Policy 6.7 - University Mail Services

Policy 6.7 - University Mail Services

BLACK HILLS STATE UNIVERSITY

Policy and Procedure Manual

SUBJECT: University Mail Services

NUMBER: 6:7

Office: Facilities Services

Purpose

This policy sets forth the process for use of University Mail Services at BHSU, BHRC and Ellsworth AFB.

Policy

1. The BHSU University Mail Services are designated for official University business only. Mail Services is responsible for receiving, sorting, and delivering all intra-campus mail and mail received from the United States Postal Service (USPS). Mail handling procedures shall be in compliance with all USPS rules and regulations.
2. All mail received by BHSU Mail Services and addressed to the university is the property of the university. Any mail items meeting the criteria for suspicious mail are subject to inspection.
3. Personal Mail
   1. Faculty and staff members are expected to receive their personal mail at their home addresses. This includes bills, magazines, sales catalogs, personal packages, etc. An employee’s BHSU address should never be given as a permanent address and personal mail and packages should be directed for delivery to their living or other non-university address. Correspondence from colleagues is acceptable.
   2. As a convenience to faculty and staff, personal stamped mail will be collected from the departments and delivered to the Spearfish Post Office. It must have the correct postage affixed.
   3. Resident halls or apartment addresses should be the only address given out for personal mail.

Procedures

1. Mail sorting and delivery are identified by a four-digit unit number. Unit numbers for faculty and staff members can be found on the BHSU Campus Directories web site by completing a “name or department search”.
2. To ensure uninterrupted delivery of mail and correct assignment of unit numbers, individuals should contact Human Resources when an individual or office relocates on campus.
3. Incoming U.S. mail is sorted and delivered by unit number or department/office name. All departments should inform their correspondents of the proper form of address. University mail should be addressed in the following format:
   1. For the BHSU Spearfish Campus:
      1. Name of Employee or Department Name
      2. Black Hills State University
      3. 1200 University St, Unit XXXX
      4. Spearfish, SD 57799-XXXX
   2. For the BHSU-RC Campus:
      1. Name of Employee or Department Name
      2. Black Hills State University
      3. 4300 Cheyenne Blvd
      4. Box Elder, SD 57719-7700
   3. For the Ellsworth AFB Campus:
      1. Name of Employee or Department Name
      2. Black Hills State University
      3. 1000 Ellsworth St.
      4. Rushmore Center, Suite 2400A
      5. Ellsworth AFB, SD 57706-4943
4. All First-Class mail is delivered and dispatched the same day it is received. Intra- campus mail is delivered on the next available delivery. Express mail arriving late in the day (less than 1 hour before office closing) is delivered the following morning.
5. The hours of operations and mail services deliveries are as follows:
   1. The Mail Services window will be maintained in the lower level of the Student Union from 8:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Mail Services is closed on weekends and holidays.
   2. Mail Services will pick up mail from the USPS in Spearfish by 9:00 a.m. daily.
   3. Departmental mail will be sorted and delivered by Mail Services once a day by 11:00 a.m. Mail will be delivered to the following departmental boxes at the Spearfish campus:
      1. Bookstore
      2. Jonas Academic
      3. Joy Center
      4. Meier Hall
      5. Johnson Life Sciences Laboratory
      6. Woodburn Hall
      7. E.Y. Berry Library
      8. Facilities Services
      9. Donald E. Young Center
   4. Other departmental mail is placed in the department’s unit boxes in the Mail Services room and can be picked up at the Mail Services window.
   5. Mail Services will pick up departmental mail from designated boxes (identified in 3.f.iii.) by 1:45 p.m. Monday through Friday excluding holidays.
   6. Mail Services will process outgoing mail and deliver it to the USPS in Spearfish by 2:30 p.m. Monday through Friday excluding holidays.
   7. Mail Services for the Rapid City campus are managed by the staff person at the front desk in the Administrative office. Incoming mail will be delivered to the appropriate office/person. Outgoing mail will be placed in the outgoing mail bin for pick-up by the Post Office. The Pick-up time is normally at 10 AM.
   8. Mail Services for the Ellsworth AFB campus are handled by the staff person working at the Rushmore Center at Ellsworth AFB, Room 2401. The staff person will handle all incoming mail accordingly. For outgoing mail, the staff person drops off the mail at the Rapid City campus in the Administrative Office for further delivery.
6. All outgoing University mail should have the appropriate University return address in the upper left-hand corner of the mail piece.
7. All outgoing University mail must be identified with a departmental barcode to which the postage will be charged. Identification can be done by affixing a barcode slip (supplied by Mail Services via email) in the upper left corner by the return address or securely attaching the barcode slip to the top piece of bundled mail.
8. Mail Services should make sure that all outgoing mail has a complete address including a zip code. International mail must have the name of the country clearly marked in English.
9. Special handling (i.e., certified, return receipt, etc.) must be clearly indicated and requested. Mail will be sent the least expensive way unless otherwise noted.
10. As a convenience to faculty, staff and students, personal stamped mail will be collected from the departments and delivered to the Spearfish Post Office. It must have the correct postage affixed.
11. Residence Life will assign box numbers and keys will be distributed by Mail Services in the basement of the Student Union at the beginning of each semester. Residence Life will update the list as needed and then transfer it to Mail Services who will keep the box numbers and names on the P.O. boxes up to date.
12. Mail Services will pick up students’ mail directly from the USPS in Spearfish. Mail will be sorted and placed in student mailboxes beginning at 10:15 a.m. daily Monday through Friday excluding holidays.
13. Packages arriving for students via USPS, UPS, and FedEx are delivered to Mail Services. The packages are received by Mail Services staff, entered into the package tracking system, and placed in secure storage. Students are notified by email that a package is available for pick-up. Students can pick up packages at the mail services window between 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. They must show a valid ID.
14. All outgoing personal mail and packages should be dropped off at the Mail Services window before 2:15 p.m. in order to give Mail Services time to process outgoing mail and have it ready to be delivered to USPS in Spearfish by 2:30 p.m.

Responsible Administrator

The Associate Vice President for Facilities Services, or designee, is responsible for the ad hoc and annual review of this policy and its procedures. The University President is responsible for approval of this policy.

Source and Revision History

Approved by President Laurie Nichols on 10/11/2021. Revised 2023.03.06