Norfolk, Va. (WTKR) - When Kanye West took to Twitter this week to complain about the rising cost of textbooks, one Hampton Roads college was already ahead of the game.
This was the tweet Kanye sent to his more than 19 million followers Tuesday afternoon:
A few hours later, Tidewater Community College seized the opportunity to let West (and others) know about their Z-Degree:
The Z-Degree stands for "zero textbooks." It was piloted by Tidewater Community College in the fall of 2013 after being inspired by a retreat organized by Dr. Glenn DuBois, chancellor of the Virginia Community College System.
TCC's Z-Degree allows students to earn a Business Administration Associate of Science Degree with no textbooks using open-educational resources (OER).
The program includes all the business courses, but also all of the general education courses a student needs to complete the degree.
Students can also enroll in other textbook-free courses that have the "Z" designation.
TCC estimates a student may save 25% on the total cost by using the open-educational resources instead of textbooks.
