Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes_LAB_02.08.1999Minutes for the Georgetown Public Library Advisory Board eeting 8 February 1999 Present: Tom Barry, Nelda Burson, Joe Case, Nell Dickson, Jean Ehnebuske, Sheila Henderson, Lisa Hopkins, Judy Parks, Sharon Sanders Webster Excused Absences: Dorothy Hagen, Rachel. Logue Meeting was called to order at 6:32 p.m. Approval of Minutes: The following corrections were made under: 1. Present: Tom Barry 2. Comments from Citizens. Sheila With these corrections, the minutes were accepted as corrected. Comments from Citizens: Sheila mentioned the letter enclosed in our packets from an out-of-town visitor. She found his comments on the present state of the library complimentary to the staff. Comments from the Chair: Nell had nothing to report. Introduction of New Board Member: New Board member, Lisa Hopkins, was introduced and welcomed. Lisa stated that she had experience as a library employee at two locations. Library Director's Report and Statistics: ® Circulation is increasing steadily More than 1000 books were checked out last Saturday. ® New patrons are being added daily. ® We hope to have Internet access by February 15. Sheila will present a resolution to the Council about legislative issues affecting the library. This resolution will be sent to the legislators. ® About 11,000 new books were processed last year and there is no more shelf space. The meeting room will probably have to be taken for the Texas History Room. ® Wendy Clark from the Texas State Library will visit on February 9 to advise Sheila as to what she will be doing for us in the mentor program. Old Business: Judy told us she had written a letter to the governor urging him to support library legislation Jean reported on the progress of the Gala." Monday, March 1, is the last day to send checks and requests for tickets. All tickets will be picked up at the door. She presented flyers with information. George Nelson and his Sun City Jazz Band will play for dancing after Liz Carpenter's speech and the live auction. The silent auction will offer much the same type of things that were available at the last Gala. The live auction hasa number of weekend get-aways, among other things. Jean moved to adjourn the meeting and Joe seconded the move. The meeting adjourned at 7:25. Respectfully submitted, Nelda Burson To: Mr. Bob Hart City Manager The City of Georgetown P.Q. Box 409 Georgetown, Texas 78627 From: John Estes P.O. Box 9650 College Station, Texas 77842 Re: Recent Visit Mr. Hart, My name is John Estes. I am 50 years old and live in College Station Texas. Over the Christmas holidays I, along with my wife and 12-year-old daughter, visited Georgetown. It was the first time that I have visited the area since I was a small child. We had initially planned to spend one or more nights in the town. We spent only about 5 hours instead. We had specifically come to Georgetown to locate ancestor's graves that had been among the first families to settle in the Georgetown area in the 1840's and 1850's. One of my Great -Great -Grand Fathers had been the county Sheriff for Williamson County and had died in the line of duty. The town was very well kept and there are many beautiful older homes in the area. However T was.a `little' disappointed at the apparent lack of historical markers and monuments that were readily visible while driving around. We were especially dismayed at the Library and the ,genealogica_l, records that are housed there (or rather lack of them). The exterior of the building was attractive and the natural garden space was good. The roof apparently leaks and it has affected some of the electrical circuits. There appears to be no computer Internet access or data on CD's. My daughter mentioned that it was sad for a relative new building in an attractive town to be run down already. Overall though the Librarians seem to have done an excellent job of general books and materials, within the budget given. And there appears to be the problem; allocation of funds and resources along with a commitment for support from the city. The genealogical section was EXTREMELY limited in materials at hand. We were informed several times that common records that should be located there, are not. We would have to go to Round Rock, Florence, or to Austin to view Georgetown and Williamson County records in order to research our ancestors. Mr. Ralph Love was the `volunteer' at the Library and was exceptionally knowledgeable and helpful. I cannot say enough positive comments about Mr. Love. If it had not been for him the trip would have been mostly wasted. Mr. Love knows the area intimately and the families that settled it. He should be considered a living asset to the Williamson County community. However in documenting research it is imperative that a paper trail be established. We are trying to research not only for ourselves, but also for relatives that are scattered across Texas and the nation. I feel that they will be disappointed when informed of the amount of material that is available in Georgetown. There is an annual family reunion that is usually held in the Abilene and Lubbock area. I had hoped to hold it in Georgetown, to review records and visit sites. This may be put off for sometime, or we may have to go to Round Rock or Austin. One of my Great -Great -Grandfathers is reportedly buried in the `Fish {?} Cemetery' off Shell Road. I understand that it was almost bulldozed for a housing development recently. I know that Georgetown is a fast growing area and has a promising future. But what good is the future if we cannot even `access' the past or it is plowed under in the name of progress. Thank goodness `volunteers' saw fit to save the `Alamo' when others wanted to bulldoze it. I have been an educator for over 25 years and have seen changes in the student population over that time. In the fast growing world today students are deluged with current events and fiction at the movies and on TV. Some have little appreciation or knowledge of the past and little respect for it. It is very sad when a college freshman is asked about World War II and they don't even know who the leaders were or what it was about. I r would venture to say that a number of students don't even know there own family history or lineage past their parents (if that). There is however a growing movement to encourage the students in school to take an interest in `their' past. There are many adults that are learning to do genealogical research to secure the information for themselves and their descendents. Public Internet access and Libraries are essential for this research. There are library centers set up in Houston, Conroe, Dallas etc. that focus on Genealogy. Those centers are a great asset to their communities, bringing in visitor dollars as well as creating a positive image of the community state and nation wide. I would think that such a center, or at least an up grade of materials and facilities, could only enhance a city (like Georgetown) with a bright future. It would increase day visits f rom outside the area and encourage overnight stays in the area. It also would be an excellent addition to a Web Site for a city. Mr. Love (and I am sure other `volunteers') has an excellent handle on what is needed to `immediately upgrade' the local facility to one that is more in line with the image that Georgetown and Williamson County needs to portray. I feel that there must be grants, community support, business sponsors, etc that could even bring it to a "State of The Art" center for central Texas. Needless to say the rest of the library services would improve along with it. I would suggest that your city and county government should actively support the Library and a Genealogical Center for Georgetown and Williamson County. I feel that Mr. Love can be of great assistance in making a list of immediate needs and suggestions. In my opinion focus needs to be in upgrading the current facility and establishing a Regional Center immediately. I am planning to retire in the next 10 years and I am considering the Georgetown area as a possible retirement site. I would really like to see some positive movement on this matter in the VERY near future. I would also re quest that if there were any discussions of disturbing the Cemetery on Shell Road (where my relatives are buried) I would require that you notify me 90 days in advance so I could look into legal action to protect or recover the remains of my relatives. Thank you for your time and consideration. I again feel that Georgetown has a {night future. But that the measure of any great society or AC community is not where they are going but where they have been and how well they preserve and respect their past. Sincerely, John Estes cc Head Librarian - Georgetown Mr. Ralph Love MONTHLY REPORT GEORGETOWN PUBLIC LIBRARY January, 1999 Highlights First time checkouts increased from 10,947 in December to 14, 082 in January. We saw a 25.8% increase in circulation from last month and a 7.3% increase from January 1998. Library Staff participated in numerous meetings and workshops and continued to work with the Information Resources department to work out problems that prevent us from providing public Internet access and printing from pc stations. STAFF - Out and About! Sheila Henderson attended the City of Georgetown Board and Commissions Orientation held Thursday, January 7. On January I 1-13, Eric Lashley, Craig Dowell, Lee Sparks, Kathleen Bowling and Rosa Garcia attended a Principle -Centered Leadership workshop sponsored by the City. Sheila Henderson attended a Georgetown Project meeting held on January 13. A 7:00am breakfast meeting was hosted by Dr. JoAnn Ford and Jan Williams on January 20th to discuss a grant opportunity for after school programs. Sheila Henderson represented the library and will write a letter of support for the proposal. Lee Sparks, Eric Lashley, Craig Dowell and Rosa Garcia attended the CTLS Regional meeting in Marble Falls on January 20. On January 27, Rosa Garcia attended a Georgetown Project meeting. Sheila Henderson attended the CTLS Regional meeting in Killeen on January 21 and College Station on January 29. 0 0 PROGRAMMING January brought out the `bear' in all of us. The children colored `Pooh' bears and made paper Panda bear and Polar bear crafts after storytime. Kathleen Burnop has resumed her role as storyteller as well as provided the ideas behind the craft time projects. Ms Rosa and Kathleen work hard to come up with innovative ways to enhance the love of reading. VOLUNTEERS I STAFF PROJECTS Maria West, our part-time circulation staff member, has taken on the task of weeding and organizing our periodical collection. She has spent many hours labeling and re -arranging the magazines in order to make better use of the shelving available. Our historical collection is ever growing and this project has made it easier for staff to locate the necessary copies. Thank you to Maria for taking on and sticking to this very tedious task. FUTURE PLANS!!! • TLA Legislative Day is Feb. 23. • Library Foundation Gala is scheduled for March 6,1999. • Public Library Association Annual Conference will be in Chicago, March 24-27. Texas Library Association Annual Conference will be held in Dallas, April 21- 24. • C.T.L.S. Regional Long Range Planning Meeting will be held May 13-14. Location TBA. • Georgetown Public Library Statistics Comparative Fiscal Year Statistics 1998 1999 Oct. Nov, Dec. Jana Y-T- Patron Visit Current Year 23,409 21,022 10,339 13,810 68,580 19 -19 8 15,383 9,137 9,609 9,637 153,997 1996-1997 11,514 10,727 9,247 11,991 161,905 19 -1996 7,672 9,312 6,803 10,980 125,397 19 4-1995 11,260 8,920 7,834 9,424 113,240 199 -1994 5,356 9,211 6,621 8,208 104,437 1992-1993 5,204 5,354 4,994 5,313 66,443 Circulation Current Year 20,533 16,866 14,233 17,906 69,538 1997-1998 20,333 14,864 14,501 16,686 220,430 1996-1997 13,865 13,161 12,560 15,885 206,504 1995-1996 15,315 14,389 11,133 14,725 174,409 1 4-1995 15,305 14,766 12,038 15,024 187,548 1993-1994 14,205 13,607 11,253 14,074 182,578 1992-1993 12,437 11,562 10,399 11,824 159,648 statistics Children's Programs Attendance 534 528 579 392 2,024 Programs 2 3 4 2 11 Story Hour 10 6 4 10 30 her: Tour, Movies, Craft Other Services ILL ordered 29 26 19 53 127 ILL filled 24 22 21 29 96 Large Print Circ 59 50 50 50 250 Volunteer Hours Adult 60,59 92M 71.50 79,75 303,75 Teen 2.00 32,00 4.00 24M 62.00 Community Service 2€ ,00 9.00 _ 32.50 22M 8&50 Total Volunteer Hours 82,51 133.00 108,00 125,75 449,25 Registrations pity Residents - new 285 124 88 140 637 Non -Residents - new 38 29 21 25 113 € on -Residents - Renew 63 51 31 51 196 Total 386 204 140 216 946 Cash Receipts Fines, Room rentals 1,567.72 1,222,92 1,309M 1,368.33 5,40&95 Non -Residence Fees 1,790.t3t3 1,265.ti{7 865.tJtt 1,225.00 $5,055.00 Donations 1,181A8 737.18 1,158, 41 2,451.80 $5,528,57 • GIFT FUND EXPENDITURES JANUARY 1999 BOOK DONATIONS John Applewaite Lands on ATM by David E. McDysan Network Protocols by Matthew G. Naugle Netware to Windows NT by Arnold Villeneuve Tina Bissell With Love & Wisdom: A Parenting Program (kit) Dr. and Mrs. R. J. Kaufmann Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen Emperor's Last Stand by Julia Blackburn Variegated Leaves by Susan Conder The Film Encyclopedia by Ephraim Katz A History of Medieval Spain by Joseph O'Callaghan Penguin English Verse (12 cassettes) What Life is Like Among Druids and High Kings What Life Was Like Amid Splendor & Intrigue What Life Was Like in the Land of the Dragon What Life Was Like in the Realm of Elizabeth Kelsey Osterman 23 Board Books Donated by Kelsey Osterman and her friends on her 4th Birthday, January 19, 1999. St. Helen's Catholic Church Childcare Ministry Experiencing God With Your Children by Kathy Coffey Where Does God Live? by Marc Gellman Keeping Your Kids Catholic ed. by Bert Ghezzi Mom Stories: Instant Inspiration for Mothers by Vickie Lo Piccolo Jennett Mothering as a Spiritual Journey by Ann Tremaine Linthorst Tend Your Own Garden (How to Raise Great Kids) by Timothy O'Connell Rituals for Home & Parish by Jack Rathschmidt San Gabriel Womans Club • The Encyclopedia of Women's History in America by Kathryn Cullen -DuPont Edison: A Life of Invention by Paul Israel A Bridge Across the Jordan by Adaia & Abraham Shumsky Noah Webster: The Life and Times of an American Patriot by Harlow Giles Unger Clara Scarbrough Ancestors compiled by Clara Scarbrough Sydney Drew Spencer 16 Board Books Donated in Honor of Sydney Drew Spencer's 4th Birthday, January 25, 1999. Contributions made by Sydney and all her friends. Charles M. Tanner Lindbergh by Scott Berg The Greatest Generation by Tom Brokaw Rainbow 6 by Tom Clancy Clark Thurmond Authentic Art Deco Jewelry Designs The Federalist Dig Your Well Before You're Thirsty by Harvey Mackay Is The Time -Life Library of Boating: The Boat Boat Handling The Classic Boat Cruising Cruising Grounds Maintenance Navigation Off Shore Racing Seamanship Sports Afloat Animal Architecture by Karl von Frisch PO Box 12927 Austin TX 78711-2927 January 25, 1999 Sheila Ross Henderson Library Services Director Georgetown Public Library 808 Martin Luther King Georgetown, TX 78626-5527 Dear Ms. Henderson: Lorenzo de Zavala I am pleased to inform you that your library has been selected for participation State Archives and in the Community Advocacy Project, an initiative of Libraries for the Future Library Building (LFF) and Friends of Libraries U.S.A. Eight states were chosen to participate in the project based on their lower level of support for public libraries. Other 1201 Brazos St states participating in the project are Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, AustinTX78701 Nebraska, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, and Vermont. www.tsl.state.tx.us 0 Commission Chairman Carolyn P. Armstrong Members Kenneth R. Carr Patrick Heath Sandy Melton Sandra Pickett Marvin A. Rich Director and Librarian Robert S. Martin, Ph.D. Making lonformation work for all Texans Your library will receive the following tools from Libraries for the Future: ✓ a visit from a library mentor selected by Libraries for the Future ✓ a resource manual ✓ on -going technical assistance through email and telephone Please note: The project will pay all of the LFF mentor's travel costs. No other financial assistance is available. Libraries selected for participation in the project may utilize the services of the visiting LFF mentor to serve their particular needs. For example, they may organize a training workshop, brainstorming session, have a meeting with community leaders, or use the visit to kick-off a new library initiative. The selected libraries will need to plan their projects for February -November of 1999. I will be your contact person for the project and will work with you to communicate your needs to the Libraries for the Future staff. If you have any questions, please contact me at 512-936-2236 or wendy.clark@tsl.state.tx.us. In the interim, I will be contacting you the week of February 1st to begin the planning process. Some things you will need to consider: ,,' How would you like to use the mentor? ✓ What are you looking for in a mentor? ✓ What groups or individuals would you like to include in your meeting or workshop —how will you invite them? ✓ What space is available in your community for the program? ✓ What publicity do you need? ✓ What is your budget for this project? ✓ What is the best month to do your project (mentors are available late February until November)? ✓ What other resources do you need? I am enclosing project status information and a suggested checklist from Libraries for the Future. Additionally, a program on library advocacy and the Community Advocacy Program will be presented at the Texas Library Association conference this April in Dallas. 0 1 look forward to working with you. Sincerely, k-4" Wendy Clark Texas State Library and Archives Commission Library Development Division Special Services Consultant • • State Library .and/or State Partner Checklist The state library and/or state partner(s) meet with other members of the planning committee to discuss a workshop site, outreach plan, dates, and mentorship needs. Outreach to community members is not traditionally part of the advocacy landscape. The state library and/or state partner(s) discuss with the Advocacy Director and/or Program Associate goals and needs. Tentative dates are determined. A Community Library Advocacy Project Advisor and mentor are identified and notified by the Advocacy Director, and final dates are set. Two conference call dates are solidified by the Program Associate. The conference call agenda is set by the Advocacy Director and state partners. The conference call takes place to plan the workshop among the state partner, mentor - advocate, Program Associate, and Advocacy Director. The state partner submits the tentative agenda for the workshop to conference call • participants. Final agenda and material development (what and how much is needed) is approved. The logistics of mentor travel are to be discussed with the Program Associate. Make sure mentor has local emergency contact numbers. Program Associate is responsible for sending advocacy workshop materials to the local site. The Advocacy Director and/or Program Associate calls 2-3 days prior to the workshop to ensure that the state partner has all materials and information. Workshop tips: If someone from the local site is hosting, be sure to provide adequate information about the mentor and the CLAP project. Make sure to introduce all participants. Evaluation sheets need to be filled out and copies sent to LFF. A brief post -workshop report should be sent to the Advocacy Director, which includes information about the effectiveness of the mentor -advocate, and your evaluation for follow-up. REGISTRATION FORM TLA LEGISLATIVE DAY February 23,1999 Join us for TLA Legislative Day 1999. Please register early so that we can plan for your attendance. DEADLINE for registration is January 10, 1999, to receive a housing reservation card for the Hyatt Regency on Town Lake. TLA group rates are available only if you register by January 10, 1999. Hotel registration received after the cut-off date will only be accepted on a space and rate available basis. Name TLA District Address City Zip Work # ( ) Home # ( ) Fax # ( ) E-mail Library Library staff Government official Board member or friend State Senator District No. State Representative District No. If you are uncertain about your legislator's name or district number, check with your local Voter Registration Office, the Democratic or Republican Party headquarters, or (if you are a TLA member) contact the TLA office at 800/580-2852. Appointments with legislators will be made by the TLA-designated leaders for each senatorial district. Please list any Senators or Representatives with whom you are acquainted or with whom you wish to visit. I cannot attend, but I would like to contribute to Legislative Day. Check enclosed $ Return this form to: Cynthia Kidd Austin Public Library P.O. Box 2287, Austin, TX 78768 512/499-7449 or 499-7452 Fax: 512/499-7403 E-mail: cynthia.kidd@ci.austin.tx.us PLD oners umung Programs at Annual Conference i He roung RUM RVOU 1[g Incentive Award • PLD is offering a great variety of programs during the 1999 TLA Annual Conference in Dallas. The week will get started with a spectacular pre- conference on Tuesday, April 20- "ALA Live at the Library." PLD is co -sponsoring this prc-conference with the conference program committee. The day will be devoted to giving you ideas, showing ,you examples and preparing you to provide qual- ity programming in your library. A few of the topics to be ad- dressed are: cultural programming, developing a plan, develop- ing a program, and finding and working with authors. A sample program with an author will be presented during lunch. Pricing and registration information will be available in your TLA regis- tration packets. On Friday, April 23 at 10 a.m., plan to attend PLD's program "Speaking Up & Speaking Out: Library Advocacy" and business meeting. The program promises to be fun and informa- tive. Ideas on developing community awareness, visibility for libraries and building coalitions will be shared. Attendees will discover how to create effective public awareness programs to promote your library's services. Paul Crumlish, President of the New York Library Association, Janet Welch, State Librarian, New York, and Pctc Pearson, President of the Board of Directors of Libraries for the Future, will be our featured speak- crs. A short business meeting will follow the program. All PLD members or interested persons need to come and be a part of the operations of PLD. PLD will be having committee meetings on Wednesday, April 21, 10 a.m., and the Executive Board will meet on Thurs- day morning at 8:30 a.m. The TLA Conference Planning Committee has secured many wonderful speakers and programs that should interest all the diverse types and sizes of libraries, their staff' and supporters. Watch for your registration packet. You won't want to miss TLA in Dallas, April 20-23. Susan S. Mann Chair -Elect, PLD Director, Hillsboro City Library The Young Adult Round Table is seeking nomina- tions for this year's Young Adult Reading Incentive (YARI) Award to honor a librarian who has shown exceptional ability in motivating young adults to read by developing and implementing a reading incentive program for grades 6-12. The award will be presented at the Texas Library Association Annual Conference. Nominations must be made on the Nomination Form and submitted with 4 copies and must also include one set of supporting materials. For a nomination form contact: Su- san Allison, Past -Chair YART; Richardson Public Library; 900 Civic Center Dr.; Richardson, TX. 75080. 972-238- 4000; Fax 972-952-0870; or Susan allison'&,cor.gov. TLES Legislative Agenda The Texas Library Association's legislative agenda for the 1999 session is the strongest push for public library advance- ment in recent years. If approved by the legislature, the follow- ing proposals put forward by the Public Libraries Division will have a profound effect public library service in Texas: • Creation of the Texas Public Library Fund. This legisla- tion ---establishing first -ever direct state aid to public li- brarics in Texas —would create a permanent, non - expendable fund which would generate interest to be used for public library materials and facilities. Rep. Sherri Green- berg of Austin has agreed to sponsor the house bill to estab- lish the fund. TLA is working with Rep. Greenberg to set an amount for,the fund, which should be between $250 and $500 million. • Funding for the Texas Library System. TLA supports the Texas State Library and Archives Commission budget in- cluding $2 million per year for Read for Your Life, a project of the Texas Library System (not to be confused with the TLA media campaign of the same name) to purchase 140,000 items for public libraries_ This would be the first meaningful increase in this program for over a decade. • Public library participation in TexShare. TLA is seeking a change in the TexShare statute to allow public libraries to participate in TexShare as well as a rider appropriation for as much as $2 million to support this initiative. • Amending the library district law. TLA is seeking a change in the library district law to allow voters in more places the option of creating public library districts. These changes would allow the creation of districts in counties un- der 100,000 and in areas that currently appropriate munici- pal funds for library service, pending the approval of the governing authority. This is an ambitious agenda, but one which can .be achieved with the involvement of every TLA member. If you believe these initiatives would help your library, then call or write your senator and representative and ask that they support these. To stay informed of developments effecting libraries in the next session, subscribe to TLA Texline (to subscribe send a note to Mark Smith at marks(u@txIa.org}.