Brownsville Public Library System Advisory Board

Brownsville Public Library System Advisory Board May 08, 2023 Minutes Hybrid Present Absent Guests George E. Olivo Alisha Hernandez Josephine Balboa Bertha Gomez Chris Pineda Bertha Pena Maribel De Leon Kayla Trevino Nora I Garza Lisa Rodriguez Beatriz Morales Rubi Gonzalez Brenda Trevino Anthony Chavarria Cynthia Lizardi-Burlette Bobbi Vasquez Juan Guerra Sarined Garcia Courtney Taylor 1) Call Meeting to Order – Meeting called to order by Mr. George E. Olivo at 5:32pm. 2) Discussion and Action of Approval of Minutes – Mr. Chris Pineda motioned for approval. Mrs. Rubi Gonzalez seconded. All voted aye, and the minutes approved. 3) Citizen Comment – No Comments 4) Library Report a. Adult Services – Ms. Bertha Gomez presented on the adult services for the month of April, starting with the healthy cooking classes at both branches. At Southmost they learned how to build a fruit salad, and at Main they made a watermelon cake. The was good attendance at both branches, and the patrons loved the food. Forrest Gump was shown for movie night at both branches. It was in correlation with Disability Inclusion Week, showing how individuals can overcome their disability. The library served popcorn and tea during the movie. The library challenged the patrons to find a book. In the spirit of Easter, the patron grabbed a gold egg found at the circulation desk at Main, and then they had to go find the book on the shelf based on the title found in the egg. This helped teach the patrons how to search for items in our system. They then had the option to check out the book or return it for another. Other events for the month of April were Dress for Success, which is a class that taught individuals how to dress presentable for an interview or job. Poetry Night had a live reading from a local poet who presented his works and how he put them together. For Disability Inclusion Week there were two events, Through Your Eyes and Lavender Rice Socks. Through Your Eyes allowed individuals to experience certain disabilities such as blindness. Lavender Rice Socks was a smell and touch event where the patrons made stress relievers. Mr. Olivo commented that the event was wonderful, and his wife was the presenter at the Through Your Eyes event. For the month of May there will be the following events: computer classes, Mommy and Me craft, Cooking & Recipe Swap, Movie Night showing Armageddon, and The Three Little Pigs Play. June events: computer classes, Daddy and Me craft, and a Classical Music Concert. Mr. Pineda asked if there are presenters for all the different types of classes or is it just library staff. Ms. Gomez answered that the library welcomes different presenters, but if none are available then library staff will step in. Ms. Lizardi asked who will be in the play? Ms. Gomez explained that the actors were kids from ages 6-12, she was the  director, and the staff are helping build the set. The play will be on May 26, and encourage the board to attend. b. Games of Texas – Ms. Brenda Trevino wanted to inform the board that the Parks Department is organizing the Games of Texas from July 27 - 30, and what that means to the city and the library. She explained what the Games of Texas were and what sports will be available. She mentioned that the flyers and brochures on the table were for the board to take and share with their family and friends. The parks dept. is looking for volunteers. The city will be hosting the Games of Texas next year as well. Mr. Pineda if the Games were only for adults? Ms. Trevino assured the board that it is for all ages to compete in. Mr. Guerra added that while this initiative is driven by Parks, under the One City plan everyone is involved in this and will benefit the city greatly. c. National Library Week – Ms. Maribel De Leon thanked the board for participating and submitting their score sheets for the writing contest. She then announced the winners of the writing contest. For the 0-5 category Brandon Cavazos won, for the 6-12 category Preston Cavazos won, for the 13-17 category Sofia Cano won, and for the 18+ category Ms. Ashley Flores won. She showed the board members the prizes the winners will receive. Mr. Pineda suggested for future contests that the age groups should be broken down more. He doesn’t think is fair to compare a 6yo to a 12yo work. Also, that there should be one prompt instead of several, so the judges have a more apples to apples comparison. Ms. Lizardi suggested a Google form for the rubric in the future. Ms. De Leon went on to talk about the events during National Library Week. Monday the 24th each branch hosted Let’s Glow Paint Party. The patrons were able to paint canvases with glow paint under black lights. There was music and party favors for the kids to take with them. Main saw over 150 participants, and Southmost saw about 74 participants. The event on Wednesday was Little Librarians, and the kids were able to get a librarian badge, a book buddy (stuffed animal), an activity/coloring workbook, and they learned how to shelf read. Friday was Open Mic Night, and the Main Branch had a turnout of about 80 people and the Southmost branch had about 30 people. d. Youth Services – Ms. Kayla Trevino updated the board on the May 6th Free Comic Book Day that was held at both branches. The library gave out free comic books and patrons had a photo opportunity with the Black Panther and Captain America. Main had a slow start since it was so early in the day, but the turnout was great for both locations. The library is preparing for the Summer Reading Program, which starts June 6th. There will be a kickoff party where the patrons can register, get their bags and more information about the program. Some of the presenters will be Gladys Porter Zoo, the Reading Magic Show, Contacto Animal, and a Park Ranger from Resaca de la Palma State Park. This year the library is going to try new programs for the baby & toddler age group. The rest of the age groups will still have to read a certain number of books and write a one sentence summary of the book they read. Library staff has set the following goals: 800 total registrations, 400 reading log submissions, 75 brag tag entries, and 500 Summer Bash Attendees. The brag tags are like clip tickets; if a patron participates in 5 or more events, they get entered in a giveaway for a Nintendo Switch. The Summer Bash will be held at Main this year, and the theme will be Waterpark. Mr. Pineda asked if there are any Summer Camps. Ms. Trevino answered that there will be programming every day, but it is not a camp where kids can be dropped off. The library encourages families to participate and be active together. Mrs. Lizardi-Burlette asked at what age kids can be dropped off at the library. Ms. Trevino stated that the child had to be 14 or older. Ms. Lizardi asked how does the library enforce this? Ms. Brenda Trevino answered that staff are vigilant and if they see what looks like a child alone, they approach said child ask for parents’ whereabouts. If the child is alone the staff call the child’s parents. If parents do not respond, then PD is contacted. e. Teen Services – Ms. Beatriz Morales introduced herself since this was her first time presenting. She began explaining the Teen Anime Club event where the teens and family were able to watch the Anime movie Spirited Away and did Origami. For the younger participants they got to create and decorate their own little sprite as seen in the movie. Mr. Pineda asked if this was an event where teens helped younger kids. No, this was a teen activity that the family also got to attend, and the teens were able to help their younger  siblings or friends. Teen Services hosted a Resume Do’s and Don’t workshop, where they taught the teens tips, tricks, and important bits on resumes. Other events for May were the Job Fair, which had an amazing turnout of 500+ attendees. Teen Amine Club will meet again on May 23rd. Reference for Teens takes place on the 2nd Sunday at Main and 3rd Sunday at Southmost. Yoga and Meditation Tips Class will be at Southmost on May 30th and June 1st at the Main Branch. This class will require the teens to have an adult present to sign a waiver, because this class is in collaboration with the Health Dept. who have this as a requirement. Ms. Lizardi-Burlette then asked if there should also be a waiver for other physical activities, and Ms. Sarined Garcia stated that the waiver is a requirement of the Health Dept. and the instructor they acquired to teach the class. If it were an event the library was doing on their own, they would not require it. Ms. Brenda Trevino added that for events like the Foam Party for the Summer Bash, the vendor is required to have general liability insurance to cover if anything were to happen. Ms. Morales continued with the Teen Advisory Council, and she ensured that this meeting is strictly just for teens. This upcoming meeting the council will be designing and deciding on a new logo for the Council. The library is attempting to get them more involved in decision making for themselves. They are hoping the teens will also voice what other events or activities they would like to see in the library. Mr. Pineda asked what the turnout for the council meeting was. Ms. Garcia answered that it varies from 3 to 6 teens, and that the council will be taking a break over the summer and will begin again in August with potentially 2 councils, one for each branch meeting on the same day and time at different locations. The other event, Teen Services, is preparing for the Teen Lock-In, which will be on June 2 at the Southmost Branch from 10pm to 6am. There will be food, games, crafts, movies, and giveaways. This lock-in is specifically for teens only from ages 13-17, and parents will have to sign a permission slip for the teens to attend. Mrs. Lizardi- Burlette asked what used to be the turnout for this type of event. Ms. Trevino stated that the library averaged about 30 teens before COVID. f. MakerSpace Services – Mr. Anthony Chavarria updated the board that MakerSpace now has poster printing and has been received well. The cost for a print is 1$ per liner foot for regular paper and 2$ per liner foot for glossy paper. Patrons enjoy how simple the machine is to use and the pricing. Equipment update, MakerSpace was able to place the order for the iMac computers they have been waiting for to complete the previous TSLAC grant. For the CDBG grant the new 3D printers have been ordered and are awaiting arrival. Program updates, MakerSpace hosted Superhero Perler Bead event, where the kids got to design their own hero using the perler beads to take home. Next event will task the participants to build a bridge and see how much weight it will withstand before collapsing. During the Summer MakerSpace is creating a tech petting zoo. This will allow the patrons a more hands-on experience using the available technology. Staff are continuing to train in MakerSpace so someone will always be available to the patrons. g. Outreach – Ms. Courtney Taylor updated the board on all the events and locations the library visited in April. Starting with the 2023 Career Explo, where staff were able to share all the services the library offers. Staff were able to reach out to 514 people at this event. Next was the Mexican Consulate, which is one of the traditional outreaches, and were able to reach 46 individuals. the library visited BMetro and was able to share all the upcoming events for May and SRP. Staff were able to outreach to 146 people, and these visits will slow down during the summer due to SRP. The library was asked to join the Non-Profit Resource Fair, where staff joined with other organizations to share networking information with each other and the public. The library was able to reach out to 30 people. IDEA invited the library to join them on Community Day, and the kids asked a lot about MakerSpace and Summer Reading Program. The library spoke to 260 people that day. The library visited the Farmer’s Market to help promote National Library Week and Disability Inclusion Week, that led to talks about story time and events. The library spoke to 207 people. The library joined BISD for their final Migrant Family Meeting for the school year, and BISD feels like the library has provided exceptional support and hope this partnership continues with the new school year. Staff were able to speak with 100 people. For the first of the adult day care facilities  the library visits were Fox Hollow Post Acute-Adult Day Care. Ms. Bertha Gomez was able to do crafts, read to them, and gave away a book. She visited with 30 patrons. The next event was Southwest Keys Wellness Farmer’s Market, and the library was able to reach out to 324 adults. Mr. Pineda asked if this event was at the Farmer’s Market or something else. Ms. Taylor answered that this was Southwest Keys version of a Farmer’s Market and is not related to the actual Farmer’s Market that is held on the weekend at Linear Park. The library also participated in Earth Fest 2023, and the library promoted their pollinator garden. They gave away wild-flower seed packets with soil pucks to get the public started with their own garden. Staff saw 326 people that day. The final adult day care the library visited was Mi Cielito Lindo Adult Day Care. Mr. Jose Gonzalez visited with 59 people, and he spoke about the computer classes and Mango Languages. The total number of patrons the library has outreach for the month of April is 1,983 and close to 9,000 for the year. Ms. Garza asked if the library has attempted to be at the mall. Ms. Taylor stated that the library has not because of staffing issues and other logistical issues. Mr. Olivo asked if an organization wanted the library to come in and present, who would they speak to? Ms. Taylor is the point of contact for those interested. Mr. Pineda asked if the library was always going to adult day cares. The answer was no, it is a recent development and something they would like to continue to do. h. Friends of the Library Report – Ms. Bobbi Vasquez was happy to announce that credit cards are now accepted at the bookstore at the Main Branch Library. She is still working on the logistics to get that to work at the Southmost branch. April was a slow month and managed just about $800 and were able to donate $8,000 for the Summer Reading Program. Mr. Guerra announced to the board that Ms. Maribel De Leon will be leaving the library and that this will be her last meeting. Her last day will be the 19th of May and she is moving to the Engineering and Public Works Department within the City. Which then brings up the question of who the new recording secretary will be. Mr. Guerra asked the board to think about it over the month, since it requires action, the item will be brought up at the next meeting. He encourages the board to choose an individual on the board, but they will review all options at the next meeting. Ms. De Leon will still do the minutes for this meeting. 5) Adjournment – Motion to adjourn by Mr. Pineda and seconded by Mrs. Rubi Gonzalez. The meeting adjourned at 6:45 pm.