MINUTES

MATHEWS MEMORIAL LIBRARY

 BOARD OF TRUSTEES

January 14, 2020

CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order by Vice-chairman Jim Pavik at 5:00 p.m. Chairman Steve Wilson is away from the county.

ATTENDING: Nancy Fisher, Sue Jennette, Reed Lawson, and Dick Pogue. Mike Rowe was present standing in for Jackie Ingram, Board of Supervisors representative to the BOT. Also present were Bette Dillehay, library director, Molly Broderson, president of the Friends of the Library and Joi Ball, prospective president of the FOL.      

MINUTES: The minutes of the November 12, 2019 board meeting were approved as corrected on a motion by Dick and a second by Sue. Nancy was thanked for taking the minutes of that meeting.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR: As requested Bette distributed her report to the board in advance of the meeting. The report included the financial and activity data for the two-month period from November 12, 2019 and ending January 14, 2020. (See attached report.)

Financial Report 

• Operational expenses totaled $19,438.44 with year-to-date expenditures totaling $54,979.75, an 8.85% increase over the same period a year ago. Operating expenses are 40.36% of the total budget with unencumbered operating funds totaling $81,280.25, which includes a $50 donation and funds for Coalition for Kids totaling $16,717.00.
• Salaries and Related Expenses for the current fiscal year are budgeted at $275,184. For the first six months of the fiscal year, expenses totaled$134,844.67 or 49% of the budgeted amount.
• Budget - On January 8, 2020, the director presented to the Board of Supervisors the FY 2020-2021 budget proposal approved by the BOT by email review and vote. The proposed budget including salaries and related expenses and operating expenses is $397,634, an increase of $3,721 over the previous year. The proposed budget met with favorable comments by the supervisors. A letter from MML BOT - with comparison data of the comparable pay scales in the local area - was sent to the BOS requesting consideration of salary increases for full and part time staff. Mike assured the board that the letter had been received and is now in review.

Patrons

            The number of new patrons added during the reporting period is 25 bringing the total number to   9,910.

Programs

• The director reported a successful holiday season at the library with five special programs held. Attendance was estimated at 199 with positive comments received. The huge effort by the staff and volunteers was capped by a December 20 luncheon and Chinese gift exchange, hosted, in thanks, by Bette.
• The director discussed issues dealing with addressing the needs of 15-20 high-energy middle school students, who are creating mayhem in the library. The C4K met earlier in the day - the Bay School, MML, 4-H and YMCA - to brainstorm strategies to meet needs. In addition to the library not being the place to meet these needs, the obstreperous behavior creates an atmosphere that causes other well-intentioned teens to stay away. The thought is to utilize the C4K funds as seed money to upgrade the Boys & Girls Club to provide the programs that will meet these needs. The goal is to involve the community. The director assured the board that security is not a problem at the library.
• The director presented a five-page report. "Mathews Memorial Library 2019 - Year in Review and What's in Store for 2020." prepared by the staff and her.( See attached report.)

REPORT FROM THE FRIENDS: Molly introduced soon-to-be-elected president Joi Ball. She recounted the success of the November General Meeting in which the Mathews County post offices was the topic. Part time MML employee and retired postmistress of Cobbs Creek Post Office Colanne Bunting presented the program. The FOL is now in the budget review mode. Prospective officers for 2020 to be nominated at the January 15 meeting are: Joi Ball for president, Molly Broderson for vice-president, Jan Towne for secretary and Paul DeBois for treasurer.

OLD BUSINESS: Bette, as requested by the BOT, created the document. "Operations and Procedures - Duties of the Director," which included her areas of responsibility, i.e. finance and accounting, personnel matters, facility management, program training and exhibits. She reiterated what a privilege it is to serve as director of the library and is not planning to retire.

NEW BUSINESS: Jim proposed the possibility of the BOT conducting a general survey of library patrons to measure satisfaction; this has not been done to date. He distributed an example of such a survey found in the Virginia Public Library Trustee Handbook. Discussion ensued on how to accomplish distribution to patrons that would achieve a balanced response. Dick advised that conducting a survey can be a tricky process. The matter will be reviewed.

PUBLIC COMMENT: None.

ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 5:45 p.m.

The next regular meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, March 10, 2020.                    .

Submitted by Reed Lawson, Secretary

Attachments to the official record as stated.