Brownsville Public Library System Advisory Board

Brownsville Public Library System Advisory Board February 12, 2024 Minutes Hybrid Present Absent Guests Chair George E. Olivo, Alisha Hernandez, Bertha Juan Guerra, Josephine Balboa, Ruth McKula, Vice Chair Chris Pineda, Peña Katie Hernandez, Kayla Trevino, Sarined Audria West, Nora I Garza, Garcia, Anthony Chavarria, Bobbi Vasquez, Martin Leal Jennifer Chavez 1) Call Meeting to Order – Meeting called to order by Mr. George E. Olivo at 5:31pm. 2) Discussion and Action of Approval of Minutes – Ms. Garza motions to approve the minutes. Mr. Leal seconds. All in favor. 3) Introduction of New Member – Presented by Juan Guerra. Mr. Guerra introduces new Board Member Martin Leal. He shares that Mr. Leal is very open to our services and that he is a retired teacher. Mr. Guerra states that Mr. Leal will be a good benefit to our board and to our community. After introducing Mr. Leal, Mr. Guerra explains that the City Commission is asking for the board members to notarize and sign two papers. He informs the board that they can come at their convenience to have Ms. McKula notarize the forms. Mr. Guerra then proceeds to announce the departure of Sarined Garcia, Teen Librarian, as she will be moving to Corpus Christi, but he hopes that one day she can return. 4) Citizen Comment – No comments. 5) Library Report a) Adult Services, presented by Jose A. Gonzalez: Mr. Gonzalez starts by updating the board regarding the Little Lending Libraries. He states that the Little Libraries continue to grow and there are currently 23 in total. Mr. Gonzalez explains that he can provide the board with a copy of the list of the Little Libraries as it also shows the location of each library. He states that they have to compile and add around 50 books to each Little Library since they have become very popular. Mr. Gonzalez shares that he has established a relationship with Jubilee Academy, who have been helpful in building their little library. He states that he recently received an email from the CEO of Jubilee Academy praising them for establishing the first library to join a Charter School in partnership with Little Libraries. Mr. Gonzalez then reviews additional programs from the previous month such as Let’s Get Cooking, Computer Classes, New Year New Me, Citizenship Class, and Adult Services Committee. Mr. Gonzalez provides an overview of the Adult Services Committee which was held for the first time at the Southmost Branch. He explains that the purpose of this committee is to gather information from patrons regarding what they are interested in for the library to have in the near future. Mr. Gonzalez shares that a majority of the patron’s suggestions were to have more computer classes with other topics to learn. He also covers other programs taking place in February such as Charro Days Photo Contest, First-Time Homebuyer Workshop, and the Movie Night showing of “Moulin Rouge.” Mr. Pineda adds that for the First-Time Homebuyer Workshop, CDCB (Come Dream Come Build) is a great organization to reach out to for the program. Mr. Gonzalez thanks him for that suggestion. Mr. Leal then questions if Google Classroom has been taught to adults at the computer classes. Mr. Gonzalez confirms it was taught at the last semester of classes they had. He adds that they do refer back to previously taught material as they often see new patrons attending these computer classes. Mr. Gonzalez thanks Mr. Leal for his input. Mr. Olivo thanks him for his report. b) Youth Services, presented by Kayla Trevino: Ms. Trevino recalls pervious programs from the month of January such as DIY Journal, Bad Art Night, Stories & Snacks, and Toddler Playdate. She also reviewed programs taking place in February, in addition to regular programming, such as Kid’s Night Events: DIY Love Bug and Hello Kitty Night. Ms. Trevino mentioned preparations are underway for the Easter Extravaganza and she will provide more details next month. c) Teen Services, presented by Sarined Garcia: Ms. Garcia reviewed programs from the previous month of January such as Teen Night: DIY Edition, Teen Anime Night, and Teen Advisory. Ms. Garcia reviewed programs for the month of February which includes the Anti-Valentines Party, Movie Showing of “The Batman,” Blind Date with a Book, Reference 4 Teens, Japanese Chocolate Tasting, and Teen Advisory Club. Ms. Garcia clarified to Ms. Garza that the Reference 4 Teens program is to assist them in using the computer for things such as using a database, how to use PowerPoint, or formatting an essay. Mr. Olivo thanks Ms. Garcia for her report. d) Makerspace, presented by Anthony Chavarria: Mr. Chavarria starts by going over the previous month’s programs, Mugs and Sublimation and DIY Terrariums at Southmost. He explained that for the Mugs and Sublimation event, they ran out of supplies quickly as the program was very popular. He also reviews upcoming programs such as DIY Terrariums at the Main Branch on February 26th and Starry Night Painting in March at both library branches. Mr. Chavarria mentions that they have been seeing an increase in numbers at their events. Mr. Chavarria explained to Mr. Leal and Ms. Garza that the Starry Night Painting is a program where patrons are provided with the supplies to create their own interpretation of The Starry Night painting by Vincent van Gogh. Mr. Olivo thanks Mr. Chavarria for his report. e) Friends of the Library, presented by Bobbi Vasquez: Ms. Vasquez shares that for the month of January, they finished with over $1,400 in donations. She states that their big book sale is in February. Ms. Vasquez states that they did over $1,100 during their first week of the sale at the Main library branch. Ms. Garza asked for the dates of the sale at Southmost, which Ms. Vasquez confirms is 2/20/24-3/3/24. Mr. Olivo thanks Ms. Vasquez, Friends of the Library, for what they do. 6) Adjournment - Before asking for the motion, Mr. Olivo thanks the library staff for their hard work. Ms. Garza motions to adjourn. Ms. Pineda seconds. All in favor. Meeting adjourns at 5:58 PM.