Board of Somerset County Library Trustees
Regular Meeting Minutes
Wednesday, February 9, 2022 at 4:00pm Princess Anne Library & Zoom
Present: Ann Smith, President; Tim Spillane, Treasurer; Board Members: Lynn Lang, Lois Outten, Karen Riggin, Jennifer Timmons; Associate Board Member: Janet Smith; Ed Goyda, Library Director; Jaime Bradshaw, Assistant Director; Troy Gale, Princess Anne Branch Manager; Karen Earp, Children's Services Coordinator; Nora Hoffman, Bookkeeper/Admin. Assistant
Absent: Beth Holmes-Mayson, Vice President
Call Meeting to Order
President Ann Smith called the meeting to order at 4:00pm.
Consent Agenda
Approve minutes from the regular meeting of December 8, 2021 Approve financial reports for the period from July 1, 2021 – December 31, 2021 Approve financial reports for the period from July 1, 2021 – January 31, 2022
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
Princess Anne: Troy Gale, Branch Manager
Branch Highlights: December was an eventful month for the Princess Anne Library. The Library offered more programs, and people showed up, which caused our adult program numbers to increase. The Christmas Book Discussion Party was delightful. We hosted a Kwanzaa celebration that 25 people attended, including Council Woman Michele Gregory and ABC News. The founder of the holiday's family drove here to be a part of our celebration all the way from New Jersey and Virginia. Our adult programs with attendance continued to average 10 patrons per program.
Community Outreach: We began the month of December by participating in the Princess Anne Christmas
Parade, where our float placed first for non-profit organization. With help from the community, patrons, the Library Board, and staff from both libraries, we were able to sponsor 7 families totaling 17 people at the Lower Shore Shelter for Christmas.
Partnerships: Through the months of December and January, our libraries continued to partner with the Somerset County Health Department to distribute COVID-19 test kits to the community. We had increased interest in third party organizations wanting to do virtual workshops in partnership with us throughout the month of January, in response to the new COVID variants.
Crisfield: Jaime Bradshaw, Branch Manager
December was our busiest month since July, as there was an increase in program attendance and general patron traffic. Our adult craft programs averaged 10-12 in attendance. Ms. Earp's homeschool programs in December had stable numbers with a family of six. The Library also participated in the Crisfield Christmas Parade. In January, we saw a decrease in program attendance and traffic. However, our January craft night was still popular with 18 in attendance. Our health series with the MAC Center was unattended as they require a minimum of eight participants for each session, but they were able to offer the program virtually via Zoom.
Staff Development: In January, Library Assistant Adrianna Warfield, Teen Services Coordinator Ashley Gilson, and Ms. Bradshaw participated in "The Guardian Within The Librarian," a 3-part series focusing on an examination of human nature, our internal defense system, personal safety, and situational awareness concepts that may be applied in the workplace. They also participated in various sessions in the Maryland Statewide Circulation Conference.
Community Partnerships: Ms. Earp had continued to work with the Judy Center and recently agreed to serve on a Pre-K subcommittee. Technical Services Librarian Gabe Stuckey had also resumed his monthly visits at the Tawes Nursing Home.
Future Happenings: Staff would be creating in house displays for Black History Month, Presidents' Day, and Valentine's Day. They would also be celebrating these holidays on our social media sites. Our spring programs had been planned and supplies had been ordered.
Youth Services Presentation
Children's Services Coordinator: Karen Earp
Ms. Earp discussed recent programs, including recent increases in in-person attendance, outreach at Deal Island Elementary the previous evening, and her coding and homeschool programs.
She also noted that Summer Reading planning was proceeding, with all but two performers scheduled. The
Baltimore National Aquarium would be coming across the bridge to us for the first time.
Ms. Earp brought the Unruly Splats coding manipulatives that had been highly popular and would offer a demonstration at the conclusion of the Board meeting.
Library Director7apos;s Report
Mr. Goyda presented his Director's Report for December 2021 and January 2022. In addition to his written report, he highlighted the following activities.
Ewell flooding: A $25,000 flood deductible on the LGIT policy meant that we would not see any reimbursement towards books lost in the November Ewell flood.
Living and Dying with COVID-19: The Maryland Stories: Publicity material for the oral history project had been issued. There had been little activity statewide. We would start more targeted recruitment later in the year if things stayed that way.
ARPA Grants - WiFi expansion: The equipment to expand the range of the WiFi networks at all three libraries had been received by Tezla Group. They were preparing for March/April installations in Crisfield and Princess Anne, followed by Ewell a few months later.
Princess Anne Facility Studies: Becker Morgan Group was still working on completion of the facility studies.
Regional Master Facilities Plan: ESRL's contractor, HBM Architects, was also continuing work on Master Facilities Plans for the eight Eastern Shore counties and St. Mary's.
Salary Survey: The Request for Proposals for the State Library's Salary Study had been posted, with responses due February 10. There had been no response as of February 9. Carroll County had extended the due date and was reaching out to relevant contractors.
Governance
Regional Governance: Following the conference, proposed changes to the State Code had been reviewed by the Attorney General and were only lightly modified. The State Library was currently seeking final feedback on the bill to be presented to the Legislature next session. Assuming the Bill passes, changes to the Regional Governing Board would likely be implemented in January or July 2024.
Regional Library Board: The first ESRL Board meeting under the revised By-Laws was held as a hybrid meeting on December 20.
State Funding: Bills to mandate the annual, per capita increases for the libraries and regional resource centers, from FY24 to FY27, had been filed as House Bill 685 and Senate Bill 448. We had issued letters of support for both bills. Because of the recalculation of the Counties' populations following the 2020 Census, we stood to lose $10,000 in State funding for FY23. Seven other libraries were in the same situation. Mr. Goyda, in his role as President of the Maryland Association of Public Library Administrators, had submitted a supplemental funding request to Governor Hogan that afternoon. That request would increase FY23 per capita funding from $17.10 to $17.50 and resolve the issue for most of the affected libraries.
Tim Spillane made a motion to accept the Director's Report, seconded by Jennifer Timmons, and the motion was unanimously approved.
Executive Session
Lois Outten made a motion to enter the executive session at 4:29 p.m., seconded by Tim Spillane, and the motion was unanimously approved by roll call
President Smith made a motion to exit the executive session at 4:30 p.m., seconded by Lynn Lang, and the motion was unanimously approved by roll call.
Appointment of Trina Hayward, Library Assistant: Karen Riggin made a motion to accept the appointment of Trina Hayward as Library Assistant in Princess Anne, seconded by Jennifer Timmons, and the motion was unanimously approved.
Resignation of Hannah Hande, Library Assistant: President Smith made a motion on the resignation of Crisfield Library Assistant Hannah Hande, seconded by Lois Outten, and the motion was unanimously approved.
Appointment of Holly Watkins, Library Assistant: Tim Spillane made a motion to accept the appointment of Holly Watkins as Library Assistant in Crisfield, seconded by Jennifer Timmons, and the motion was unanimously approved.
Adjournment
President Smith made a motion to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Tim Spillane, and the motion was unanimously approved. The meeting adjourned at 4:32 pm.
Respectfully submitted, Troy Gale Somerset County Library Princess Anne Branch Manager