LAB Minutes 02/19/2014 Library Advisory
Board
Minutes
February 19 , 2014
Naples, Florida, February 19, 2014
LET IT BE KNOWN that the LIBRARY ADVISORY BOARD met on this date in regular session at
10:00 a.m. in the Headquarters Branch Library with the following members present:
CHAIR: Doris J. Lewis— District 4 co 0
VICE-CHAIR: Loretta Murray— District 1 rn , -n
Carla Grieve — District 2 r=
Connie Bettinger-Hennink— District 3 0o
Lillian Cuevas — District 5 c,
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ALSO PRESENT: Marilyn Matthes, Library Director N o�
Karen Tibbetts, Administrative Assistant co a
Roberta Reiss, Literacy Program 3'
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Mrs. Lewis asked for additions or corrections to the minutes of January 15, 2013. A few minor
corrections were noted. Ms. Bettinger-Hennink moved to approve the minutes, Mrs. Murray seconded
and the motion was carried unanimously that the minutes be approved as corrected.
LITERACY PROGRAM REPORT— Roberta Reiss
• Mrs. Reiss reported that there continues to be standing room only for the conversation
classes. The cultural diversity has included people from: Haiti, Peru, Columbia, Mexico,
Switzerland, Germany and French-speaking Quebec, Canada.
• Mrs. Reiss identified a South Regional Library volunteer that has expressed an interest in
helping the literacy group with teaching English as a second language, as she is certified to do
so. Mrs. Reiss will have her come to a few of the sessions to get a feel for the class.
• There will be another basic computer class in March, and the Literacy Volunteers of Collier
County help to find adult learners that are interested in the class. She is hoping to schedule
another 3-4 part series for this class.
• Mrs. Reiss has been focusing on encouraging participants to use other library resources and
attend some of the programs to enhance their learning.
REPORT OF OFFICERS
• Ms. Bettinger-Hennink stated that she reported on behalf of the Library Advisory Board at the
recent Golden Gate Civic Association meeting. She explained the services that the library has
to offer.
• Mrs. Murray stated that due to upcoming early voting for the special election, she will be
unable to attend several of the LAB meetings. Ms. Bettinger-Hennink made a motion to
reschedule the LAB meetings for the remainder of the year, March —October, to be the fourth
Wednesday of each month, Mrs. Lewis seconded and the motion was carried unanimously.
COMMUNICATIONS
a—Written
• Mrs. Grieve shared an article about Book Cart Drill Contests from the New York Times.
b— Personal — None
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
1) Employee of the Month— February
• Mrs. Murray nominated Lisseth Weschler from Administration for the February employee of
the month. Ms. Bettinger-Hennink and Mrs. Grieve seconded the nomination and the
motion passed unanimously.
2) RFID Update
• Mrs. Matthes reported that an RFID vendor has been selected. Bibliothecha's
demonstration was very impressive. They were the only vendor to want to know about the
Library and what its needs are. They also would provide a complete refund if the Library is
not happy with their product or services. They were also the only vendor to bring hardware,
software and security gates to their demonstration; the other vendors only brought laptops
and scanners to demonstrate their products.
• Ms. Bettinger-Hennink attended this demonstration and commented that the Bibliotheca
representatives encouraged library staff to be hands-on with their product.
• Mrs. Matthes will be providing Bibliotheca with a list of what items each library location
would need so that they can work on pricing.
• Mrs. Matthes is not certain as yet if the RFID system would be introduced to all locations at
the same time, or several locations over a period of time.
• Mrs. Matthes opted for the self-check units to accept only credit or debit cards for
fines/fees, and not cash. She explained that with the photocopy machines, it is the coin
machine component that most often fails.
• Mrs. Matthes stated that the summer months would be the best time to begin putting RFID
chips in the library materials.
3) Program Registration —Adult Programs, Winter 2015
• Mrs. Grieve shared a letter that she received from a patron regarding her inability to
register for some programs due to many of them being full. The patron was told that FOL
members are able to register for library programs a week before the general public, and
stated that due to her limited finances, she was unable to become an FOL member.
• After discussion, it was realized that the patron tried to register nearly a month after the
public was able to begin registering. The phone number Mrs. Grieve found on-line was not
in service. Mrs. Matthes will see if another number can be located in the system, and she
or Mrs. Grieve will contact the patron to discuss her concerns.
• Mrs. Matthes met with FOL board members to discuss the complaints from this past
winter's registration.
• Cancellation data was presented by Mrs. Matthes. Patrons tended to cancel the programs
that were scheduled for later in the winter season.
• It was decided to create a winter program guide for two months' information at a time, and
two sign-up periods for FOL members and the public. The FOL membership may be
modified to allow members to only sign up early for FOL sponsored programs.
4) Types of Minutes Presented
• Mrs. Matthes reported that at a recent Public Services Division meeting, Steve Carnell
commented that minutes should be more reflective on action items and not as much on
detailed discussion.
• Minutes are public record and as such are recorded with the County. These minutes are
the only public record of the Literacy Program reports.
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• After discussion, the LAB agreed to keep the minutes in the same format, as many times
members review them in order to determine what was specifically discussed and why
some actions were decided upon.
5) Fines and Fees, Second Draft
• Mrs. Matthes distributed a second draft of the fines and fees policy that is under review by
the County attorney. Minimal corrections were suggested by the LAB. The BCC will do the
final review to make this policy effective.
• Mrs. Matthes explained the levels of staff regarding their authority to make exceptions for
fines and fees.
• Mrs. Matthes reported that the library will be cleaning up the database of outstanding fines,
as there are still some in the system from before it was automated in 1995.
• She reminded everyone that library cards are renewed every three years. This helps to
keep the database up-to-date, as some accounts become inactive over time, often due to
people moving away from the area.
6) LEAP Update
• Mrs. Matthes reported that 16 applicants have applied for the seven positions.
• Tanya Williams, Jamie Reilly (Reference Librarian), Bobbi Skaggs (FOL Secretary), and a
representative from Human Resources will interview the candidates at the library locations
that the students have requested to work at.
NEW BUSINESS
1) Adult Programs and Program Booklets
• Marilyn Matthes shared a mock-up of a revised version of the adult program booklet. This
would incorporate a calendar for each month with a list of the programs for the
corresponding month on the back.
2) Additional Floating Collections—Timetable
• Marilyn Matthes stated that the automation system includes additional reports to manage
the floating collections. For example, it can show the quantity of materials on a particular
subject that each location has to see if some materials can be distributed to another
location, and it can also specify which location could best use the materials.
• She added that all adult materials may be a part of the floating collection, possibly by this
summer.
3) Summer Reading Program Changes (teens and children)
• Marilyn Matthes reported that eBooks will be included in the summer reading program for
teens and children. The children will continue to log in their reading progress, whereas
teens will use a bookmark system, similar to the one used by adults.
GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS
• Ms. Bettinger-Hennink stated that the Golden Gate Civic Association is envisioning a new sign
at the Golden Gate Branch Library to be similar to the one welcoming people to Golden Gate.
• She reported that she shared marketing materials on library services, such as: Mango,
Freegal, etc. She added that Kaydee Tuff would like an additional 100 copies to create
welcome packages.
• Ms. Bettinger-Hennink recently learned that copies can be charged to a library account if a
patron does not have any money available.
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• Ms. Bettinger-Hennink added that she had been nominated to be on the LSTA Council. This
committee reviews grant applications for LSTA funds, and makes selection recommendations
to the State Library. No one from SW Florida has ever been on this committee. Everyone
agreed that she would be a perfect candidate for this position.
• Ms. Bettinger-Hennink commented that the Library's social media sites have been doing well.
She asked if there were any other social media sites that the Library could become a part of.
• Mrs. Matthes added that next month she would provide the statistics regarding the number of
users of the different Library social media sites.
DIRECTOR'S REPORT— Marilyn Matthes
1) Current Statistics
• Mrs. Matthes reported that the circulation figures are doing better.
• OverDrive circulation continues to increase.
• Zinio is holding its pace, despite Consumer Reports no longer being available due to
licensing issues.
• The Marketing group will be implementing a new Freegal promotion soon to target teens.
She recommends reviewing the subscription at the end of the year to see if it should be
continued.
2) Staffing Update
• Mrs. Matthes reported that Tanya Williams has officially begun her new position as the
Assistant Library Director.
• Silvia Puente will be handling the managerial position at Immokalee.
• Liane Wagner will be leaving at the end of the month to help with her husband's business.
• Sheila Hicks from Marco Island is retiring at the end of March.
• Sandra Boreio from Naples Regional will be retiring next week.
• Two job bank positions have become vacant at Vanderbilt.
• One full time position has been created from two part time positions at Marco Island.
• The Automation Specialist position will be posted on Friday.
REPORT OF THE FRIENDS
• Mrs. Matthes did not attend this month's Marco Friends of the Library meeting, as their
meeting was scheduled at the same time as the other FOL meeting
• Another FOL meeting will be held on Friday at Headquarters Regional at 2:00 p.m.
• Tanya Williams will provide a presentation of library services at 1:30 p.m.
• Mrs. Grieve reported that on the 25th, the non-fiction lecture series will feature the author of
"Last Train to Paradise", which she found to be very interesting.
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business to come before the Library Advisory Board, Mrs. Grieve moved to
adjourn, Ms. Bettinger-Hennink seconded and the motion was carried unanimously. The meeting was
adjourned at 11:45 a.m.
Approved by:
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Doris J. Lewis L/
Chair, Library Advisory Board
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