October 16, 2007 Minutes
Board of Trustees
Fargo Public Library
Minutes of October 16, 2007
Present: Helen Levitt, Herb Snyder, Prakash Mathew, Suzanne Morrison, Gale Chapman, Leo Wilking, Richard Zeck
Friends of the Fargo Public Library Liaison: Carol Sawicki
Staff: Monique Andresen, Eve Haaland, Beth Postema
Others Present: City Commissioner Linda Coates
Order of Agenda
Leo Wilking moved to approve the order of the agenda. Herb Snyder seconded the motion; the motion carried.
Minutes
Herb Snyder moved to approve the minutes of September 18, 2007. Leo Wilking seconded the motion; the motion carried.
Staff Report
Eve Haaland reported the staff toured the new Dr. James Carlson Library Friday. Carpeting, paint, and light fixtures are in place. There is a very nice staff room included in the building.
Northport staff has been assisting with the RFID process for new materials going to the new library. Southpointe staff is shelf reading the collection to help ease the transition to the new library. Catalogers continue working hard on all the new materials that are arriving for the new library.
Staff members have volunteered to hold story times this fall to cover for a vacancy in the children’s area and Sarah Kauffman on maternity leave. Our interim director holds the title for the noisiest story time.
An open house is planned for Halloween at Southpointe. This will be the last day Southpointe is open. This allows a two week window for moving the collection to the new Dr. James Carlson Library and warehousing other items from Southpointe.
A benefits fair will be held Thursday for all city staff. Customer service training will be held Friday for library staff coordinated by the staff development team. This is a workshop presented by John Trombley of Impact Management Solutions.
Director’s Report
Final details of Dr. James Carlson Library are being added. Staff time and effort is going in to planning grand opening events for the new facility. November 14 will be a reception for Friends of the Fargo Public Library. November 15 will be a reception for major donors. November 16 at 9 a.m. will be the ribbon cutting and grand opening celebration.
Concrete is being poured for the new main library. Soon progress will be visible from the web cam that can be accessed from the library web site.
Staff recruitment has been a struggle. The children’s librarian position is open until filled with no closing date. In a recent Library Journal article the average annual starting salary for a children’s librarian is $41,000. Our starting salary is $34,974. Qualified children’s librarians are hard to find.
The collection manager position vacated by Tom Fortin is now posted with a closing date of November 1.
An ergonomics study is being conducted for the technical services staff. Recent surgeries and repetitive motion issues prompted staff to look at ways to do the job in the most efficient way for lowered stress on body movement.
Staff have presented to several service organizations recently for outreach and fundraising.
Personnel Evaluation Committee can approve adjusted starting salaries on an as needed basis. For general reclassifications, the deadline is April 1 for reclassification in the budget process for the next year.
Statistical Reports
Expenditures are tracking on budget. Most orders have taken place for new materials this year. September usage was down from August.
Friends of the Fargo Public Library Report
Carol Sawicki reported the next Friends meeting will be October 23. The Friends have $13,342.65 in its treasury. $61 went toward bookmarks for the new book talk series. A $500 funding request was approved for a staff recognition program. The newsletter and 2008 membership request was distributed. At the last meeting the Friends started reviewing the process of selling books at the different locations.
Continuing Business
A. Library Director Search
The search committee has chosen three finalists to travel to Fargo for interviews. These are: Daria Bossman, Timothy Dirks, and Lynn Stainbrook. The Board is encouraged to be present Friday, November 2, and listen to the presentations of the candidates, beginning at 8a.m. Each candidate has 45 minutes. The topic is:
In a recent Library Journal, a poll stated that only 10% of library administrators were respected by their peers within their community. This may be due to lack of visibility and not necessarily attributed to individuals. How do you envision bridging this transparent gap to the community? How will you show the value of the library to the community?
The time slot includes presentation and questions. The Library Board, Search Committee, Library Staff, Friends of the Library and all interested public are invited.
Each candidate will have a 90 minute interview with the Search Committee Friday. A library ambassador will be assigned to each candidate to accompany them on Friday to visit the library facilities, tour the city of Fargo and view the plans for the construction of the new Main Library.
Lunch is planned at the VIP Room Friday at 12:30 with the candidates, ambassadors, Board, and Search Committee. Dinner with the same group will be at 6:30 at the Fargo Country Club.
A special meeting of the board will be held November 5 at 5p.m. with the place to be announced since the city commission will be meeting at that same time. The search committee will check with Dana Sue regarding checking references prior to the interviews so a decision can be made at this meeting.
New Business
A. Meeting Room Policy
The meeting room policy changes from a singular meeting room to plural meeting spaces. The largest change is the addition of a conference room that seats twelve people. This will be available if not reserved on a fist come basis, but it may be reserved in advance for a fee. The three study rooms at the Dr. James Carlson Library will be used on a fist come basis with no reservations.
Herb Snyder moved to approve the meeting room policy as presented. Gale Chapman seconded the motion; the motion carried.
B. Hours of operation for Dr. James Carlson Library
The library is not a retail space in that it may not offset the cost of additional hours through sales of merchandise. Friday mornings remain committed to staff development time. The interim director proposes to maintain Southpointe hours in the transition to the Dr. James Carlson Library. The ebb and flow of patron traffic will continue with express check and new facilities. The hours may need to be reevaluated when the new main library is open. It is a balancing act between patrons wanting additional hours, quality of customer service, and budgetary factors.
Leo Wilking moved to approve the hours of operation as distributed. Herb Snyder seconded the motion; the motion carried.
Public Comment
Prakash Mathew pointed out the Minn-Dak Woodturners Association have used the crab apple trees saved from the new main library construction site for beautiful works of art. Beth Postema commented it was a coordinated effort between the city forestry department felling the trees and Minn-Dak Woodturners Association preserving the trunks. A portion of the items created will be given back to the library for silent auction items during National Library Week in April 2008 as well as supplementing the permanent art collection of the library.
Next Board Meeting
A special meeting of the Board is scheduled Monday, November 5, 2007, at 5:00 p.m. with location to be announced. The next regular Board meeting is scheduled Tuesday, November 20, 2007, at 4:00 p.m. in the City Commission room. The meeting was adjourned at 5:10 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Monique Andresen