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HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Ames Public Library Board of Trustees Minutes of the Regular Meeting 06/18/2015Ames Public Library Board of Trustees Minutes of the Regular Meeting June 18, 2015 The Ames Public Library (APL) Board of Trustees met in regular session on Thursday, June 18, 2015 in the Dale H. Ross Board Room, Ames Public Library, 515 Douglas Avenue, with Acker, Briese, Butler, Linch, Rohret, and Stow present. Bradley, Campbell, and Manus were excused. Library Director Carey and Librarians Logsdon and Dornink Hawes were also in attendance. Call to Order: Board President Acker called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. Consent Agenda Moved by Stow, seconded by Briese, to adopt a resolution approving the following items on the consent agenda: 1) Donations a) From Collegiate United Methodist Church and Wesley Foundation ......... $400.00 2) Minutes of the regular meeting of May 21, 2015 3) Payment of Claims 5/1/2015 – 5/31/2015 Vote on Motion: 5-0. Approved unanimously; resolution adopted. Public Forum: None. Ames Public Library Friends Foundation (APLFF) Report: Stow stated that the APLFF’s spring fundraising campaign is in full swing and over $17,000 has been received thus far. He reported that Development Director Catherine Noble has begun working as a part-time APL Library Aide. The Board approved a new financial controls policy and learned about the success of the Teen Advisory Group’s summer activities and three upcoming book sales. A new director will be welcomed when Dan Divine’s term expires at the end of June. Strategic Planning Committee: Acker said the committee did not meet this month, but she had met with Director Carey. She reported that John Langhorne, a consultant from Iowa City, has been approached about conducting public sessions, STATCOM at Iowa State will be assisting with a survey to library patrons and others, and library staff will plan to meet with focus groups. Roy Kenagy is presently working on community demographics, library trends, and what APL is already doing. Acker said that it seems now that the realistic target for accomplishing a viable, concise strategic plan should be the end of the calendar year. Carey said that she appreciated having a delay in the schedule and invited the trustees to offer suggestions of groups that staff should contact and involve in the process. Administrative Staff Report: Carey spoke about the full complement of summer programs for all ages that is underway, and noted that the teen volunteers are doing a fabulous job. On June 3, Ron Fairchild, a representative of the National Campaign for Grade Level Reading, presented an award to the community. She said that she had heard accolades about the library building and the collaboration among Ames groups during the presentation. That same day, LENA representative Beth Dresser was in Ames and was also impressed with the work being done by Ames organizations. Carey said the LENA grant application had been submitted. She and Jerri Heid intend to meet with library staff members who are involved in LENA’s pilot program in San Mateo County when 2 they are in California at the end of the month for the American Library Association (ALA) Conference. News about the status of the application should be received by mid-July. Carey informed the trustees about several personnel issues, noting that: • the annual performance evaluation process for the City has been completed; • the City Council will be requested to authorize an additional .25 full-time equivalent (FTE) for the library next week, which will result in additional help for the Customer Account Services division but will not affect the library’s overall budget; • the cadre of library employees formerly referred to as “temporary” or “unclassified” will now be considered “regular, under 20-hour” employees by the City—a change that will ensure compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act; • she is preparing to do a more in-depth analysis of the Project Smyles program, now that efficiencies have been implemented in conjunction with the return to the permanent building; • attempts to extend staff through AmeriCorps/Vista and a work-study intern from ISU are proving to be very successful, and • ISU is interested in placing a permanent intern from the Education Department at APL. Carey also spoke about a learning community of 120 students that will be doing some large- scale programming at the Library, and about an Iowa State design class that is doing extensive work with the Library. Adult Services Programming: Adult Services Manager Mary Logsdon spoke about the range of programs her department is again able to offer at APL. She remarked that programming is considered a resource in the same way the collection is. Library programs are designed to meet different needs and different audiences, and APL tries to present opportunities at a variety of times. Logsdon said she is always looking for opportunities to work with community partners and spoke about several recent presentations. She described the adult summer reading program, a variety of programs related to this year’s theme, “Escape the Ordinary,” and noted that “Bookends at the Bandshell” will run from the last weekend in June through the end of July. Logsdon spoke about several recurring programs and some that have now resumed after a temporary suspension, including a series of Computer Basics classes for new users and Conversations in English for individuals wishing to improve their conversational skills. Logsdon said solid turn-out at these programs show that they are meeting needs in the community. She also reported that the participants are grateful for the opportunity to come and meet in a neutral space, and that many of them become library users or volunteers because the programs help them find a niche in the community. Logsdon expressed excitement that the strategic planning process may help staff do an even better job of identifying how the library can assist people. There was discussion about how programs are publicized and the extent to which members of staff regularly help folks operate computers, navigate to websites, fax applications, file taxes, and accomplish similar tasks. Building Project Update: Carey said that the Project Cost Summary had not been updated this month because there had been very little change since May. She is still working on resolution of the custom furniture issues and staff is trying to identify additional furnishing needs. Bids are out for the meeting room technology now and will be due in July. She noted that the landscaping is 3 still causing consternation and close-out of the project is delayed because the trees cannot be replaced until fall. The Board asked that the dead trees in front of the building be removed. Carey said that professional photographers had been in the building earlier in the week. They were hired by MSR but the library is contributing to the cost in order to have access to the photos. Collections Policy: Resource Services Manager Alissa Dornink Hawes explained the revisions that had been made at the trustees’ request. She said the new version simply states that APL adheres to the philosophy presented in the ALA’s Library Bill of Rights and its interpretations, as well as The Freedom to Read and Freedom to View statements. The section entitled “Exclusions from Collections” was removed. When asked if the Freedom to Read and other ALA statements were part of the Library’s policy, Carey said that links to the on-line document are just included so that the most recent version can always be referenced. Linch asked if the library restricted access to R-rated movies or any other collection items to minors. Carey said that the only age-based restriction is on getting a library account. Once persons have an account, they can check out anything they care to. APL does try to give some guidance by labeling certain DVDs “family” and does not obscure industry ratings (PG, PG-13, etc.) on the covers. Carey said it’s actually easier to manage and give guidance now that APL has materials on two stories. Vote on Motion (made May 21) to approve changes to the Collections Policy as finally presented: 5-0. Motion approved unanimously. Resolution adopted. Personnel Policy: Moved by Stow, seconded by Butler, to adopt a resolution approving changes to the Personnel Policy as presented/amended. Carey said the Library does not have many deviations to the City’s policy, and some are hold- overs over from many years during which APL had an entirely independent policy. The only proposed change at this point in time is to clarify the definition of family for Funeral Leave. Vote on Motion to approve changes as presented: 5-0. Motion approved unanimously. Resolution adopted. Change Order No. 1 with Cornerstone Commissioning, Inc. Moved by Briese, seconded by Rohret, to recommend that the City Council approve Change Order No. 1 with Cornerstone Commissioning, Inc. for an increase in the contract sum of $17,800.00 Carey stated that some of the problems APL experienced with heating, cooling, and systems controls resulted in the need for Cornerstone representatives to attend numerous additional meetings and conduct extra tests. She said she has requested a detailed accounting in order to determine if certain costs should be charged back to the architects or the contractors; nevertheless, she feels it is appropriate to make sure that Cornerstone gets paid. She also explained that the change order request would be presented to the City Council; this is a requirement when the change exceeds 20% of the original contract price and/or the resulting contract price exceeds $50,000. 4 Vote on Motion: 5-0. Motion approved unanimously. Resolution adopted. Trustee Comments: Linch stated that he was very grateful for the additional clarity that was put into place on the Collections Policy; he puts his hope and confidence in the selectors to be rational, reasonable, conscientious and caring buffers to material that is truly degrading to any person. Briese said he was excited to hear about Adult Programming and the ways the department is finding to reach out from this great facility. Butler remarked that hearing about all the activities going on at APL is jaw-dropping. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned by consensus at 6:32 p.m. The next regular meeting will be on Thursday, June 18, 2015, at 7:00 p.m., in the Dale H. Ross Board Room, Ames Public Library, 515 Douglas Avenue.