Cabrillo College Governing Board
SPECIAL MEETING
Monday, December 18, 2012
Cabrillo College Sesnon House
6500 Soquel Drive
Aptos, California 95003
OPEN SESSION (McPherson Room)
1. Call to Order and Roll Call
TIME
5:30
2. Adoption of Agenda

Oral Communications - Members of the audience may speak to
non-agenda items (three minute time limit per speaker)
A. Action Items
1. Award of Contract: Bookstore Lease/
Management & Operations Services
It is recommended that the Governing Board authorize the Vice
President, Administrative Services to execute a five year
agreement with Barnes and Noble “B&N College” to lease,
manage and operate the Cabrillo College Bookstore, with one five
year option to renew.
CLOSED SESSION
ADJOURN
For ADA related meeting accommodations, contact Dominique Hansen, Executive Assistant to the President, at
(831) 479-6306 at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting.
AGENDA ITEM BACKGROUND
TO:
GOVERNING BOARD
DATE
FROM: PRESIDENT
December 18, 2012
SUBJECT:
Award of Contract: Bookstore Lease/
Management & Operations Services
REASON FOR BOARD CONSIDERATION
ACTION
ENCLOSURE(S)
Page 1 of 3
ITEM NUMBER
A.1
BACKGROUND:
For nearly two decades the demise of the printed textbook and the rise of e-books and digital delivery
has been predicted. Escalating textbook costs have continued to be a major national issue. The
bookstore committee of the college and the Governing Board have received ongoing updates of
bookstore and textbook issues. In recent years, college bookstores around the nation have been in the
midst of a volatile period of transition. In addition to the challenge of rising costs of textbooks for
students, college bookstores are facing a tremendous reduction in textbook sales as more students turn
to online providers like Amazon.com.
Cabrillo’s challenges are the same as those of the national bookstore industry. Bookstore Management
has been in a state of flux for approximately 2 years, during which time three interim managers have
served. In addition, the Bookstore has been running a deficit for the past several years. The Bookstore
Advisory Committee recommended that the District engage in the formal Request For Proposals (RFP)
process to achieve a vendor contract for lease, management and operations services of the Cabrillo
College Bookstore.
Continued next page
FISCAL IMPACT:
FY 2012-13: Approximately $308,750 in revenue ($150,000 signing bonus; estimated $158,700 in
commissions and donations for remaining period of FY12-13)
FY 2013-17: Approximately $317,500 annual revenue
RECOMMENDATION: It is recommended that the Governing Board authorize the Vice President,
Administrative Services to execute a five year agreement with Barnes and Noble “B&N College” to
lease, manage and operate the Cabrillo College Bookstore, with one five year option to renew.
Administrator Initiating Item:
Michael Robins
Victoria Lewis
Academic and Professional Matter
If yes, Faculty Senate Agreement
Senate President Signature
 Yes  No
 Yes  No
Final Disposition
In November 2011, the bookstore committee developed a list of goals for the bookstore including:
 To provide affordable course materials for students
 To continue to operate a college bookstore onsite
 To generate revenue for the college or at a minimum run a bookstore that “breaks even.”
 To provide services that are easy to use and accessible to students
A Bookstore Management RFP sub-committee was formed to select a vendor to provide Bookstore
Lease/Management & Operations services for the next 5 years: Flor Chacon, Student Activities
Coordinator, Sesario Escoto, Dean, Student Services, Darwin Constantino, Student Senator, Wendi
Hamilton, Text Buyer, Michael Robins, Director of Purchasing, and Georg Romero, Library Director.
Faculty input on the proposals was received from Dan Rothwell, Communication Studies Instructor
and Program Chair.
A request for proposal (RFP) was advertised in the Santa Cruz Sentinel on October 30 and November
6, 2012. The RFP was published on the Cabrillo website and distributed on November 1, 2012. The
three national leaders in college bookstore lease/management--Follett, NEEBO, and B&N College—
routinely outreach and market to colleges for new business opportunities and each had requested to
receive notification of such an RFP; therefore, the RFP online link was emailed to each of these
vendors. Two companies responded to the RFP: Barnes and Noble “B&N College” and Follett Higher
Education Group.
The RFP included 17 pages of requirements, including but not limited to the following:
 to maintain existing bookstore District employees, and to reimburse the District for all
salaries/benefits of such employees;
 to pay the District a commission in the range of approximately $300,000 annually;
 to provide varied and cost effective strategies for making course materials available to
students, for example in textbook rental, used, and digital formats;
 to not exceed existing mark-ups on “Readers” and other “course packets”;
 to provide an online ordering and order tracking system;
 to describe marketing and customer relations strategies.
The criteria for selection called for the point scoring of the following categories: 1) meeting minimum
“threshold requirements,” 2) capacity to perform, 3) cost/financial proposal, and 4)
presentation/interview. The selection process weighted and synthesized the proposal evaluation
process with a committee vote.
The committee reviewed and ranked the proposals, interviewed the respondents, and unanimously
voted to recommend the Barnes and Noble “B&N College.” The committee gave high priority to the
following considerations:
 Pricing for course materials and service to students, especially rental, used, and digital
discounts
 Service to faculty
 Financial terms, commissions, and compensation
 Vendor success at other community colleges of similar size
 Vendor’s operating style as a potential fit with Cabrillo
Continued next page
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The terms of the agreement are:
a. Five year exclusive contract, with one five year option to renew subject to mutual consent
b. One time signing bonus of $150,000
c. Vendor will pay a guaranteed year one minimum commission of $300,000, or a higher amount as
a % of gross sales. Commission years 2-5 will be based on a % of gross sales as follows:
 12.1% of all gross sales up to $3 million;
 12.6% of all gross sales from $3 million to $3.5 million;
 13.1% of all gross sales over $3.5 million
d. Vendor will provide a $15,000 annual donation to the ASCC Student Senate
e. Vendor will provide an annual donation of $2500 to support campus-related events
f. Both parties have the right to terminate the agreement with 120 days written notice
g. The bookstore will continue to be called the “Cabrillo College Bookstore.
h. B&N College will not directly market outside of Cabrillo College to the wider local community.
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