September 2008                                                       Minutes of the Meeting Of the Columbus Public Library Board September 11, 2008 The regularly scheduled meeting of the Columbus Public Library Board was called to order at 4:30 PM on Thursday, September 11, 2008 by the President, Jim Schaefer. He read aloud and signed the “Certification of Compliance,” regarding the “Open Meeting” law. Other Library Board members present included Joie Taylor, Carol Keller, and Sharon Raimondo. Craig Neid was excused. Joseph Mangiamelli, City Administrator, Karen Hake, Bookmobile Librarian, Liz Young, of the Bookmobile Advisory Board, Jill Owens, the Library Director, and Heather St. Clair, Reference Librarian were also present. Heather was introduced as our recently hired Reference Librarian. Notice of this meeting was given in advance with a copy of the agenda posted at City Hall and in the Public Library. All proceedings hereafter shown were taken while the convened meeting was open to the public. The Minutes of the August Board meeting were reviewed and allowed to stand as presented with a motion from Joie Taylor and a second from Sharon Raimondo. This motion passed unanimously with no discussion. The Library Director distributed the Financial Reports for the Library Foundation, the City Library, and the County Library Services. The director pointed out the expenditure to Envisionware for the lab and print management systems. She also noted that air conditioners in three parts of the building needed service over the last month. Mr. Schaefer brought up the issue of scheduled maintenance on the air conditioner in the computer room to prevent another problem. Beard-Warren recommended that it be cleaned out every two years. Mr. Schaefer asked Karen Hake how she was doing with the new Bookmobile. She misses having two people to assist at stops. Mr. Schaefer asked if a letter needed to be sent out requesting assistance at stops. Mrs. Hake said she has already talked with the school principals and they have been receptive to her requests for volunteers. At least one busy stop sends out an aide. A motion was made by Sharon Raimando and seconded by Carol Keller to accept the financial reports as presented. This motion passed with a voice vote: Taylor, aye; Keller, aye, Raimondo, aye, and Schaefer, aye. The Director’s Report was presented. A staffing update was given and briefly discussed. The gaps have been filled and it is anticipated that the new Reference Librarian will soon be able to work on her own. Two of the three new Library Assistant I positions have been hired. The new employees will report to work October 1st. The director is still exploring options for the third position and will decide soon how to proceed based on information gathering. Mr. Schaefer brought up the need to make good use of the Friends volunteers. The director will ask the Friends for an updated list. Karen Hake stated that she had been invited to Friends meetings and that group said they would help her any way they could. She also noted she had shelves and a filing cabinet on the dock now. Matt Asche did a good job of cleaning up the dock and moving the needed items into place. Karen Hake and Liz Young excused themselves. There were no Committee Reports or items of Correspondence. Old Business: Staff issues were updated earlier in the meeting, so there was no further discussion on that topic. The director reported that name tags were discussed at the August 29th staff meeting. A staff committee is looking into options. Mr. Mangiamelli pointed out the difference between identification tags and name tags. There was a brief discussion about whether positions would be identified on the tags. The staff will choose. In the New Business section of the agenda the director noted that several staff members requested casual day(s) similar to the practice at City Hall. Mr. Mangiamelli stated that the dress code at the City offices is understood, rather than formal. Though it was numbered and put in the policy manual as “issued,” the present CPL dress code was never formally adopted. Sharon Raimondo noted that at her place of work a casual dress day must be earned. Joie Taylor voiced her opposition to jeans because they are not professional attire. It was brought up that many employees are not considered “professional” and are not compensated as such, and perhaps “appropriate” rather than “professional” is what we should be considering. Mr. Schaefer suggested the dress code decisions be at the director’s discretion. Everyone agreed that plastic flip-flops are inappropriate. After discussion, it was decided that there was no need for a formal policy at this time. The director will communicate her expectations to the staff at the next meeting. Casual weekends will begin on a trial basis when the new weekend schedule begins. It will be communicated that casual days will be revoked if expectations are not met. The next item of New Business discussed was the cappuccino machine. The director let the board know that there have been quite a number of spills and sticky spots around the library. Also, at the current price, it is not generating any income. The circulation staff and the maintenance man have to spend time cleaning the machine, keeping it running, and cleaning up after the spills. Staff members and some Board members did not like the location of the machine. It was asked whether it could be moved. Because plumbing would have to be put in, it would be difficult to move. The Board agreed that it was worth a try to offer the coffee, but in practice seems to be more work and result in more spills than it is worth. Continuing with New Business, Mr. Schaefer was congratulated on his reappointment to the Board. Mr. Schaefer indicated he was happy to continue on the Board. Election of officers will be in December. The next Board member term expiration will not occur until September of 2009. As Karen Hake has already left the meeting, the director will ask her about the Bookmobile board member terms and report back to the board. The director reported that Dr. Hillyer, Superintendent of Columbus Public Schools, came to the Library to share an idea. He indicated that in the future there is a possibility of building a new middle school. He wondered whether the Library would be interested in having a spot in such a building, or working together in some capacity in the future. The possibilities for cooperation are wide-ranging. There is no plan at this time, and the Library has not committed to anything, but will listen to see whether and how the idea develops. Any cooperation would have to fit in with our new mission statement. After discussion, the Board members decided to wait and see what happens. There will not be a Board member attending the monthly Friends meeting. It was noted that the Friends members are welcome to come to Library Board meetings. After discussion it was decided that the Board will not review any more policies until the Mission Statement is done. Before that time, the director will list for the Board the policies and the dates they were adopted so the Board will know where to start when they resume looking at the policies. Mr. Mangiamelli addressed two questions. There is a procedure in place for proceeding with any building/physical plant maintenance concerns. We will wait for a snow melt to know how the roof handles the moisture. Also, Mr. Oglevie is working on an orientation program for new department heads. Carol Keller asked whether the director had spoken with the staff about being more friendly, smiling, and welcoming. It was discussed at the staff meeting the 29th and the staff agreed to be more conscious of this. However, since then two more people have complained. The director will look for a training program about customer service. There being no further business, a motion to adjourn was made by Joie Taylor and seconded by Sharon Raimondo. The “ayes” were unanimous. The meeting was adjourned, Respectfully submitted, Jill Owens Library Director