Minutes of Regular Meeting
ELISHA D. SMITH PUBLIC LIBRARY TRUSTEES
Elisha D. Smith Public Library Gegan Room
January 15, 2015
Call to order at 4:00pm by Crawmer.
Present: Crawmer, Eisen, Golz, Nichols, VanderHeyden, Wicihowski and Kaminski
Absent: Murray
Also Present: Director Lenz, K. Beson (Head of Children’s Services) J. Bongers (Head of Adult Services,
C. Brandt (Head of Support Services), K. Dreyer (Administrative Assistant) and library patron Lorin Ganzel
Public Comment/Communication
• VanderHeyden read a letter praising the Jump Start Play Group at the library taught by Sharon Allen and Liz Tubman.
• On December 28, Eisen saw an article in the Post Crescent about the Neenah Library materials budget being $304,000, reinforcing how much an increase was needed for our 2015 materials budget.
• Ganzel asked why new library staff is introduced to the Board of Trustees. Lenz replied that it is to welcome the new staff members and for the Board to get to know them. He also asked about recording library board meetings.
• Lenz read a letter was received from the State of Wisconsin Health Services thanking Bongers and his staff for their can-do attitude and making challenges manageable during their Health Care Forum.
Consent Business
Motion made by Nichols to approve the Library Board meeting minutes from December 18, 2014, and accept the Building and Grounds meeting minutes of December 15, 2014, and the Personnel and Policies Committee meeting of December 15, 2014, seconded by Wicihowski. Correction: Golz’s name was misspelled under the Discussion/Action Items under number 7. Motion carried unanimously.
Authorization of Bills
The expense to the Winnefox Automated Library System for $72,559.00 is the 2015 annual operations fee. Motion made by Golz to authorize payment of the December (2) 2014 list of bills from the 2014 budget and the January 2015 list of bills from the 2015 budget as presented, seconded by Nichols. Motion carried unanimously.
Director’s Report/Information Items
1. December Statistics. Adult circulation was up 6.1%, children’s was up 7.3%, and digital was up 16% for a total circulation increase of 7.7% for the month of December, as compared to December 2013. Overall circulation was down 4.6% at the end of the year, as compared to 2013. Nichols asked if graphs could be created for the next meeting showing trends in total circulation, pulling out digital and computer/technology. This information could be used to help in the budgeting process. Bongers indicated that the number of wireless connections could be inflated since Winnefox cannot sort out staff and patrons wireless phone connections.
2. 2014 Budget Status. Lenz reported that the end of December budget shows a balance of $84,268.92. There are still expenses such as payroll, utilities and the amounts encumbered for the carpet, picture frames and the replacement for the Veteran’s Memorial that will be deducted from this amount. The budget is not normally closed out until April
3. Endowment Report. We are still receiving donations from the year-end giving letter. Recent donations include $4,085 given in memory of Helen Chang, a local piano teacher who held her piano recitals at the library. These funds will be used for maintenance of the piano. Eisen suggested that the Fundraising Committee develop a target or goal such as a certain percentage of the budget to enhance services to patrons. Some monies may need to be reallocated into the endowment fund.
4. Staff Reports.
• The Winter Reading program for children: Let it Snow: READ! will run through February 7.
• The Milwaukee Bucks Library Reading Challenge is for kids in 3rd -10th grades to promote literacy and library usage by youth. Students receive points for each page read and then become eligible to win prizes.
• The teen and adult Winter Reading Program will begin in February.
• In the first quarter of 2015, staff will have opportunities for training in computer skills, marketing, etc.
• The 2015 Fox Cities Reads selection will be announced on January 28 at the History Museum at the Castle.
• The IRS will no longer be providing tax forms to libraries except for Forms 1040, 1040A and 1040EZ due to budget cuts. Copies of forms and instructions booklets will be available for use at the library. Patrons can make copies of these forms for 10¢/side or they can download them off the IRS website. The State of Wisconsin still provides tax forms.
• Carpet squares have been ordered for the Company E Room and will be installed the first week of February. The project will cost about $12,000 including extra replacement squares.
• The roofers were here to fix the leaking roof until it can be replaced. The walls have also been repaired as a result of the leak.
5. Library Legislative Day. Library Legislative Day is Tuesday, February 17. Library directors and trustees are invited to Madison each year to meet with legislators.
6. Strategic Plan Update.
• The name for the new readers advisory service is “You’ve Got Books” which will be rolled out with the Winter Reading Program.
• The year-end total circulation was down 4.6% from 2013.
• Children’s staff are sending 350 to 400 books per week out to the schools
• The Staff Development committee met and decided that supervisors would determine their staff members’ core competencies, have them attend 19 hours each year continuing education opportunity (webinar, workshop, in-service, job shadowing, conferences community involvement—prorated for part-time), and then determine if those core skills have been mastered by the end of the year. Bongers will write up the points of the formal plan and present it to staff and trustees.
• Reference staff will offer computer classes again to the public in February
• The collection of high interest/low reading level books grew by about 50 books since December.
• John Nebel has shown interest in discussing a marketing plan and Lenz met with him.
• Local history programs planned for this winter/spring include one on sturgeon, the digitization project/grant that converted local individuals’ stories into streaming digital, and possibly one on the tribes that occupied this area during the 1700’s.
• About 95 items from the collection were digitized during the project mentioned above, so we have met about half of the goal to digitize 200 items.
• Liz Tubman has been selected to participate in a grant from Growing Wisconsin Readers New Media. The grant covers her training and accommodations in Green Lake; our expense will be the purchase of one or more iPads to offer the use of picture book apps in the Children’s Room.
Nichols suggested that the staff review with strategic plan on an annual basis and bring it back to the August board meeting to review in conjunction with the budgeting process.
7. Fundraising Committee Report. Library Night at Luigi’s was a great event; the library made $300. Officer Spiegel and Athos were popular with the kids. Luigi’s offered to host this again.
8. Library Year Handout. Lenz passed out a 2015 calendar of library events for the board to review.
Discussion/Action Items
9. Policies and Personnel Committee
a. Chapter V: Rules of Conduct suggested amendments:
1) B.7. (The use of alcohol, tobacco, and nicotine products inside the library or on library grounds is not allowed.) is modified to include e-cigarettes and moved to A.9. Change not allowed to prohibited.
2) The Menasha Police have asked us to change our policy to allow them to handle anyone intoxicated with drugs or alcohol, exhibiting threatening or combative behavior, possession of weapons or for any illegal behavior. Change handle to manage.
3) A.5. add ‘animals are allowed as part of a library program’.
4) C.3. delete ‘any person inappropriately using the Children’s Room will be asked to leave that area.’ (It is repetitive.) Change more quiet to quieter.
5) A.4. change not allowed to not permitted.
6) A.10 change are not allowed to is prohibited.
7) B.3. change not allowed to prohibited.
Motion made by Eisen to approve the Rules of Conduct with the suggested changes, seconded by Nichols. Motion carries unanimously.
b. Chapter VI: Organizational Structure suggested amendments:
1) The committee is not recommending changes to the teen representative language.
2) B.4.a. states that no person shall hold the office of president for more than three consecutive one-year terms. There is no state statue on term limits; it is up to the library board. The committee is recommending changing ‘three’ to ‘five’.
Motion made by Nichols to approve the Organizational Structure with the suggested amendment, seconded by VanderHeyden. Motion carried unanimously.
c. Chapter VII: Personnel Policy suggested amendments:
1) The city has a new Healthy Workplace policy; the city’s policy has been added in section M.
2) In section H.6. – ‘In November of the Board of Trustees Policies and Personnel Committee chair will prepare a written evaluation of the director’s performance . . .’ It is recommended changing it to June so that it can be included in the budgeting process. [This recommendation was referred back to the committee at the trustees’ December meeting. That committee has not yet met again.]
3) In section D.7.c. – The city attorney and human resource manager suggested the changes regarding FMLA, specifically not requiring staff to apply for it.
4) In section D.8.a. – The committee has included parent-in-law in the 3 days of funeral leave and took out domestic partner since spouses can now be the same or different sexes. They also included ‘To be eligible for funeral leave, the employee must attend the funeral or memorial service of the decedent.’ and ‘If additional time off is required, sick leave or unpaid leave may be used with approval of the director.’
5) In section E.6. – Changes made to this section reflect the decision made by the trustees during this past year that the library pays the monthly premium for regular full-time library employees for basic group life insurance.
6) In section E.10 – The city now offers Roth accounts. They may also defer payment as a Roth contribution.
7) In section F.1.c. – ‘The library budget shall include an amount, to be determined annually by the Board of Trustees, which shall be used to defray tuition and fees expenses for employees’. The committee pointed this out and may suggest a budget adjustment for it. It was suggested at the December meeting of the trustee that this section states that the budget may include this amount.
8) In Section B.1. – The part-time Clerk and Aide positions were combined into a Library Assistant position.
9) It was also suggested to change all the shall’s to may’s. After reading it through, only one such change is recommended: B. 8. Full-time employees may advance . . .
10) It was also suggested that the committee consider more references to domestic partners and relevant changes.
No action regarding the Personnel Policy was taken at this time since the committee also needs to review the policies regarding vacation and sick leave.
10. Trustee Essentials Chapter 23: Eisen summarized Chapter 23 – Dealing with Challenges to Materials and Policies. It discussed the need to have a written policy to deal with challenges and your responsibility as a trustee in a challenge. Eisen will review Chapter 24 next month.
Adjournment
Motion to adjourn the meeting at 5:32pm was made by Golz and seconded by Wicihowski. Motion carried unanimously.
Respectfully submitted,
Kathy Dreyer, recording secretary
