ELISHA D. SMITH PUBLIC LIBRARY TRUSTEES
AGENDA
4:30 p.m. Thursday, August 21, 2008
Gegan Room
(If Board Members cannot attend, please notify the Library Office)
CALL TO ORDER:
PUBLIC COMMENT:
AUTHORIZATION OF BILLS:
1. List of bills for August 2008.
CONSENT BUSINESS (Motion to approve all unless separate consideration requested):
2. Minutes. Minutes of Board meeting July 17, 2008.
INFORMATION ITEMS/DIRECTOR'S REPORT:
3. Statistics.
4. 2009 Budget.
5. Staff Changes.
6. Board Changes.
7. Investments.
8. Self-Check Machines.
9. Green Scene & Heard.
10. 2008 Teen and Adult Summer Reading Program.
11. WLA Annual Conference.
12. Northern Waters Presentation.
DISCUSSION/ACTION ITEMS:
13. Trustee Essentials #2.
14. ADJOURN
UPCOMING MEETINGS & ACTIVITIES
(Including requests for business items for future meetings)
• Library Board Meeting - September 18, 2008 at 4:30 pm.
• Wisconsin Library Association Annual Conference - November 4-7
Menasha aldermen may attend meetings of this body. A quorum of the Common Council, Board of Public Works, Administration Committee, or Personnel Committee may attend this meeting. No official action of any of those bodies will be taken.
ELISHA D. SMITH PUBLIC LIBRARY
DIRECTOR'S REPORT -- AUGUST 2008
1. Bills. REQUESTED ACTION: Approval of bills as presented for August 2008.
CONSENSUS ACTION ITEMS:
2. Minutes. Minutes of Board meeting July 17, 2008. REQUESTED ACTION: Approval.
INFORMATION ITEMS:
3. Statistics. Once again we have achieved an increase in circulation of over 15%. It is the sixth month in a row that we have seen over an 11% increase. Even more amazing, we have gone over 50,000 circs in a single month for the first time ever. Our average monthly circulation in 2007 was 37,557. In 2008, that average rose to 44,496. The book circulation continues to be incredibly high with an increase of over 9% in adult books and over 28% in children's books in July. As you can see, many of our other collections are doing well too, including DVDs, CDs and Books on CD.
4. 2009 Budget. In September, I will have my recommended budget ready for the Board to approve. At this point, we are looking at a 3% COLA, a 9.6% increase in health insurance and a 20% increase in fuel costs. To make the budget work, all other funding must be flat. We are also facing a reduction in our county funding due to a small increase in overall circulation in 2007, reduced financial support from the City in 2007, and a small decrease in rural county circulation in that year. So we have fewer circulation paired with a dropping cost per circ for reimbursement, resulting in a 2.5% reduction in county funds.
5. Staff Changes. In Circulation we are facing some staff changes. One Library Assistant I is lowering her weekly hours while two others at that level are picking up the bulk of those. We had two Aide III employees resign, one for personal reasons and the other for a new job. We will be rehiring for those two positions and another Aide will be taking some of the hours too. We are seeking to have increased flexibility in the schedule for Circulation.
6. Board Changes. Susan Eckstein has tendered her resignation from the Library Board. Mayor Merkes is working on the appointment of a new Board Member.
7. Investments. In July, the library's Endowment fund received a distribution of $5481.07 from the funds held in the Community Foundation. That money will be placed in the general fund of the Endowment and used to cover the cost of the self-check machines.
When two CDs came due in July, I also moved one of those into the checking account to help with the same costs. That CD was $5502.98. Another $9000.33 CD was renewed at 3.03% interest for 14 months.
8. Self-Check Machines. In early September, we will be meeting with 3M, our circulation vendor to get a quote on self-check machines that will suit our needs. Because 3M is the vendor for our circulation machines, security strips, and security gates, it makes sense to use them for self-check machines as well. Their machines are guaranteed to work with our existing security system. We do have some ongoing questions about how the machines will function with the various barcode placement used in the Winnefox Library System as well as how they will work with our security system for DVDs. At this point, Neenah Public Library is seeing over 30% of their circulation taking place on their two self-check machines. If we can manage that, it will mean a considerable savings in staff time which will allow us to catch up on duties that currently cannot be accomplished due to the workload.
9. Green Scene & Heard. I am hoping that you all found time to see the Green Scene and Heart art show while it was here. The opening reception for the show was an incredible success with over 400 people attending. There was great music, tasty food, and a wonderful feeling of community at the reception. We are looking at additional art-related programming in the future as directed in the Long Range Plan.
10. WLA Annual Conference. I just wanted to remind everyone that the library will pay your costs to attend the Wisconsin Library Association Annual Conference. It is being held in Middleton this year November 4-7. The best days to go are on Wednesday and Thursday because they are full days of workshops and exhibits. The Tuesday and Friday are less active and shorter days. Please let either Kris or me know if you plan to attend so that we can get you the proper forms for reimbursement. There is also a Trustee Association in WLA which we would be happy to provide membership in as well to interested trustees.
11. 2008 Teen and Adult Summer Reading Program. The registration for adults increased by 42% over 2007 with 125 participating while teens and tweens in the program held steady at 133 participants. We had a number of programs for adults and teens which supported the summer reading program, including book discussion groups, speakers, a film, and workshops on a wide variety of subjects: beading, tying athletic shoes in cool ways and making things from duct tape.
12. Northern Waters Presentation. In late August, I will be heading to Ashland and the Northern Waters Library System to give a presentation on Library 2.0 and Web 2.0 tools for librarians. I am honored to be asked to speak on one of my favorite topics.
DISCUSSION/ACTION ITEMS:
13. Trustee Essentials #2. Paul Eisen has agreed to lead the discussion of Trustee Essential #2. I'd love to have a volunteer each month who will be responsible for paraphrasing the hot topics in each Essential for the Board. That way it is a Board discussion rather than being led by me. My recommendation is to create a rotating schedule. I'm happy to gently remind people when it is their turn.
