About Us

The Association of American Publishers (AAP) and its member publishers understand the challenges facing students, educators and policy makers, alike.  College tuition, fees and other costs continue to climb, making higher education increasingly unaffordable for students.  Educators face a student population that requires increasing amounts of remediation, causing student retention and completion rates to fall.  Policy makers are making difficult and sizeable funding cuts to institutions that are already facing tough budget times.

Partnering with both faculty and policy makers, AAP is harnessing the power of the latest technology to help students complete their degree and make education dollars go further.

A Message from Tom Allen, President and CEO of the Association of American Publishers

The publishing industry is proud of its strong history of helping students and faculty throughout higher education institutions across the country.  Over the last several years this role has been evolving and, as a Government Accountability Office report noted, “publishers are assuming greater responsibilities that have traditionally belonged to postsecondary institutions.”

Substantial reductions in state subsidies have led institutions to rely on publishers to invest in and produce more textbooks and course materials, additional learning tools, class management systems and services for faculty to help ensure students are receiving the education they deserve in this era of tighter college and universities budgets.

Recently, there has been much debate on the cost of textbooks and other learning tools available to assist students and faculties.  Textbooks and the wide variety of materials developed for students and faculty are a valuable and critical component in today’s ever-changing system of higher education.

To help colleges, universities and faculty provide the best resources to today’s increasingly diverse student population, more than 6,200 publishers offer more than 381,000 titles used in America’s post-secondary classrooms. In addition, publishers offer e-books, custom textbooks and other learning materials such as online tutoring, interactive educational systems, and online practice exams.  With textbooks, it is fair to say that you get what you pay for.  Simple black-and-white texts sell for one price; hardbound, full-color textbooks supported by sophisticated technologies sell for another.

Thank you for exploring this Association of American Publishers’ Web site.  The site offers a wide range of information and links to different sources that are helpful to those interested in learning more about college course materials and their value.  As you will see, publishers are committed and engaged in helping meet the diverse educational needs of 21st century students and professors.

Tom Allen
President and CEO
Association for American Publishers