MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING
OF THE
NORTHLAKE PUBLIC LIBRARY DISTRICT
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
JANUARY 21, 2010
The regular meeting of the Northlake Public Library District Board of Trustees was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by President Kathy O’Cull. Present were Board members: Salo, Blaskey, Gutierrez, Rivera, O’Cull. Also present were Sharon L. Highler, Library Director, Mary Jane Garrett, Head of Technical Services, and Ron Friedman, IT Manager. Absent Board members: Salutric, Teets.
Minutes of the Public Hearing of November 19, 2009, for Truth in Taxation for the 2009 levy, were read and approved on a motion by Blaskey with a second by Rivera.
Ayes: All.
The Board read and approved the following: minutes of the regular Board meeting of November 19, 2009; minutes of the Executive Session of November 19, 2009; minutes of the Special Board Interview Committee, Executive Sessions of November 17, November 24, November 30 and December 1, 2009; and the minutes of the Special Board Meeting, Executive Session of December 7, 2009. Approval was on a motion by Rivera with a second by Blaskey.
Ayes: All.
The Board read and accepted the following: the Treasurer’s Reports of November 30 and December 31, 2009; the Bills Payable Reports for December 31, 2009, and January 21, 2010; the Revenue and Expense Reports for November and December 2009; and the Statistical Circulation and Acquisitions Reports for November and December of 2009. Acceptance was on a motion by Salo with a second by Rivera. Roll call vote:
AYES: Salo, Blaskey, Gutierrez, Rivera, O’Cull.
NAYS: None.
ABSENT: Salutric, Teets.
Grand total of all payables listed, combined total for December and January: $131,092.59.
The librarians’ reports were read and accepted with the appreciation of the Board.
The policy outlining the financial authority of the Library Director was adopted on a motion by Salo with a second by Gutierrez.
Ayes: All.
The Board discussed some problems that patrons are encountering on the public computers with sites such as Yahoo Mail, Facebook and YouTube. Rivera introduced the subject, as he had experienced the problems himself and was also concerned that some patrons may be going to other libraries for their basic computer services. Ron Friedman, IT Manager, had come to the Board meeting to discuss the problems. He believes the problems patrons are having are related to our server’s protecting against possibly unsafe programs being downloaded onto our local system. Items sent by Internet sites are not guaranteed safe, and these recent problems seem to be related to a change in what various sites are sending. The problem does not seem to be universal to all of the public computers. A list of temporary solutions for some sites has been posted at each public Internet computer. In October 2009, problems with Yahoo Mail developed, then seemed to resolve themselves with no action from the library. The same situation occurred in December. Highler and Friedman tested the public computers this week, and had mixed results with the same Yahoo account on different computers. Our local system does not allow the downloading of programs, including those from the Internet, onto the public computers. Friedman does not update some programs, e.g., Flash, until they have run for awhile and their companies have fixed the “bugs” and “holes”. He does a refresh of the public computers every six months.
Another problem that has surfaced is that content of some websites does not fit as a complete page on our monitors. Friedman has spoken to Adult Services about this,that the department needs to choose to either have smaller type or larger monitors. If the type becomes too small, it will not comply with the regulations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). We will not be able to change only a few monitors, as our SAM scheduling system does not allow staff to pick who gets which computer. Blaskey asked what size monitor would be needed to solve the problem. Friedman replied that we would need a 19″ monitor, and we would have to replace sixteen public monitors in Adult Services. Blaskey asked if Rivera could meet with Highler and Friedman, to show them the problems he has encountered and discuss them. Rivera said that he could.
Friedman was thanked for coming, and left at 7:40 p.m.
Formal motion was made to hire Sharon L. Highler as Library Director for the starting salary of $80,000.00 annually, effective January 18, 2010, by Blaskey with a second by Salo. Roll call vote:
AYES: Salo, Blaskey, Gutierrez, Rivera, O’Cull.
NAYS: None.
ABSENT: Salutric, Teets.
The Board approved the hiring of Robert Parker as Adult Services Page, effective December 21, 2009, to replace Erica Szkudlarek, on a motion by Blaskey with a second by Salo. Ayes: All.
The Board approved the hiring of Allison Bartellt as Youth Services Associate to replace Tyler Works, effective December 16, 2009, on a motion by Blaskey with a second by Rivera.
Ayes: All.
Resolution #10-523, appointing Library Director, Sharon L. Highler, as I.M.R.F. authorized agent, was adopted on a motion by Blaskey with a second by Rivera. Roll call vote:
AYES: Salo, Blaskey, Gutierrez, Rivera, O’Cull.
NAYS: None.
ABSENT: Salutric, Teets.
Board members received copies of a letter from the Northern Illinois Municipal Electric Cooperative (NIMEC), which is an intergovernmental pool, of which the library district is a member, that searches for competitive quotes for electric service. NIMEC is anticipating a 10% increase in the price of energy over the previous year.
Highler then discussed major changes in the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), effective January 1, 2010, with the Board. Among the changes is the additional requirement that each public entity appoint an FOIA officer and that the officer must successfully complete a training class plus additional training annually. Highler is willing to be the FOIA officer if the Board wishes, and suggests that it also appoint Rich Stronczek as an additional FOIA officer. Deciding on an FOIA policy can be done at the next regular Board meeting.
Sharon L. Highler and Rich Stronczek were appointed as the FOIA officers of the Northlake Public Library District on a motion by Blaskey with a second by Rivera.
Ayes: All.
Highler asked Board members if they would want to receive sendable meeting documents as email before the meeting. The Board agreed to this. Highler is also updating Board members’ contact information.
Due to upcoming elections, Highler and the Board discussed members’ current term lengths and the next date they need to run for office.
A Trustee/Director Forum is being held at the Metropolitan Library System at its Burr Ridge location on February 6, 2010. Any Board member interested in attending should notify Highler.
Highler would like to know if any Trustees would want to have an Illinois Library Association (ILA) membership. Trustees do not have to be ILA members to attend its meetings or programs, but there is a discount for members. Trustees should let Highler know if they wish to become ILA members.
There has been a request to use our program room by a youth outreach organization that claims to serve Northlake students, but has an address outside of the district. Should a fee be charged? The Board decided to charge the fee for this meeting, then review and revise the current meeting policy.
The Board would like to welcome Highler as director with an open house at the library. February 21, 2:00-4:00 p.m., were established as the date and time. The open house will be fairly simple, with punch and cookies. The library’s newsletter was already late getting out, so the staff could not wait to include an announcement. The newsletter staff was able to include a brief welcoming announcement on the front page.
No members of the public were present.
The next Board meeting is scheduled for February 18, 2010.
Having moved through the agenda, the meeting adjourned at 8:33 p.m., on a motion by Salo with a second by Blaskey.
Ayes: All.
Barbara Salo, Secretary