2.9 – Learning Resources and Services

The institution, through ownership or formal arrangements or agreements, provides and supports student and faculty access and user privileges to adequate library collections as well as to other learning and information resources consistent with the degrees offered. These collections and resources are sufficient to support all educational, research, and public service programs.

__X_ Compliance ___ Partial Compliance ___ Non-Compliance

Statement of Rationale for the Judgment of Compliance

A&M-Texarkana, through ownership or formal arrangements & agreements, provides and supports student and faculty access and user privileges to adequate library collections as well as to other learning and information resources consistent with the degrees offered. Through agreements, our local resource collection is supplemented beyond our funding boundaries. The John F. Moss/Palmer Memorial Library (Moss Library) is a joint library serving two institutions--the university and Texarkana College. The support for the library collection and other learning resources is adequate and sufficient to support all educational, research, and public service programs.

The library operates with different budgets from Texarkana College and A&M-Texarkana. The funding of departmental acquisitions of materials for the library’s monograph collection is subject to library budget formulas that are based in part on enrollment and average book cost per subject area. The library relies heavily on faculty recommendations for direct input into updating their area of specialty within the collection. Students also make requests for materials in subject areas they feel need additional or updated resources.

Selection aids are use by librarians to help choose appropriate materials to support degree programs offered. Librarians evaluate collection needs and weigh against budget and physical space constraints. Holdings are evaluated for all new degree programs. This information, plus recommendations, is included in new degree proposals.

The library subscribes to over 80 online databases that are accessible on any campus computer with Internet access. Library patrons have access to the Internet through computers located in the Microforms Department, Reference Department, and private computer rooms. Off-campus access is available to students, faculty, and staff through a proxy server.

Holdings of journals, magazines and newspapers are included in the library’s Online Public Access Catalog (EAGLIT). Each source record indicates the format (paper, microfilm or microfiche) of the desired volume and issue. These titles, like the databases, are accessible on any campus computer with Internet access and are remotely accessible.

In the 2004 General Library Survey, library patrons expressed the view that appropriate resources were available. The following were offered in response to the library survey:

Ø 84% of patrons agreed (strongly or somewhat) that the general collection had an adequate number of books on their topic

Ø 80% of patrons agreed (strongly or somewhat) that the collection had an adequate number of journal articles for their research purposes

Ø 78% of patrons agreed (strongly or somewhat) that the reference collection adequately met their research needs.

According to the American Research Libraries description, LibQUAL is a suite of services that libraries use to solicit, track, understand and act upon users’ opinions of service quality. The program’s centerpiece is a rigorously tested Web-based survey. The library participated in this Web-based survey from March 22-May 31, 2005. Library users from both Texarkana A&M University-Texarkana and Texarkana College were invited to participate in the survey. Respondents were asked 22 core questions and asked to rate each one from 1 to 9 at three levels (minimum, desired and perceived) of service quality.

Formal Arrangements & Agreements for External Collections

The Moss Library augments its local collection through arrangements and written agreements with a number of institutions and organizations. The university has a long-standing agreement to work cooperatively with Texarkana College. The Moss Library incorporates this agreement into its mission statement for providing resources and services. There is total reciprocity of library staff and resources between the two institutions.

The Moss Library has a good working relationship and an informal arrangement with the city’s public library. Both libraries honor patron referrals for information and participate in the TexShare Card Program . The school pays an annual fee to use another local facility—the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Area Health Education Center (AHEC) Southwest (SW). Services at the UAMS AHEC-SW Library include personal assistance, use of its collection, database searching, user instruction, free copies and interlibrary loans, if needed.

The University offers classes at Northeast Texas Community College (NTCC) located in Mt Pleasant, TX. The library has a formal usage agreement with the NTCC Learning Resource Center to provide A&M-Texarkana students access to their local campus resources and services. Moss Library cooperates as a member of the Texas A&M University System Libraries. Through the current Intrasystem Cooperation Contract, Texas A&M University (College Station) serves as the agent for the purchase of electronic library materials, which can then be bought by the A&M System libraries opting to participate. This agreement offers TAMU-Texarkana opportunities to purchase electronic resources at consortium pricing.

The state of Texas offers libraries an opportunity to share and/or borrow resources with other libraries throughout the state. This program makes resources that were available only to a few now available to thousands. As a member of TexShare, a program of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission in partnership with academic and public libraries, the university participates in the following programs:

Ø TexShare Card–promotes a reciprocal borrowing program which allows registered users of participating institutions to directly borrow materials from the libraries of other participating institutions.

Ø TexShare Databases–provides a wealth of electronic database resources (full text articles and/or books) via consortial subscriptions at significant cost savings.

Ø TexShare Interlibrary Loan (ILL)–uses a common protocol, a load-leveling guide, free reciprocal ILLs, and Ariel software to promote resource sharing and improve ILL services among member libraries.

Ø TExpress Courier Service–provides a pickup and delivery service to participating libraries every weekday, with deliveries of library books and other materials throughout Texas.

The library is also a full member of the OCLC Online Computer Library Center through its regional affiliate, Amigos Library Services. OCLC offers WorldCat, a worldwide union catalog maintained collectively by more than 9,000 member institutions.  OCLC Interlibrary Loan (ILL) is a networked borrowing and lending system designed to simplify and speed up resource sharing among the member libraries. Moss Library has formal interlibrary loan agreements with Amigos Library Services and other regional OCLC groups.

Access and User Privileges

The library is open every day of the week, 80 hours per week. The Online Public Access Catalog (EAGLIT) and electronic resources are available 24 hours a day from any computer connected to the Internet. All electronic resources are available via remote access. The proxy server authenticates the student, faculty, or staff member through an I.D. and password and allows remote access. Remote access to these databases assures that students and faculty can access information even when the library or campus is closed. There are laptops, individual computer rooms, and open area computer workstations available within the library, as well as campus computer labs for access to library materials. All university students, faculty, and staff have complete access and user privileges to both the physical collections and electronic collections. Collections from both schools are made accessible to all faculty, staff and students. Distance education students have the same access and user privileges as students on the local campus. In addition, distance education students located in Mt. Pleasant have access and user privileges to the NTCC campus resources. Alumni and community patrons have library access to resources and can obtain a library card for check-out privileges.

Other Learning and Information Resources

Texas A&M University-Texarkana provides a variety of learning resources to support student learning. Two classroom computer labs are available for use in instruction for any class requiring computing facilities on a scheduled basis. An open computer lab is available for students at all times that the university is open with lab assistants available for 62 hours per week. All classrooms, computer labs, and faculty offices have internet access. The majority of classrooms (31 of 38) are equipped with computers, overhead projection, graphic cameras, VCR capability, a wireless keyboard and mouse.

All students have access to a university email account, network web space and network storage drives for both personal academic use and for specific courses.

A&M-Texarkana utilizes fully two-way interactive television classrooms to teach courses to Northeast Texas Community College and, as a member of The Texas A&M University System, is connected through the Trans Texas Video Network to practically any other institution or agency with interactive television capabilities. The university is also connected to 15 other higher education institutions through the Northeast Texas Network (NETnet), which provides high bandwidth video and data connectivity.

The University utilizes WebCT as its course management system. Training for students is held at the beginning of each semester, and online instruction and assistance is available on the University’s Web Based Courses web page.

Organizational unit(s) responsible for this requirement: Library and Technology & Distance Education