For many students at CUNY, the cost of textbooks can be prohibitively expensive. Since nearly forty percent of CUNY’s students come from households with annual incomes of less than $20,000, spending an average of $1,200 per year on books and other supplies is too often an insurmountable barrier to academic success. In many cases, students choose not to register for courses that require expensive textbooks, or they end up withdrawing or failing courses because they cannot afford the materials. These patterns can lead to an increase in the number of years students spend in college, thereby reducing the likelihood of completing a degree. One way to reduce textbook costs is by offering courses that use free and online Open Educational Resources (OERs). These instructional materials can be used, reused, and often remixed and customized under an intellectual property license that permits their free use while ensuring authors retain copyright to their work.