Responsible Body:  Office of the Provost

Date of Last Review:  June 25, 2021

University Mail Services

University Mail Services provides a  full range of mail and shipping services for the ACU community.  Products and services are available for department/school charge or personal payment.  In most cases, faculty members get their mail from their department/school’s office.  Visit the Mail Services’ website for hours, the services available, mail preparation  instructions, and relevant processing goals or deadlines.

Faculty members may send campus mail to anyone with an ACU mailbox.  Campus mail should be addressed with the recipient’s full name and ACU mailbox number. The campus mail policy and  preparation instructions are available on the website listed above.  Commercial mail, including an ACU employee’s personal business, is not allowed in campus mail to ACU employees.  

Brown Library

The Brown Library exists to serve faculty in their central academic tasks of research, learning, and teaching. Faculty members should feel free to discuss their needs with the Dean of Library Services and Educational Technology or with the librarian in charge of any particular area.

Library Research Support for Faculty

See the library website for general information about web-based resources, interlibrary loan, hours, check-out privileges, and research rooms.

1. Adding Books, Journals, and Databases to the Collection. Library faculty and professional librarians collaborate with faculty to build and maintain collections that support the research interests of the university, of particular disciplines and departments/schools, and of individual professors.  Faculty members should talk with their department/school’s liaison librarian to add new books, journals and databases.
2. TexShare Cards. The TexShare Consortium of academic and public libraries in the state provides free or low-cost walkup access to resources, an ID card for borrowing books, and a statewide distribution service.  Faculty members planning to visit a member library in Texas should sign up for a TexShare card at the Brown Library circulation desk.

Learning Support

ACU has created a unique student-focused collaborative service, the Learning Commons, which features group study spaces designed to support undergraduate research and study in a technology-rich environment.  ACU designed the Learning Commons to be the place of choice for learning outside the classroom and for completing every phase of an academic project from inception to publication. 

Learning Commons partners include traditional Library Services (circulation, research assistance, a printed reference collection, and online resources), an art gallery, a café, Educational Technology, Team 55 Technology Support, the Speaking Center, the Writing Center, and the Learning Studio.  

Instructional Support

1. Collection Evaluation. Each department/school’s liaison librarian will prepare a collection evaluation to help faculty in getting any new course or program approved.  Collection evaluations assess the library’s ability to support proposed courses.
2. Reserves. The Library Circulation Service places books, articles, and AV materials on reserve for particular courses as requested by professors.
3. How to Put Items on Reserve:
   1. Faculty members should bring any personal or library item to the Reserve Office at circulation at least 24 hours before they expect the students to call for the materials.  If a faculty member has a number of items, he or she should allow more processing time.
   2. Faculty members should fill out a reserve form at the Circulation Desk, giving the course name and number as they appear in the course schedule, the desired loan period, and handling instructions.
   3. Faculty members should provide a copy of the course syllabus.
   4. When the item is no longer needed, faculty members should notify the Reserve Office.  Faculty members should allow one business day for processing and then pick up personal items promptly.
   5. If faculty members have AV materials, they should follow the same procedure at the AV desk on the lower level.
   6. Faculty members should be aware of their responsibility to comply with copyright law.  Help with copyright is available at the Research Desk.
4. Information Literacy. The library faculty is happy to collaborate with faculty members to teach research strategies, methods of determining high quality information, and the basic elements of  academic integrity.  Typically the conversation begins with the faculty member’s expression of interest in the structured use of library materials in course assignments.
5. Region XIV Education Center. Faculty members may call Region XIV for films and other instructional materials, which will be delivered weekly to the ACU Library Circulation Desk on Friday mornings.  Faculty members should return borrowed Region XIV items to the Circulation Desk the following week.  A Region XIV catalog is kept at the Research Assistance Desk in the Learning Commons.
6. Library Policies of Interest to the Faculty. Written policies are in force for the areas listed below.  Copies of these policies are available on request at the office of the Dean of Library Services and Educational Development.
   1. Collection Development
   2. Circulation Policies (for all types of users)
   3. Faculty Overdue Policy
   4. Interlibrary Loan Policy
   5. Mission of the Library
   6. Reference Service Policy
   7. Reserves Policy

Registrar

The registrar serves as the official custodian of all academic records of the university.  The basic responsibilities of the registrar are to initiate and manage academic processes including, but not limited to, registration, academic standing, readmission, grading, and graduation; provide transcript service for current and former students; evaluate and articulate transcripts from other schools; coordinate intercollegiate enrollment (HSU and McMurry); maintain degree audits and certify students for graduation and other eligibility requests; prepare and submit records for the Veterans Administration (for students receiving VA benefits); and establish (in consultation with deans and directors) policies, procedures, and processes. The registrar also plans, prepares, and submits long- and short-term planning and budget documents and other reports as required by the university and oversees the selection, training, and supervision of office personnel.  The registrar also serves as the chair for the University Calendar Committee.