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HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Ames Public Library Board of Trustees Minutes of the Regular Meeting 09/20/2018 Ames Public Library Board of Trustees Minutes of the Regular Meeting September 20, 2018 The Ames Public Library (APL) Board of Trustees met in regular session on Thursday, September 20, 2018 in the Dale H. Ross Board Room, 515 Douglas Avenue, with Barchman, Butler, Kluesner, Marshall, and Raman in attendance. Briese, Glatz, Linch, and Wang were excused. Library Director Carey, Assistant City Manager Brian Phillips, Customer Accounts Services Manager Tracy Briseño, and Nebraska Central Community College practicum student Kelsey Holbrook were also present. Call to Order: Board Vice President Kluesner called the meeting to order at 7:45 p.m. Consent Agenda: Moved by Barchman, seconded by Butler, to approve the following items on the consent agenda: 1) Resolution accepting donations: a) From Joy Serovy in memory of George H. Junkhan .......................................... $50.00 2) Motion approving minutes of the Regular Meeting of August 20, 2018 3) Motion approving minutes of the Executive Committee Meeting of September 17, 2018 4) Motion approving payment of claims 8/1/2018 – 8/31/2018 Vote on Motion: 5-0. Approved unanimously. Resolution No. 2018-L029 adopted. Public Forum: None. Fiscal Year 2017/18 (FY18) Final Financial Reports: Trustee Kluesner stated that the Budget and Finance Committee had met to review the reports, which show that the library tracked very solidly in FY18. Total expenditures from the general fund came to 98.3% of the budget. He drew attention to the two graphs which depicted assets at the beginning and end of the year in the Ames Public Library Friends Foundation (APLFF) fund, the Library Donations and Grants Fund, and the newly established Future Needs Fund. He said APL is in a very strong position for a public institution, with $375,000 in assets and a strong alliance with its support foundation. Kluesner said the committee discussed its calendar and plans to continue meeting quarterly, unless issues arise during the budget cycle. He said they discussed the question posed last month about payments to Bank of America and felt a need to have more information on the extent to which the City’s processes exhibit control over the Library Board. Staff was asked to look at City policies, and clarification about the Library’s status is on the committee’s “to do” list. Ames Public Library Friends Foundation (APLFF) Report: APLFF Trustee Representative Butler offered a quick summary of the APLFF September 13 meeting: • New Director Ashley Rippke attended her first meeting. • There were 85 participants in TAG run. • August book sale income was $2,560. • $789 was earned at the September lobby sale of DVDs. • Income from the Pub Crawl was between $2,700 and $2,800. • The next Author Café will be held on October 14. Administrative Staff Report: Library Director Carey reviewed recent personnel changes, stating that Brit Bovbjerg, an intern who had been assigned to Small Talk, is now the Small Talk Program Support Coordinator and will be in charge of child care, training volunteers, and some 2 research aspects of the program. Amanda Reaman began as a new half-time clerk in Youth Service and three new Library Aides started: Emily Thornton, Tara Andrews, and Nicole Duff. Advertising will begin soon for a Resource Services Clerk to replace Sue Besco, who retired. In an update on APLFF-funded initiatives, Carey said the website redevelopment is on track to go live on November 12. Staff is starting to experiment with LibraryAware, a product that selectors may use to create brochures, bookmarks, and posters to advertise the collections and which allows more people to be involved in marketing. Customer Accounts Services (CAS) Manager Briseño said she hoped that ten new Wi-Fi hotspots obtained through Mobile Beacon could start circulating in the next week. Now that the schools have one-to-one technology, she said some kids who don’t have Internet access at home struggle to get their homework done; therefore, promotion of hotspots is starting with the schools. She said CAS intends to do a six- month pilot program, beginning with a one-week check-out period, monitoring requests and problems, and asking for customer input when the hotspots are returned. Although the target demographic is persons who don’t have their own Internet access, Briseño said that anyone will be allowed to check out the devices. They may also be placed on hold. She added that the APL Internet Use Policy covers hotspots. Carey advised the Board that a second year contract was signed for the Harrison Barnes Reading Academy, with almost double the support from the Harrison and Brittany Barnes Community Fund. Carey noted that the program, which is run in conjunction with Raising Readers in Story County, is for students identified by school system who need help with reading. They are paired with tutors and data is kept on their progress. Barnes skypes with the students, they write him letters, and he had Tim Read design a t-shirt that the kids receive. Carey stated that Amy Divine is continuing to develop a program at APL called INSPIRE, which helps children who have reading and spelling issues or dyslexia. Her work sprang out of concerns expressed by some families who felt their children were falling through the cracks. Carey said Divine has written and received several grants—most recently $4,000 was awarded by the Dollar General Literacy Foundation—to purchase a program that provides systematic instruction. Parents of children who have completed the program so far have given excellent feedback—one student recently made enough progress to advance two grade levels. In-house activities Carey mentioned included the Person In Charge (PIC) meeting earlier in the day where community safety was addressed; the dance party attended by hundreds of kids who completed the summer reading program and their families; and the September 11 program by Dr. Abby Dubisar on farmers’ archives and artifacts, held in partnership with the Iowa State University (ISU) Library Special Collections and University Archives. Some upcoming events include an address on September 27 by ISU President Wendy Wintersteen and a traveling exhibition from the Smithsonian’s Museum on Main Street called “Hometown Teams” How Sports Shape America,” which starts on the 29th. Carey reminded the Board that the Iowa Library Association’s annual conference takes place during the first week of October and all trustees are welcome. Director Search Committee Report: Briseño said the job opening had been posted and contact was made with state library associations and about 20 graduate schools. Assistant City Manager Brian Phillips said that 16 applications had already been received; 13 applicants appear to be qualified and several are quite impressive. He said the Search Committee was receiving copies of the applications every Friday. Kluesner said the calendar of events had also been established. The dates for on-site interviews are: Nov. 6-7, Nov. 8-9, and Nov. 13-14. The board interview will be at 7pm on the first day of 3 each visit. Phillips noted that there is a regular board meeting scheduled on November 15 and the hope is that the closed session/wrap-up will take place that night. Director Candidate Interviews: Phillips presented information on procedural aspects of the interview process. He stressed the importance of reviewing the materials in advance so that the process will be efficient. He said packets will be sent about each applicant and he encouraged the trustees to review them and think about what more they would like to know. He said the Search Committee will prepare a list of about 10 proposed interview questions a week or so in advance and the group will have time to settle on the final product. He asked the trustees to make note if a question doesn’t make sense or feels awkward and recommended that they also think about what good answers to the questions might be. Phillips stressed that the process must be fair, legal, and defensible. He said there will be a consistent set of questions for each candidate. The trustees may ask a person to tell more about something of interest or inquire about anything questionable on the application, but all candidates need to be asked every question. Someone will be assigned to keep track of the pace of the interviews. Phillips invited the trustees to contact him if they needed clarification about asking certain questions. He offered to help frame questions to make sure they are fair, appropriate, and fit into the overall interview. When asked, Phillips said it is okay for a trustee to have one-on-one contact with a member of the Search Committee to ask a question, for example, but the trustees may have no group conversations outside of public meetings. Phillips recommended that interviewers strive to offer neutral responses, ask job-related questions, and take notes carefully. He urged them to try to get the story behind the candidate’s response, to ask about the specific role the candidate played in examples offered, to pay attention to the questions the candidate asks, and to look for consistency in his/her answers. He said the interviewers would keep their own notes until the hiring decision is made; then all notes will be turned over to the Human Resources Department and stored. The City would prefer that notes not be taken electronically. Phillips said that he and Briseño will collect and aggregate feedback from everyone involved in the on-site visits (the staff meet-n-greets, public presentations, tours, City department head lunches) and will provide the information to the entire Board as soon as possible. There was brief discussion about whether or not a numerical evaluation matrix would be devised and if efforts were being made to recruit diverse candidates. It was noted that the Search Committee is using an evaluation tool as applications are being reviewed. Trustee Comments: Butler expressed appreciation for all of Phillips’ preparation and the questions the trustees were asking. Kluesner said that he had received a call from an Ames Tribune reporter and answered questions about the director search. He said the article included a portion of a statement he made, which was that the trustees “were not trying to recruit another Lynne.” He was concerned about how that came across and explained that during the interview he had referred to Carey’s positive characteristics—he did not mean to convey the impression that the Board would not want to recruit someone with her qualities. He also offered kudos to Phillips for his excellent work. 4 Adjournment: Moved by Barchman, seconded by Marshall, to adjourn at 9:04 p.m. Vote on Motion: 5-0. Motion carried unanimously. The next regular meeting will be on Thursday, October 18, 2018, at 7:00 p.m., in the Dale H. Ross Board Room, Ames Public Library, 515 Douglas Avenue.