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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-16-19 BPL Minutes FinalBozeman Public Library Board of Trustees Regular Meeting Bozeman Public Library—Board Room Wednesday, January 16 th , 2019 Minutes Attendance Board Chair John Gallagher; Vice Chair Ron Price; Trustees Ken Spencer, Kelley Dowdell, Jennifer Pawlak; Bozeman Public Library (BPL) Director Susan Gregory; BPL Department Heads Mary Jo Stanislao, Kit Stephenson, Lois Dissly, Cindy Christin; Administrative Assistant Lauranna Cossins; Friends of the Library President Stewart Mohr; Bozeman Public Library Foundation Director Janay Johnson; City Commissioner Terry Cunningham. Call to Order The meeting was called to order by Board Chair Gallagher at 4:00pm. Approval of the Minutes Trustee Dowdell moved to approve the minutes from the December 19th, 2018 meeting. Trustee Price seconded. The Board voted unanimously to approve the minutes. Correspondence Susan Gregory shared correspondence from the community. Someone said that Dan Heisler in Computers was extremely helpful. A patron would like a sign-up for the DVD viewing stations upstairs. Someone requested a sound proof area for people to take phone calls. Someone else requested that the computer with the Foundation Directory on it be moved to a quieter location. Someone in the Children’s area reported that they really liked a Harry Potter audiobook. Someone else in Children’s wants cookies. A patron requested that the Library post a sign requesting that those who wish to do the New York Times crossword puzzle make a photocopy and not do it in the Library’s copy. Former Library Foundation Director Paula Beswick wrote to share a comment from a resident of Aspen Pointe who loves the Bookmobile. Gregory shared a letter to the editor in the Bozeman Daily Chronicle from a citizen who was displeased with the service desks’ consolidation upstairs, in particular that a former service point (the former reference desk) is no longer staffed. Director and Staff Report Susan Gregory reported that she is hosting a meeting at the end of the month with local social service and health providers who are interested in using the new resource hub, i.e. the small room off of the Community Room which will have its own lobby entrance constructed in March, for community outreach. This new service will allow visitors to the Library to talk directly with a variety of service providers as well as volunteers from the Bozeman Fire Department and Bozeman Police Department about their information needs. The project is being funded by the Bozeman Public Library Foundation. She said that there will be several meetings with staff and City administration in February regarding the Library’s FY20 Budget request. The Library’s FY20 Budget request will be submitted to City administration on March 7 th for preliminary review. One of the things that will need to be addressed is a plan for continued funding for the database Lynda.com, which was initially funded through the Foundation for two years and costs $13,000 annually. The service is extremely popular and well- used by Library patrons. The Library Board will be presented with a draft FY20 Budget at their February 20 th meeting for review. Gregory said that interviews for the Assistant Director position at the Library will take place on Friday afternoon at City Hall. There were 48 applicants for the position from all over the United States; a formal review and scoring process by HR personnel and Director Gregory resulted in a group of finalists. Three candidates will be interviewed by a panel including Gregory, Becky Wilbert from Human Resources, City of Bozeman Director of Economic Development Brit Fontenot, and Bozeman Police Captain Andy Knight. Gregory and Kit Stephenson will attend the American Library Association Midwinter Conference on January 24th in Seattle. Gregory will be a speaker on a panel for United for Libraries about building relationships with trustees, foundations and Friends groups. Lois Dissly said she is working on the Community Connect event, which is a day for local organizations to come together and offer services to those in need and will be hosted at the Library. The organizers are encouraging anyone from the community to attend. A local food truck has agreed to provide free food. Dissly also reported that her department is revising the Library’s collection development policy, and making a concerted effort to do themed book displays. Kit Stephenson reported that the Library began offering access to Hoopla starting January 2nd. The online service allows BPL patrons up to 5 checkouts a month for content such as ebooks (including comic books), audiobooks, music and movies. This service will supplement Overdrive. Unlike Overdrive, all titles are immediately available and there are no holds. Stephenson said the schedule for One Book One Bozeman will come out on Friday. Jamie Ford, the author of Love and Other Consolation Prizes, the 2019 One Book One Bozeman selection, will be in Bozeman to do three different events at the end of February Cindy Christin reported that the Children’s department is offering a series of parenting workshops that have been very well-attended. She thanked the Friends and Foundation for funding these programs, which have offered free childcare for participants. She said that the Children’s library has been hosting an intern, who is an aspiring YA librarian, 5 hours a week until May. City Report City Commissioner Terry Cunningham reported that there will be no Commission meeting on MLK day. He said a City presentation on climate change to a Wonderlust group was very well-attended. He reported that the City now has two full-time animal control officers. Cunningham and the Board discussed the possibility of a Library presence in the new high school. Friends of the Library Report Friends of the Library President Stewart Mohr reported that the Friends raised $96,560 last year. $42,000 of that was from book sales and $32,000 was from the coffee shop lease and coffee shop book sales. In 2018 the Friends spent $46,800, including $10,000 for the Most Wanted collection, and $7,400 for technology support (including EnvisionWare print management software). The next book sale (excluding pop-ups) is in February. Foundation Report Janay Johnson reported that the Foundation sent out a big appeal at the end of the year, including mailings, emails and Facebook posts. The appeal brought in about $60,000, including 110 new donors. The Foundation gave $228,000 in 2018 to support the Library, and has budgeted $276,000 for 2019, which includes $56,000 for the labyrinth and $25,000 for the resource hub. Johnson said that Jane Quinn is joining the Foundation board. The Foundation made the last payment on Red Whirly (the sculpture in front of the Library), and a staff member has helped the Foundation catalog all the art in the Library. Susan Gregory said that the majority of the Library’s art is on loan from a local art collector, and that the loan agreement goes through 2021. Adjournment There being no further business, Board Chair Gallagher adjourned the meeting at 4:45pm.