J Conrad Dunagan Library
The J. Conrad Dunagan Library is a modern working university library, providing a full range of high-quality services based on both print and electronic resources to university students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the community, in pursuance of its vision of becoming the preferred destination for innovative knowledge and technology for the diverse university community and the public. The Library seeks to offer user -centered creative, efficient and effective services that develop information skills for lifelong learning citizens. The Library creates and implements strategic initiatives that enhance the utilization of library resources and offer all students and faculty, regardless of their location, the information resources they need in research, discovery, teaching, and presenting their findings.
The 66,000 square feet Library building with a seating capacity of 400 is open Monday through Sunday. It has collaborative learning spaces equipped with a smartboard, bean bag chairs, and whiteboards. Also available are study rooms and carrels which can be checked out to any enrolled UT Permian Basin student, 52 computing workstations, two of which are enhanced with additional software for students with disabilities and printing and scanning facilities. Additionally, there is a computer lab room equipped with 21 computers and overhead equipment from where library instruction sessions are held. The library also has laptops available for students use. Laptops can be checked out from the circulation desk of the library. The library also offers Wi-Fi access and service enabling all registered students roam throughout the building and campus wide.
To easily locate books and articles, the library offers FalconFinder, a one-stop, comprehensive discovery tool to facilitate most research needs to a core print collection of more than 700 of the most widely used academic journals, with another 88,659 journals available full-text by means of on-line electronic databases, as well as 225,000 print volumes and more than 3,000,000 eBooks. Library computing workstations facilitate access to electronic databases, commercial full-text materials and the Internet. Other types of resources are available in Special Collections, particularly items relating to the history of the Permian Basin area and the western region of the country. These materials include items by and about J. Frank Dobie, the papers of regional leaders John Ben Shepperd and J. Conrad Dunagan, manuscripts of significant Texas writers, a Texana history collection, unique collections of regional photographs, and the University Archives.
User needs drive the development and provision of services. Library services range from the routine loan of books and related materials to searching of remote electronic databases, and related document delivery. The Library conducts regular library instruction in person class sessions, online class sessions workshops and online research tutorials for students to optimize usage of the library resources. Librarians are continually online to answer questions and inquiries through a virtual FalconChat service. They can also be reached via email, on phone and in person at the library.
The library offers Interlibrary Loan (ILL) services which extend options for getting items not owned by the Library. Materials requested through this service come from a network of university libraries, community colleges and public libraries. The library accesses books, films and articles for students and faculty via this shared network.