Urbana Free Library Board Meeting

The Urbana Free Library Board of Trustees Minutes of a Regular Meeting Held on Tuesday, October 13, 2020 CALL TO ORDER The Urbana Free Library Board of Trustees met via Zoom on Tuesday, October 13, 2020. The meeting was called to order by the Vice-president, Beth Scheid, at 7:00 p.m. Beth cited the State Executive Orders which temporarily suspend the in-person presence requirements and eliminate the limitation on remote access of the Illinois Open Meetings Act due to the COVID-19 pandemic. ATTENDANCE Present: Barb Bennett, Shirese Hursey, Barbara Jones, Lupe Mejia, Beth Scheid, John Thies, and Michael Weissman Absent: Jane Williams Staff present: Becky Brown, Dawn Cassady, Celeste Choate, Rachel Fuller, Donica Martin, and Amanda Standerfer Also present: Brianna Gaspar MODIFICATIONS AND APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA It was moved by Michael Weissman, seconded by Barbara Jones, and passed by roll call vote to approve the agenda as presented. Votes were as follows: Ayes: Barb Bennett, Shirese Hursey, Barbara Jones, Lupe Mejia, Beth Scheid, John Thies, and Michael Weissman Nays: None PUBLIC COMMENT None. PRESENTATION Donica Martin, Rachel Fuller, and Amanda Standerfer gave presentations from Serving Our Public 4.0 Standards for Illinois Public Libraries. Donica started by reading the introductory paragraph of Chapter 7 on collection management. The Library has two collection management policies available on the Library’s website. The Library meets all points of this standard. Rachel Fuller presented on three chapters: Chapter 9, Reference and Reader’s Advisory Services. The Library provides this service in accordance with the Reference and Reader’s Advisory Policy, which the Board will be reviewing in November or December. The Library offers reference and reader’s advisory services to patrons in person, over the phone, and by email. Board of Trustees of The Urbana Free Library – Minutes for the meeting of October 13, 2020 – Page 2 Chapter 10, Programming. The Meeting Room Policy, which was recently passed by the Board, is one of the many ways the Library meets the standards in this chapter. The Library offers a variety of types of programs, including educational, recreational, informational, and cultural for a variety of ages. Due to COVID-19, many programs have moved to online. Chapter 11, Youth and Young Adult Services. The Library meets the standards in this chapter for all patrons, including youth and young adults, meeting teen recreational and educational needs. Again, due to COVID-19, teen programs have had to be changed to online programs. Amanda Standerfer presented on Chapter 13, Marketing, Promotion, and Collaboration. This chapter spells out how libraries can be more patron-centric when developing programs and services. Marketing and promotion are not just external functions of the Library: Staff must also be aware of everything the Library offers in order to assist patrons. The end goal is to have satisfied patrons that return to the Library frequently. The Library meets and/or exceeds the standards in Chapter 13, with many of the standards supported by the Strategic Plan goals. ACTION ITEMS (CONSENT AGENDA) Being that Beth Scheid asked and saw that there were no requests to separate the items, it was moved by Barb Bennett, seconded by Lupe Mejia, and passed by roll call vote to approve the consent agenda as presented. Votes were as follows: Ayes: Barb Bennett, Shirese Hursey, Barbara Jones, Lupe Mejia, Beth Scheid, John Thies, and Michael Weissman Nays: None ACTION ITEMS (INDIVIDUAL) It was moved by John Thies, seconded by Michael Weissman, and passed by roll call vote to approve the EBSCO invoice for $10,877. Votes were as follows: Ayes: Barb Bennett, Shirese Hursey, Barbara Jones, Lupe Mejia, Beth Scheid, John Thies, and Michael Weissman Nays: None It was moved by Shirese Hursey, seconded by Lupe Mejia, and passed by roll call vote to reaffirm the Computer and Internet Use Policy with no changes. Votes were as follows: Ayes: Barb Bennett, Shirese Hursey, Barbara Jones, Lupe Mejia, Beth Scheid, John Thies, and Michael Weissman Nays: None DISCUSSION ITEMS Celeste Choate reported that former Director Fred Schlipf has offered to work on a building program for the Library, since he won’t be teaching a class at the University of Illinois this spring. He has done between 150 and 200 building programs for other libraries. Fred typed up a sheet for the Board explaining what a building program is and how it functions. He would like to meet with each Library department, the Library Board, the Foundation, and the Friends Board of Trustees of The Urbana Free Library – Minutes for the meeting of October 13, 2020 – Page 3 of the Library. Celeste will create a gift of service agreement, which will say that the Library will give Fred staff time and he will give the Library a building program. He anticipates the process taking four to six months, and Celeste would like to start somewhere between February and April. Fred said that building programs are good for four to five years. Barbara Jones voiced concerns about the amount of staff time this will take and how fast technology changes. There was discussion about the process, changes that COVID-19 will bring, and things that will need to be considered when architects become involved. REPORTS OF LIAISON OFFICERS Friends of the Library Celeste Choate reported that Friends of the Library have started sorting donations again, after the items have been quarantined. The Library is accepting donations by appointment. The Urbana Free Library Foundation Celeste Choate reported that the Foundation is working on the annual appeal letter. One of the items they are fund raising for is the renovation of the corner lot. Illinois Heartland Library System Lupe Mejia reported that registration is now open for the IHLS annual Member Day on November 10. The meeting is titled “Beyond All Limits”, and all sessions will be virtual. Registration ends November 2. ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS Celeste Choate reported that the Library is investigating a new model for the Junior System Administrator position, hiring another person for the tier one position, and then contracting with an outside company to work on some of the bigger picture items for consistency. Staff are working on an RFP and a budget amendment to bring before the Board. The Library is pleased to be a site for a secure ballot box in the parking lot and a polling place for the upcoming election. Voters will be directed to the auditorium, using the Elm Street entrance. The Library plans to be open on Election Day pending a decision on a lawsuit on whether municipalities have to close on Election Day. Board members expressed their appreciation for the secure ballot box in the Library’s parking lot. BOARD AND COMMITTEE REPORTS The Nominating Committee, Barbara Jones and Michael Weissman, put forth John Thies as the nominee for Board President. The Board will vote on the nomination at the November 10 meeting. BOARD PRESIDENT REPORT No report. UNFINISHED BUSINESS None. Board of Trustees of The Urbana Free Library – Minutes for the meeting of October 13, 2020 – Page 4 NEW BUSINESS None. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 7:57 p.m. ________________________________________ Becky Brown, Recorder ________________________________________ Barb Bennett, Secretary/Treasurer Date Approved:__________________________ Supplementary information is available in the Board packet of October 13, 2020. This meeting was taped for later broadcast.