The Regular Meeting of the Board of Directors of the Bucks County Free Library was held at the James A. Michener Library in Quakertown. The meeting was called to order at 5:33 p.m. Present were:  Det Ansinn, President; Bill Draper, Vice President; Roberta Foerst, Secretary; Jerry Balchis, Treasurer; Mary Ann Beltz, Board Trustee; Martina Kominiarek, Executive Director; Sue Ziegler, Public Services Director; John Doran, Chief Financial Officer; and Pam Riley , Executive Assistant. Also in attendance was Dianne Malvoso, Michener Branch Librarian.    

A MOTION to APPROVE the minutes of the Regular Meeting of August 19, 2008 was made by Draper, SECONDED by Beltz and unanimously APPROVED.

STAFF REPORTS

Report of Branch Librarian/Quakertown

Dianne Malvoso welcomed the board and explained that she has only been at Quakertown as Branch Librarian for fifteen weeks. She said that during that time it has been very busy, as circulation “went through the roof.” Although it usually increases and peaks during the summer, the stream of check-outs stayed constant through Labor Day.

To make sure staff felt acknowledged an thanked for all their hard work she implemented a unique way for staff members to be recognized. If someone is pleased with the help that they received, either public or staff, they simply give the person a paper “fish” to let them know there service was appreciated. Baskets of paper fish are kept on service desks for this purpose. Everyone is able to share the stories of compliments they receive.

Report of Executive Director: 

Executive Director Martina Kominiarek first thanked Dianne Malvoso for accepting the promotion of Branch Librarian at the Quakertown library. Kominiarek acknowledged Malvoso’s major role during her tenure as Youth Services Consultant in implementing the initiatives employed to increase Summer Reading participation of children and teens.

Staff throughout the County worked hard to achieve the BCFL strategic planning goals via Summer Reading. The media attention garnered from both the VIP Bug-Eating event and from the commissioners’ meeting held at the Langhorne library drew attention to the summer events. Kominiarek thanked the board for their approval of funding for the Wolf Lodge prize with anonymous donor funds.

Results from a survey on the Summer Reading Program were distributed to the board members. The results showed that overall participation increased by 54%. The five‑year goal for increased participation was 5,000; 4,542 was achieved already this year. The upcoming Youth Services Committee meeting will discuss ways to improve it for next year and continue to garner media interest.

Kominiarek handed out the Inclement Weather Policy to board members for their review and to be approved at the next board meeting.

Updates: 

·         The ceiling tiles replacement project was to commence shortly in the Pearl Buck meeting room at the Doylestown library.

·         Diner booths for the teen area were ordered using Michener funds.

·         As discussed at a previous board meeting, the Bensalem library needs to close from October 20 to November 14, 2008 for the parking lot project. As is required, a letter to Commonwealth Libraries Director M. Clare Zales was sent informing them of the closure and requesting their approval of same; we have not yet received a reply. The board is also asked to officially approve this closure.

MOTION TO APPROVE the Bensalem library closure from approximately
October 20 through November 14, 2008 during the parking lot renovation was made by Foerst, SECONDED by Beltz and APPROVED unanimously.  

 

Report of Public Services Director (submitted in writing)

Public Services Director Sue Ziegler reported on how successful the training was by Unique Management Services, which is the agency handling the library’s collection of overdue fines and materials. She said that there were two sessions:  one via webinar and one in person. Their representative was very clear and had a very well‑planned presentation, answering all queries from concerned staff members and explaining the step-by-step procedures that they will be following.

Report of Chief Financial Officer

MOTION to APPROVE the payment of bills for August in the amount of $308,349.70 was made by Beltz, SECONDED by Draper and APPROVED unanimously.

MOTION to APPROVE the August financial statements (subject to audit) was made by Draper, SECONDED by Foerst, and APPROVED unanimously.

Chief Financial Officer John Doran told the board that they would soon start receiving monthly balance sheets, hopefully starting with the next board meeting. He said that he is moving forward with the new accounting system, Quickbooks, and moving away from Great Plains. The first draft of the BCFL budget was completed and submitted to the County with a request for a 3% increase.

The BCFL retirement plan needs to have CFO Doran as the primary account user. (Since he is new to BCFL he is currently not listed.) AUL requires that the board officially approve him in this capacity.

MOTION to APPROVE Chief Financial Officer John Doran as the primary user of the AUL retirement accounts was made by Draper, SECONDED by Balchis and APPROVED unanimously.

Board Committee Reports:

There were no board committees held during the past month. They are awaiting the appointment by the commissioners to fill the two vacancies on the board, at which time a governance committee meeting will be scheduled.

Correspondence – Submitted in writing

Trustee Beltz asked about the letter from a Doylestown library user complaining about the use of cell phones in the library. Kominiarek explained that there are some signs in the library that say “no cell phones,”  and staff will tell users to use the back hallway by the elevator should they see someone on the phone. They also give offenders small business-card sized cards that say “please quiet down.” Signage on the front door is avoided, as it tends to get overlooked when posted with the normal signage (hours open). Behavior rules are kept in one place. The board suggested that in this case more visible signs might be in order. It was agreed that a decision would be postponed until the Behavior Policy is discussed and determined, as it will all tie in together.

 

Public Comment – No public commented.

 

Unfinished business –  None

 

New Business – Executive Director Martina Kominiarek said that she felt that staff members should be acknowledged for their tremendous efforts with the Summer Reading Program success at each branch. She suggested sending each a letter from both her and the board recognizing those efforts. The board supported this idea, and drafts of the letters were provided to them for their review and approval.

There being no further business, a MOTION to ADJOURN was made at 6:12 p.m. by Foerst, SECONDED by Balchis and so MOVED.

         

Respectfully submitted,

                                                                                     Pamela J. Riley

Executive Assistant

 

APPROVED BY BOARD OF DIRECTORS

OCTOBER 21, 2008