Barnes & Noble to Manage Rutgers' Bookstores

September 26, 2008

Dear Rutgers Faculty and Staff:

I am pleased to announce that Barnes & Noble will be managing Rutgers–New Brunswick Campus bookstores currently operated by Follett beginning November 3, 2008. (The independent Student Co-op Bookstore located between the G.H. Cook and Douglass campuses is not affected by this change.) Barnes & Noble, based in New Jersey, is renowned for creating lively, welcoming, and exciting centers of campus life and runs highly rated urban campus superstores at more than 20 locations, including Boston University, Yale, The Ohio State University, and the University of Pennsylvania.

Barnes & Noble will initially be located in the current bookstore space at the Ferren Mall but will open a new, three-story, 46,000-square-foot superstore adjacent to the train station when The Gateway redevelopment project is completed. The superstore will serve as a dynamic bridge between the university and New Brunswick, offering readings and cultural events, a Scarlet Knights shop, a children's section, and a café, in addition to the full range of textbooks, academic reference materials, school supplies, and general reading books.

The transition to Barnes & Noble is expected to be seamless. The only disruption in service will be during the weekend of November 1-2 when the bookstores will be closed.

Rutgers' Barnes & Noble bookstore website will launch on November 1 and will include an online system for ordering spring semester books. Books can also be ordered by phone, email, or fax. Faculty who wish to submit book requests before November 1 should contact Chris Colbert at ccolbert@bncollege.com. Please include your name and contact information, course and section number, and number of students registered.

An FAQ with details about the transition can be found at http://aps.rutgers.edu/PDF/Faculty%20FAQ.pdf. You might also want to read the press release at http://news.rutgers.edu/news-releases/2008/09/rutgers-university-....

This ambitious partnership will bring a premier full-service bookstore to New Brunswick and create a gathering place and destination for Rutgers faculty, students, staff, and the larger community. It will be the kind of bookstore Rutgers' New Brunswick Campus both needs and deserves as we continue to make our university one of the finest in the nation.

Richard L. McCormick
President
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey