Barnes & Noble? More like Barnes & NOble amirite (lol)?

I’m psyched that, according to an e-mail sent out by Dean of Students Celestino, Lewis and Clark will not renew its contract with Barnes & Noble when it expires in 2010.  I’m just an angsty college kid who doesn’t like corporations, but I imagine there’s probably some good that will come of this.  If not, I can still blame the man for forcing out benevolent capitalists.

Here’s the news:

I hope you are well and I wanted to share some exciting news with you this morning.  As you know, our campus bookstore is operated by Barnes & Noble and many students may not be aware that they have been providing that service for the past 23 years.  However, our contract with Barnes & Noble expires at the end of June 2010 and this past year we asked an independent consultant, Campus Bookstore Consulting, Inc., to study the operation of the Lewis & Clark bookstore. Through meetings with the campus community and analyses of the store’s operation and performance, the consultants concluded that Barnes & Noble is doing a competent job of running the bookstore but that students, faculty, and staff would benefit from a store that is more uniquely ‘Lewis & Clark’ and better able to respond to our community’s needs.

After carefully studying the bookstore issue from several perspectives, we have made the decision to take over operation of the campus bookstore at the beginning of July 2010 when the Barnes & Noble contract expires.  This means that the new self-operated bookstore can be run in a less rigid manner compared to corporate stores and give us the opportunity to create a more service-focused and creative bookstore.

We are very excited about all of the possibilities that lie ahead and want to include undergraduate and graduate students in the planning process.  While the transition is months away, we want to begin our preparations and would appreciate student suggestions regarding the new bookstore.  Members of the campus community are invited to offer their suggestions for the bookstore in two ways: by attending one of two campus discussions or by sending an e-mail to Wendy Washburn, assistant to the provost and liaison to the bookstore, at washburn@lclark.edu.  The first discussion will be focused on feedback from Undergraduate students and be held at 7 p.m. on Tuesday Oct. 6 in Stamm West of Templeton.  The second discussion will be focused on feedback from Graduate students and that will occur in late October.  We are still planning the exact date and time of that forum but it will be held on the Graduate Campus and an email will be sent to Graduate students when this is finalized.

We would like to thank Barnes & Nobles for their service to our community and we look forward to all that is to come with this new venture.  This is a genuine opportunity for us – students, staff, and faculty – and we plan on doing all that we can to ensure its success.  Please join us for one of the upcoming discussions or send an email to Ms. Washburn (washburn@lclark.edu) with suggestions.  Thank you and enjoy the weekend, everyone.