The University of Illinois system has received U.S. federal money to create an open-access textbook to be used on its three campuses, as well as the state’s community colleges, and shared with colleges and universities around the country, said Charles V. Evans, the university’s assistant vice president for academic affairs. The project is financed by a grant from the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education.Unlike many projects that build collections of open-access textbooks by moving existing content to less-restrictive licenses, Illinois is starting from scratch. Faculty members will write the textbook, though its subject has not been selected yet. The planning committee intends to choose a topic that is a strength at all of the system’s three campuses, said Mr. Evans, the project leader. The goal is to pick a topic before the end of the summer and have a draft completed next spring. Faculty members at different institutions will be able to customize the textbook to fit their particular needs.The textbook will be available for free online, and students will have the option of ordering an affordable print version. The project is the most recent step in a joint effort between Mr. Durbin’s office and the university system to make textbooks more affordable.Source: The Chronicle of Higher Education