Sangamon Sun

Sherman Public Library Board of Trustees met April 19.

Here is the minutes provided by the Board:

The regular monthly meeting of the Sherman Public Library Board convened at 6:00 p.m. Present were Library Director Rachel Kocis and Board members Julie Horton, Bob Shurig, Mary Contri, Dave Grimm, Melissa Allen, Gale Kilbury and Elizabeth Heubner. Guests in attendance were Mickey Shurig.

Items for Consideration Not on the Agenda: The Board recognized the service of Melissa Allen and Bob Shurig. Melissa graciously fulfilled the term of left vacant by the resignation of Jack Patterson. Bob has served the library district for over 20 years. Both were presented with books to be added to the Library’s collection in their honor. The Board is grateful to both Bob and Melissa for their service to the Board. They will be greatly missed.

Secretary’s Report: A correction was noted to the March 15, 2017 minutes. The minutes should have noted that the new student worker is currently working 4 hours per week instead of one. It was moved by Melissa Allen and seconded by Julie Horton to approve the minutes from the March 15, 2017 regular meeting, with the noted correction. The motion was approved.

Treasurers/Financial Report: Mary Contri made a motion to accept the Treasurer’s Report and to pay the bills. Gale Kilbury seconded the motion, and the motion carried by a unanimous voice vote. Julie Horton made a motion to pay the mortgage payment from the Special Reserves account. Bob Shurig seconded the motion and a unanimous voice vote in favor was taken.

Librarian’s Report: We had a 2,405 patron count in month of March. 2,515 items were circulated 3,271 times at our Library, up 1,396 from last year, a 42.6% increase! Resident borrowing was at 2,284 checkouts while non-resident borrowing was 649 checkouts. Reciprocal borrowing had 154 checkouts. 3M Cloud netted 106 e-books, up 83 checkouts from last year, a 78% increase. 13 e-audio books were loaned, up 12 checkouts from last year, a 92.3% increase. Overdrive had 155 checkouts, up 19% from last year.

YTD Borrowing/Lending numbers were as follows: SHARE Borrowed 2993 (up 605), WorldShare Borrowed 22 (up 10), SHARE Loaned 3638 (down 1,596), and WorldShare Loaned 58 (up 39).

Library Events and Issues: Thank you cards were received from the Historic Marbold Farmstead Association for use of meeting room and the Sherman United Methodist Preschool for reading stories for class field trip. Bill Vala also sent a card of thanks to the board for new flag and donated $150 to the library.

The FY 2017 Illinois Per Capita Grant was awarded in the amount of $3,220.67. 2016 Sangamon County Extensions Report and EAV were received. The Board also acknowledged several gifts from Friends of Sherman Library including a new children’s rug, Lego table, and bulletin board.

Our new student volunteer Stephanie Morgan has been helping out with cleaning children’s area. Ethan Morrissey put in his two weeks notice on 4/18, but will work until we find someone to fill his position.

Library Programs: March programs included CPR training class on 3/25, Third Thursday Reading Group on 3/16, Quilters Group on 3/2, Alzheimer’s Support Group on 3/8, Sangamon County 4-H on 3/6, Lost Gourd Society on 3/10, FOSL Book Club on 3/14, Daisy Troop on 3/7, FFFFA library group on 3/31, FPHA on 3/8, as well as Story-time: “Up, Up, and Away” on 3/7, “St. Patrick’s Day” on 3/14, “Pizza” on 3/21, “Elephants” on 3/28 as well as the Strategic planning Committee Meetings on 3/13, 3/20, and 3/27.

Upcoming Programs include Sew Much Fun on 4/1, Crochet for Charity on 4/7 and 4/21, AAARP iPhone iPad Beyond the Basics on 4/14 and 4/21, and th Shred Event Saturday on May 6 from 9-12.

Library Outreach numbers are as follows: AHC Preschool: 45 kids on 3/3, Sherman Elementary: 180 on 3/9, UMC Preschool: 17 kids on 3/29 for a Total Outreach of 242 kids.

Upcoming Library Training/Workshops include the following: Director’s Workshop on 3/24-3/26, RDA Catalog Training on 3/29-3/30, F.F.F.F.A. on. 3/31, Intro to Authority Records (Forysth Public Library) on 4/20, Library Law with Phil Lenzini Day Case Halstead on 5/22, Director’s University at UIS on 6/5-6/8, and the ALA Conference on 6/22-6/27.

New Business: Recent heavy rains caused issues with the retention pond. The issues have been addressed but Rachel will contact Don Hance to review with him. Birds are also nesting in our photo-sensor light. Rachel will look into bird guards for the lights. Rachel has also applied for an Eclipse Education Grant. The Board will now have two vacancies to fill. Some community members have expressed interest in serving on the Board. Those interested will be invited to attend a future Board meeting.

Continuing Business: The next Board meeting will begin at 5 p.m. The Board By-laws will be modified to implement this time change as permanent at the next meeting. Rachel will also work on combining the Circulation and Borrowing Policies to make our regulations more streamlined and consistent. Rachel is also continuing to work on the job descriptions for the Personnel Policy as well as the final draft of the Strategic Plan for the library.

Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned by Julie Horton at 7:05 p.m.

http://www.shermanlibrary.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Board-Minutes-April-19-2017.pdf