Board of Somerset County Library Trustees
Regular Meeting Minutes
Wednesday, August 11th, 2021 at 2:00pm Bayside Inn- Ewell, Smith Island
Present: Ann Smith, President; Beth Holmes-Mayson, Vice President; Tim Spillane, Treasurer; Board Members: Lois Outten, Jayna Grant, Karen Riggin, Jennifer Timmons; Ed Goyda, Library Director; Jaime Bradshaw, Assistant Director; Christine Marshall, Ewell Branch Manager; Janice Kitching, Library Assistant; Anita Kitching, Library Assistant.
Absent: Troy Gale, Princess Anne Branch Manager; Nora Hoffman, Administrative Assistant
Call Meeting to Order
President Ann Smith called the meeting to order at 2:32 p.m.
Consent Agenda
Approve minutes from the regular meeting of June 9, 2021 Approve financial reports for the period from July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021 Approve financial reports for the period from July 1, 2021 to July 31, 2021
President Smith asked for a motion to approve the Consent Agenda. Motion was made by Karen Riggin, seconded by Lois Outten and unanimously approved.
Branch Highlights
Crisfield: Jaime Bradshaw, Branch Manager
Ms. Bradshaw reported that Summer Reading went well this year. Karen Earp, Children's Services Coordinator, sent weekly reports, and the library had 147 patrons register this year. Ms. Bradshaw also commented that the in person programming had also been well received this summer. In June, the first adult craft night had 13 in attendance, and the teen craft night had 6 in June and 17 in July. The largest children's program was the Summer Reading Half Time Celebration with the Salisbury Zoo, totaling 36 in attendance. Crisfield's meeting room reservations have also increased, resulting in consistent bookings, almost weekly.
The library is now active on Niche. Staff had been uploading all of the video tutorials that were on our YouTube and Facebook accounts, and Lorna Crockett, Marketing Associate, made the graphics for each category.
The Crisfield Library partnered with It Takes a Village and their program, "Shore Way to College" that provides students entering the 11th and 12th grade with soft skill trainings for the workforce. They hosted their trainings at the library, and the Crisfield branch hosted a student for a few weeks this summer. Ms. Bradshaw noted that the library is preparing for fall, continuing to offer programs to go and also resuming the full calendar of in person programs as well. Ms. Crockett has completed the fall booklet and they will be distributed soon.
Princess Anne: Troy Gale, Branch Manager
Mr. Gale had a previously scheduled vacation, however, Mr. Goyda shared his report, mentioning that library traffic and program attendance significantly improved in July. Their most successful programs included the Summer Reading Half Time Celebration with the Salisbury Zoo and Reptile Wonders. Mr. Goyda also reported that Mr. Gale recently had a meeting with Princess Anne's town manager discussing future programming such as the Halloween Block Party.
Library Director7apos;s Report
Mr. Goyda presented his Director's Report for June and July 2021.
Core Services
Book Sales: Sales of donated and discarded books had resumed in Crisfield and begun in Princess Anne.
Fine-free Libraries (SB524/HB1000): The State requirements for the Building Lifelong Library Learners Act (clearing existing lost book fees for minors) had been completed as of July 1.
Makerspace mini-renovation: Mr. Goyda mentioned that Ms. Bradshaw completed a small renovation to add workspace to the Makerspace in Crisfield.
Reopening Phase 4: Mr. Goyda reported that the initial few weeks of the return of in-library programming were slow, but activity, and programs in particular, had been increasing rapidly throughout July. Routine work from home time was removed from the schedule at the start of July.
Community Outreach
Fall Booklet: The first quarterly booklet since Spring 2020 had been prepared and transmitted to Impressive Printing. A digital copy was included in the packet.
Library Zine: Submissions for the Summer Zine were on-going through August 21.
President Smith encouraged everyone to share information about the zine. She commented that a variety of artworks can be entered.
Internal Development
ARPA Grants: Mr. Goyda reported that there had been a verbal commitment from the Maryland State Library for $65,000 of the $72,473 request to expand Wi-Fi range and purchase laptops and $8,800 of the $9,731 request to purchase equipment for STEM programming. We were awaiting the written approval before signing contracts with the vendors. The $4,714 outdoor programming grant was denied.
Audit: Work on the audit was underway during the week of August 1. TGM would presumably be presenting at the October Board meeting.
Niche Academy: The Niche Academy site was set up in early July, and virtual programs were quickly moved over. Mr. Goyda also added their database tutorial buttons to the website.
Princess Anne Facility Studies: Mr. Goyda reported that the engineering studies for the feasibility study were on-going, and that the report should have been finished in early September.
The Eastern Shore Regional Library also received ARPA funds to refresh the Master Facilities Plan, last refreshed in 2013.
Regional Libraries: There was discussion on-going about the governance structures of the regional libraries. In the near future, it was likely that we would need a Board member to start attending the virtual, quarterly ESRL meetings, starting in December. There was also likely to be a statewide meeting in Annapolis in December to discuss the existing state code.
Staff Biographies: An updated set of staff biographies was included in the packet.
Staff Development Grant: The annual MLA conference grant had been merged into the State's staff development grant. This was detrimental to us, as the $2,400 increase in the grant (handled on a per capita basis) was less than the roughly $3,500 that we would typically request as a conference grant based on actual staff attendance.
President Smith asked for a motion to approve the director's report. Motion was made by Beth Holmes-Mayson, seconded by Jayna Grant and unanimously approved.
Governance
Confirmation of Online Vote - FY22 Budget: Tim Spillane made a motion to confirm the online vote approving the FY22 budget. The motion was seconded by Jennifer Timmons and unanimously approved.
Confirmation of Online Vote - Square: Beth Holmes-Mayson made a motion to confirm the online vote approving the use of Square to take credit cards. The motion was seconded by Jayna Grant and unanimously approved.
Financial Procedures Manual: Karen Riggin made a motion to accept the procedures for BillPay and Square to be included in the Financial Procedures manual. The motion was seconded by Beth Holmes-Mayson and unanimously approved.
October Board Meeting: Jennifer Timmons made a motion to accept Mr. Goyda's request that the next Board Meeting will be moved to October 20. The motion was seconded by Tim Spillane and unanimously approved.
Resignation of Anaiyah Rice, Library Page: President Smith made a motion to accept the resignation of Anaiyah Rice, seconded by Lois Outten, and unanimously approved.
Adjournment
Tim Spillane made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 2:51 p.m. The motion was seconded by Beth Holmes-Mayson, and was unanimously approved.
Respectfully submitted, Jaime K. Bradshaw Assistant Director