October 18, 2006
CATS Studio A
5:45 p.m.
Tom Bunger, Bob Guindon (KRM), Saundra Taylor, Ali Walpert
Vice-President Janice Stockton called the meeting to order at 5:45 p.m. in CATS Studio A.
Vice-President Stockton presented the consent agenda items.
Linda Hunt moved to approve all consent agenda items. John Walsh seconded. The vote was unanimous.
There was no discussion.
Bob Guindon of K.R. Montgomery answered questions on the KRM proposal and agreement form. Cindy Gray noted that the agreement has been revised since the work session to lower the costs. The revised cost figure is $35,798, with a not-to-exceed figure of $38,500. Construction is to begin in late March or early April 2007. The proposed timeline has a finish date of July 2007 with a one-year inspection in July 2008.
Stephen Moberly moved to approve the agreement. Penny Austin seconded. The vote was unanimous.
Stephen Moberly moved to table the agreement. Penny Austin seconded. The vote was unanimous.
Mark Mobley presented the resolution to change library policy in an effort to better protect library equipment, furniture and facilities. Discussion followed. Board members asked questions about how the changes will affect patrons: How many patrons bring in food now? How will areas be marked? Do we have enough designated space?
Linda Hunt moved to table the resolution and bring it to the next work session for discussion. Penny Austin seconded. The vote was unanimous.
The Board asked for more information on their questions at the work session.
Mark Mobley presented the revised Behavioral Rules on behalf of the Facilities Committee. Questions and discussion followed. Linda Hunt commented on the need to balance the notion of the library as a gathering space with security issues. Cynthia Gray said that staff struggled with this policy, but feels changes are needed to protect the security of our resources. Mark noted that the policy also is a response to complaints from patrons about problem behaviors. An individual's rights do not extend to disrupting others' use of the library. Janice Stockton commented that the library is community property. Penny Austin said she liked the section on visitor expectations and suggested that it be moved to the top.
Stephen Moberly moved to approve the Behavioral Rules with two amendments. 1) The statement on inspection of bags is to be changed as follows (new language in quotes): All briefcases, luggage, handbags, packages, overcoats, and shopping bags "may be inspected" by library security staff at any time. 2) Visitor Expectations will be moved to the top of the policy. Penny Austin seconded. The vote was unanimous. (David Ferguson arrived at the end of the discussion and did not vote.)
Bonnie Estell presented the resolution. The library's new Polaris system supports the acceptance of credit/debit card payments for fines, fees, lost/damaged books, and donations. This will be a benefit to library patrons. They will be able to make payments online or at any library facility. Bonnie anticipates that the payment of fines and fees will increase; however, this income is not expected to offset the credit card fee to the library for providing this service. The service is a convenience for patrons. Discussion followed. Bonnie said that the credit card service can be terminated at any time. The minimum threshold for credit card payment is proposed to be $10, which is the amount of fines that prevents a patron from checking out. Tom Bunger will review the contract.
Stephen Moberly moved to approve the resolution. David Ferguson seconded. The vote was unanimous.
Steve Backs presented the Customer Service Statement. Customer service has been a strong focus of library staff in 2006, and the sentiment of the staff was to develop a statement of MCPL's customer service philosophy to share with the public. There are two versions of the policy: a short statement for patrons and an expanded statement for customer service training of staff. Discussion followed.
David Ferguson moved to approve the statement. Linda Hunt seconded. The vote was unanimous.
Cindy Gray presented the policy, stating that over 25 staff members were involved in its development. The revised version is much longer and more comprehensive than the current policy. This is because staff members get patron questions about collection development. We want to include answers to their questions in a document available to all on our website. The policy includes appendices of ALA statements (Library Bill of Rights, Freedom to Read, Freedom to View, and Interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights).
Penny Austin moved to approve the policy. David Ferguson seconded. The vote was unanimous.
Cass Owens presented the resolution to order five self-check stations from Polaris Library Systems. The resolution was an item of discussion at the Board's last work session. One station will be placed at the Ellettsville Branch and four will be placed at the Main Library. The ones that MCPL will order are at the low end of the price range. Members of the MCPL staff have visited other libraries where these units are being used very successfully. Patrons like self-checkout. Usage at other places is reported to reach 70-to-90% of checkouts. Most units are positioned initially near existing checkout desks so that staff can easily provide help.
David Ferguson moved to approve the resolution. Stephen Moberly seconded. There were five votes in favor and one abstention. The resolution passed.
Bara Swinson presented the Board with an insert of changes on "Issuing Cards" based on Board discussion of the Circulation Policy at the last work session. The Circulation Policy is being revised at this time as part of the setup for the new ILS system. Polaris will allow the library to take card applications online with validation of name and address at checkout. The existing policy on verification of children is retained. Suggested policy changes are in red on the insert; black text is used for the policy itself and blue text is used for related staff procedures. Brief discussion followed.
Penny Austin moved to accept the policy changes. John Walsh seconded. The vote was unanimous.
There was no Foundation report.
Manager Bara Swinson distributed the departmental update. Circulation manages the flow of materials into and out of the library. and a lot more. The department provides circulation support on the Bookmobile and Spanish-speaking staff for a library van stop; Circulation helps cover checkout desks at the Ellettsville Branch, process ILL requests, collect fines, staff the Drive-up Window, and cover the switchboard evenings after 5 p.m. and on weekends. The department issues an average of 35 new library cards per day. Bara highlighted staffing and management team changes and cross training with Ellettsville and Adult Services. She recognized staff members for their contributions and accomplishments in a continuously changing environment that requires flexibility by everyone. She spoke about the challenges of dealing with a growing circulation and a growing number of holds to fill (up from 472 per day to an average of 508 per day). She would like Circulation to be able to check in items and get them back on the shelf on the same day. Looking to the future, Bara noted that the new ILS and self-checkout will impact Circulation, as will the move of the Audio-visual area to the second floor. She also is monitoring a new trend: more checkouts are renewals (up from 19-20% in 2005 to 21-24% in 2006).
ILF Workshop: The IPLA Leadership Workshop on Libraries and Economic Development will be held in Greencastle on October 24. Four library staff will be attending.
LINK Award: The Board has received Outstanding Board Recognition from the Indiana Trustee Association of ILF for commitment to continuing education. Cindy Gray presented the recognition plaque from ILF and said that it will be placed in the Library Board Room. Board members Penny Austin, Stephen Moberly, Pat Steele, and John Walsh received pins from ILF for their attendance at conferences to learn about planning, budgeting, policy setting, advocacy, and working with the library director.
MCPL Safe Place Designation
Cynthia Gray presented the library's news release on MCPL (both the Main Library and the Ellettsville Branch) joining the Project Safe Place Network. This is a nationally established project to connect youth in crisis with help. The staff has been trained on Safe Place procedures. Project Safe Place is operated by the Youth Services Bureau (YSB) of Monroe County. Linda Hunt asked if the library faced a heightened legal/insurance risk in taking on this new responsibility. Director Gray directed Bonnie to ask this at the upcoming insurance review. She also noted that we are doing what we already do: making a phone call and offering a safe place until help arrives. We are just doing it as part of the Safe Place Network.
Quarterly Report
Cass Owens presented the quarterly report. There were increases in circulation in all three months. MCPL is on track for another year of 2.2 million circulation. Numbers for visits, programs, program attendance, and meeting room use are down some. Discards are higher as staff weed in preparation for the new ILS system.
Other New Business
Janice Stockton asked about youth loitering outside the Ellettsville Branch. Mickey responded that the situation is much improved with a lot of time and energy on the staff's part. Ellettsville police also are coming by more.
David Ferguson commented that he would like to have a Board discussion on increasing hours to give better customer service. Cindy responded that adjusting hours will be part of the Strategic Plan.
David also commented that part of future planning should be improvements to the sidewalk on the east side of the building and consideration of adding a development officer.
There was no public comment.
The meeting adjourned at 7:31pm.
Contact
Us Monroe County Public Library, Monroe County, Indiana ° (812)349-3050
Updated:
December 28, 2006
° http://www.monroe.lib.in.us/board/200610min.html
