HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - PPMLT - 06/12/2019 Paul Pratt Memorial Library Board of Trustees
June 12,2019
Library Historical Room, 6:00 pm.
Present: Carolyn Coffey (Chair), Catherine Harvey, Elaine Breslow, Stephen Brown, Lynne DeGiacomo,
Megan Brinzey, Marylou Lawrence, Meaghan James (Director)
Meeting called to order, 6:05 pm
1. Nominating Committee (DeGiacomo)
a. Lynne nominated Carolyn Coffey to a new term as Chair and Steve Brown to a new term as
Clerk. Both nominations were approved unanimously.
2. Minutes
a. The minutes of the May 8, 2019 meeting were approved unanimously.
3. Director's Report(James)
a. Meaghan has just received confirmation that Steve Bowen, an astronaut who grew up in
Cohasset,will be featured in a collaborative town program on July 16t". In addition to the
Library, other town departments will participate including: Recreation, Safe Harbor,the
Senior Center and Veteran's Affairs. Details are still being finalized and will be forthcoming
soon.
b. There was an all staff meeting on June 3rd before the Library opened. Future changes and
improvements were discussed, and the staff had an opportunity to ask questions and share
ideas and feedback. Meaghan has asked the staff to complete one of three training options
offered on Lynda.com by July 12.
c. Outreach—i. Brigid and Sharon have been increasing the library's visibility in the
community in the last few months. Brigid will have a table at the Farmer's Market
periodically, she holds a regular Tech.Time at the Senior Center and she has visited all the
5t"grades at the Deer Hill School. In addition,Sharon also visited Deer Hill and showed the
students how to use the library catalog and discussed the Summer Reading Program. ii.
Meaghan spoke a recent Old Goats meeting and received positive reviews as well as
constructive feedback. iii. Meaghan is continuing to develop collaborative programs with
businesses in town. Currently, she has signed up Fresh Feast, Balance Studios and Awesome
Blossom. The Fresh Feast program is scheduled for June 24tn
d. The first quarterly newsletter was mailed yesterday to all households in Cohasset. Although
there were some challenges, the staff pulled together and succeeded in getting out the
mailing in a timely manner.
e. Three applicants have turned down the Youth Services Assistant position,for various
reasons. Meaghan has another candidate in mind and a final interview is scheduled for
tomorrow.
f. The full library cleaning has been completed. The company sent 10 workers the first
weekend and 5 more the following weekend to finish the job. It has not been done in many
years and there was a great deal of cleaning to be done.
g. Meaghan has scheduled a meeting with Ron Menard for next week and plans to discuss the
issues with the library technology and its faults.
h. The new calendar has been launched and Meaghan encouraged the Trustees to take a look
at what it offers.
i. Meaghan is working to streamline and improve the statistical reporting to the Board. This
important data is necessary for our own validation with the town as well as for Library
funding and certification from the State.
j. A Google Analytics report was shared which showed how patrons used the library website
and what keywords were used to search for it. This will be useful information for future
marketing plans.
4. Financial Report/Bills Payable (James/Nelson)
a. The outstanding June bills were moved, seconded and approved unanimously. A June B
warrant will have to be created with any FY19 bills that had not been received yet. Carolyn
will have to approve the warrant, as it is due before the next Trustees meeting.
b. Elaine mentioned the feature that appears on the bottom of the checkout receipt which
shows the amount the patron saved by using the library instead of purchasing the materials.
She wondered if it was possible to track the total savings amount annually to show library
value in a tangible way. The MBLC has a calculator on its website that may work using the
library's annual circulation statistics.
5. Chair's Report(Coffey)
a. Carolyn thanked the Friends for agreeing to fund the new plants at the parking lot entrance.
b. Carolyn, Meaghan, Elaine,Steve and Catherine H. met with Stefura to discuss the plans that
were proposed. Many of their ideas are good and would not have a high cost to implement.
The group was not pleased with the furniture they suggested as it was expensive and not
suitable for the decor of the library. They asked Stefura to look for pieces that would work
better and have a lower price.
6. CLT Report (Coffey)
a. The CLT elected two new Board members at its last meeting. The Trustees voted to approve
Mark Toomey and Tom Littauer unanimously.
b. The Trust is doing well, and the investment returns are good. The Board will vote on the
next year's takeout at their August meeting.
7. Friends Report (Harvey)
a. The Friends are working on plans for the annual staff and volunteer luncheon,which is
slated for June 17tn
b. The Friends are selling canvas tote bags as a fundraiser.
c. Book sales were slightly off in April and the Friends hope that improved signage will reverse
the trend.
8. Other
a. Meaghan mentioned that the library will close at 4:30 pm on July 3rd, as it has in recent
years, and the Trustees approved of the plan.
Meeting adjourned at 6:55 pm
Documents:
Minutes of the May 8, 2019 Trustees Meeting
Director's Report—June 11, 2019
Google Analytics,June 11, 2019 report
June 2019 Financial Report
June 12, 2019 Accounting Report—Bronwyn
FY19 June 12, 2019 Warrant
Library Trustees Authorization for Payment—06/12/19
Cohasset Library Trust, Slate of potential board members, May 2019