The Sacred Heart University Print and Delivery (SHUPAD) has installed Smart Parcel lockers on main campus. The installation began on Monday, Oct. 23 and was completed on Wednesday, Oct. 25.
“The lockers are for our residential student population. As we receive packages, our staff will bring them to the lockers, scan them into the system and place the packages in the lockers. The student will be notified and can retrieve the package at their convenience – no more waiting in lines,” said Arthur Gerkens, Director of Mail and Duplicating Services.
schedules.
Source: Molly Bruton, ‘25
SHUPAD is a mail service for SHU students and is offered on both main campus (SHUPAD Main) and West campus (SHUPAD West). According to the SHU website,
SHUPAD mail services is the centralized receiving and dispatching location on campus for all U.S. and campus mail. The department receives, sorts and delivers first, third and fourth class mail, parcels and inter-office mail on a daily basis.
In addition to mail services, SHUPAD offers duplicating services, digital storefront and letter shop services. Additionally, SHUPAD serves as a free notary to the university community.
The Smart Parcel lockers are located across the road from the main campus’s SHUPAD, between the South Parking Garage and Seton Hall.
As this new addition to SHUPAD will change package delivery for students, it will also impact the way work- study students do their jobs.
“I definitely believe it’ll make our jobs easier since it’s less packages for us to handle. It will also be easier for students to get their packages without them getting lost in the mailroom or taken by somebody else,” said senior Frank Servidio.
With the new lockers, students are now able to retrieve their packages on Sundays. In the past, since SHUPAD is closed on Sundays, packages were not accessible then.
“As you know, we are closed on Sundays. If something comes in on Saturday, we could place it in the locker, and the student can pick up the package on their schedule,” said Gerkens.
With the holidays right around the corner, the lockers will hopefully provide ease and efficiency in the mailroom.
“I think the efficiency will be better for the most part and take some of the pressure off of us around the holidays when there are an additional number of packages,” said Servidio.
Junior Molly Dolan has had a work study at SHUPAD since her freshman year. She is optimistic about the new lockers and seeing how they serve the residential students on campus.
“I’m definitely hopeful about the new lockers that have been installed. The lines won’t be as long, which makes both us and the students happy,” said Dolan.
“We remain one of the larger employers of work-study students. We have seen the numbers of packages arriving at the
university increase dramatically through the years. As a result, there will always be jobs for those seeking work-study. Packages need to be handled, scanned, placed in lockers and retrieved. There is no shortage of work to be done in the SHUPAD,” said Gerkens.
The Smart Parcel lockers have an anticipated “go-live” date of Nov. 1, in order to train staff and work-study students.
“We are always striving to provide better service to the university community and especially to our students. We are excited to provide an enhanced experience to those who use our services,” said Gerkens.
SHUPAD hours of operation are Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., and closed Sunday.
