO, ABAC has saved its enrolled students more than $27 million in educational costs since 2013.
ALG closely monitors the use of no- and low-cost materials across the University System of Georgia. Since its inception as a pilot project in 2013, ALG’s grant programs have saved students an estimated $82.5 million.
“As an ABAC lecturer for over a dozen years, I remember when online software and a textbook cost over $150 and up to $300 for a semester,” said April Abbott, a mathematics lecturer in ABAC’s School of Arts and Sciences. “I would have students fail because they couldn’t afford the prices of our software. I knew it wasn’t fair. Everyone should have an equal opportunity to succeed and lowering the cost of a class truly helps. When the chance came to try switching our math classes to no- and low-cost with Georgia’s Affordable Learning Grants, I jumped at it.”
Over the past decade, ABAC students have saved $2,267,387.87 in textbook cost avoidance, thanks to ALG-funded grant projects.
“Faculty here are always looking for ways to make things better for their students,” said Dr. Matthew Anderson, Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at ABAC. “They apply for grants and search out free and low-cost resources for students to use, and I’m thrilled that almost 300 classes utilize these cost-saving resources, making ABAC the second-highest percentage of no- and low-cost class percentages in the entire University System of Georgia for this past spring semester.”
ABAC’s percentage of marked no-cost materials course sections surpasses both the USG average and the average for state colleges. ABAC is the top college for the percentage of no- and low-cost percentages since this data began being tracked.
