Library Trustees Meeting Minutes 5/15/23
Meeting date:
Monday, May 15, 2023
MEETING of the MONTEREY BOARD of LIBRARY TRUSTEES
Held at the Monterey Library and via Zoom on May 15th, 2023
PRESENT: Mickey Jervas, Cheryl Zellman, Rebecca Wolin, Sam Reggio
DIRECTOR: Mark Makuc
ABSENT: Nancy Kleban, Judy Kaminstein
Meeting was called to order at 7:08
The first order was to nominate a Chairperson and Secretary. Rebecca nominated Mickey for Chairperson and this was seconded by Cheryl. Mickey nominated Cheryl for Secretary and this was seconded by Rebecca. Both votes were unanimous.
Sam Reggio was welcomed as our new trustee.
MINUTES: The minutes of April 24, 2023 were corrected and approved by a motion made by Rebecca and seconded by Cheryl. The vote was 3-0. Sam abstained as he was not a member of the trustees at that time. The acceptance of the minutes were unanimous.
FRIENDS: None
HISTORICAL SOCIETY: None
DIRECTOR’S REPORT: Mark was very pleased with the MBLC meeting on May 4th, 2023 at the Library. The MBLC was represented by about 20 members in person and 6 on Zoom. All 9 commissioners were in were in attendance, as was the director,, James Lonergan.. Lauren Stara, Library Building Specialist, who oversaw the construction of our library and Andrea Bono-Bunker, the new Library. Building Specialist. Maura Deedy, Library Advisory Specialist, is meeting with on June 29th, 2023.
The MBLC requested a copy of the speech Mark made at the opening of the meeting.
Maura Deedy, was impressed with the library’s construction. Also discussed by the members was the policy the MBLC is working on regarding a “Book Ban” if this should become an issue in Massachusetts libraries. The meeting ran late due to the in-depth discussion on book banning and challenging.
Colleen Johnson, representing the Friends of the Library is submitting an article to The Monterey News reporting on the meeting. Also present were 4 members of the Board of Trustees. Other Friends helped with the food and set up.
Mark discussed the Summer Reading Program and the need for an assistant / intern on Saturday. There was one response for this position. There may be a grant from the Monterey Cultural Council.
Evaluations were also discussed. Mark would like the evaluations to reflect what he does at the library. The problem with the Monterey Town evaluation is it may be“one size fits all” and does not reflect the individual, and in this case, the needs of the library.
Mark also discussed his involvement in The Strategic Plan and policies regarding the library. There was discussion of a manual for the maintenance of the library for present and future needs and/or emergencies.
Mark discussed the end of year budget. There is a surplus in maintenance of $ 1200 to $1300. It was discussed that a transfer of $1282 from maintenance be transferred to cover wage overages. Mark asked that we make a second request for for a transfer. This one is a Reserve Fund Transfer in the amount of $100. This is to cover the article that was left off the Special Town Meeting agenda. Rebecca made a motion and it was seconded by Sam. The vote was unanimous.
STRATEGIC PLANNING COMMITTEE: Sam inquired what the Strategic Planning Committee is. The purpose of the SPC was explained by Mark. The SPC is hoping to get a survey out by summer to the Monterey community. It will focus on use of the library building. Carey Vella, co-chair of the Friends and who has experience with surveys, has volunteered to review the surveys. There will be a forum once the surveys are reviewed and completed.
POLICY SUB-COMMITTEE: This sub-committee met on May 10, 2023. The meeting focused on a request for Reconsideration of Library Resource Form. The committee hopes to speak to Maura Deedy regarding a book challenge and who can challenge a book in a town. A meeting with Maura is planned for late June. Lastly, a policy on commercial notices being posted on Library property was brought up. This is up for further discussion.
CHAIR: Mickey discussed the MBLC meeting on May 4th. She was delighted to see that the building design worked as planned. Due to the MBLC running late, the Parkinson’s group graciously agreed to start their meeting in the library proper. Mark moved shelving out of the way to open an area for seating. In total, the library was able to accommodate 3 separate meetings and 2 library shifts in one day…with ease.
Finally, we waited since 1890 to be visited by the MBLC! It was a great success.
OLD BUSINESS: None
NEW BUSINESS: None
The meeting was adjourned at 8:40 pm by a motion made by Cheryl and seconded by Rebecca. The vote was unanimous.
NEXT MEETING: Monday, June 12th, 2023 at 7pm. In person and on Zoom.
Agenda: Minutes
Friends Report
Historical Society Report
Director’s Report
Strategic Planning Report
Policy Sub-Committee
Other: Book Sale July 29th, 2023
Submitted by Cheryl Zellman, Secretary