Library Board Minutes 12-11-2012MINUTES OF THE LIBRARY BOARD MEETING
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2012
5:30 P.M.
Members present: Branch Manager Deb Luken, Janet Bridgland, Sandra Lommel, Beth Metzger,
Ralph Olsen, Elaine Settergren, Regional Supervisor Brandi Canter.
Member absent: Lloyd Hilgert, City Council Representative.
Minutes of the last meeting read and approved.
Old Business: None
Library report — Deb Luken:
• Hours increased from 40 to 43 hours per week. The library is now open on Mondays
from 10:00 — 8:00; previous hours were 1:00 — 8:00. New hours went into effect in
January 1012.
• Circulation statistics (number of items checked out) January — September 2012 rose to
179,244 an increase of over 6,808 more items or a 3.9% increase in the same period in
2011.
■ Programs that were directly paid for with City dollars January — September were well
received and attended. The Library had 89 programs with a total of 2009 children and
teens attending. This figure does not include the Summer Reading Program or the
Legacy Programs. It is important to note the programs offered through City funding are
specifically for babies, toddlers, preschoolers, and teens. The importance of exposing
young children to stories and the printed word cannot be underestimated and we
appreciate the generosity of the City for these programs. It is important for the City to
know that we are good stewards of the programming dollars given to us and we provide
a variety of weekly story times and activities.
■ 1000 Books before Kindergarten is a new program started in September 2012. Over 100
children have signed up and they are well on their way to meet their goal. This program
was made possible through the financial support of GRRL, the City of Monticello, and
the Friends of the Monticello Library.
■ "On behalf of the Community and the Library, I would like to thank the City of
Monticello for their generous financial support of past library programs and ask for their
continued support. I would be happy to speak to the Council and answer any questions."
(Deb's report to the city council in October).
Additional comments from Deb:
- The Council complimented the staff on the service they provide for the community
- The budget was approved for next year, $4100 for programs and $1300 for supplies.
- A trip to the Guthrie for "A long Day's Journey into Night" will be offered to library patrons at
no charge.
GRRL Update: Brandi Canter:
1. Decisions from the Board of Trustees include:
• Beginning in January, 2013, patrons will have to pay fines in full in order to renew
their library cards. There will be a 30 day grace period for those unable to pay in full.
• Laumeyer Human Resource Solutions (www.laumeVerhr.com) provided an update
on the Comp and Class Study — they're working on finalizing the classifications
before they start looking at the compensation. Because there are at least 3 new
board members beginning in January, the BOT will delay making any decisions about
the C & C study until at least March.
2. Handout of GRRL Strategic Planning Framework 2013 — 2021 given to Board members.
The mission is to Explore, Learn, Connect and the Vision statement is: Making a
difference by connecting our communities to information.
• Service Priority 1: All people will have the resources they need to develop and
improve their literacy skills.
• Service Priority 2: All people will have access to a reliable source of information
in a comfortable and welcoming virtual or physical space.
• Service Priority 3: All people will have the resources they need to explore topics
of personal interest, continue to learn and to compliment their quality of life.
• Service Priority 4: All people will have the resources they need to identify, locate
and evaluate information to make decisions.
New Business:
Elaine attended the Minnesota Library Association Conference in October and was impressed
with Stephanie Vance, the Advocacy Guru's presentation on effective advocacy for libraries.
Vance shared her secrets for effective communication with elected officials. Elaine agreed that
we all need to contact our council members and legislators to encourage their support in order
for libraries to survive.
The City would like the Monticello Library Board to schedule all of our meetings in 2013. We
agreed that the schedule would be: March 12, June 11, September 10, and December 10 at
5:3 Op. m.
Next meeting will be Tuesday, March 12, at 5:30 p.m.
Meeting adjourned at 6:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Sandra Lommel, Secretary