West Central Reporter

The Jacksonville Public Library Board of Trustees  met May 9 to approve adding resealing windows to the previously approved panels project.

The Jacksonville Public Library Board of Trustees meets at 4:30 a.m. on the second Monday of each month.

Here's the meeting's agenda, as provided by the board:

The regular meeting of the Jacksonville Public Library Board of Directors was held May 9, 2016 in the library’s conference room. Present were President Mary Fergurson, Noel Beard, Craig Albers, Robert Underbrink, Forrest Keaton, Elizabeth Kennedy, Assistant Library Director Hillary Peppers and Library Director Chris Ashmore. Absent were Katie Weeks, Ted Roth, and Kevin Eckhoff. Fergurson called the meeting to order at 4:33 PM. Guest Matt Hardy from Benton and Associates explained to the board that the work laid out in the contract for the panels project was completed by Vollintine Construction to Benton and Associates satisfaction. However, during the project, it was discovered that the windows in the new addition of the building were leaking and all needed re-sealing. Hardy’s recommendation was to accept Vollintine Construction’s offer of $4,914.85 to re-seal the windows and proceed with this as a change order to make the work part of the panels project. Discussion ensued Albers made a motion to accept this change order to the panels project to re-seal all of the windows in the new addition for $4,914.85. Motion was seconded by Underbrink. Motion carried. Hardy will prepare a written change order for both party’s signatures and Vollintine will then proceed with the work. It was moved by Kennedy and seconded by Beard that the minutes of the April board meeting be accepted as submitted. Motion carried. It was moved by Beard and seconded by Underbrink that all financial reports be approved and that all properly approved bills for May in the amount of $57,527.28 be paid out of general funds as funds are available. Motion carried. Director’s Report April was a very busy month and full of activities. Hilary arranged for two author visits. Melanie Holmes, author of The Female Assumption, visited on Saturday April 2 to discuss her book and Lorna Dempster, author of In a Moment, visited on Friday April 22 to discuss her book. The last Music Under the Done concert of the 2015-2016 season was held on Sunday April 3. A packed house enjoyed the music of Northumbrian small piper Dick Hensold. Mr. Hensold brought a number of unique instruments that he discussed and played. It was an educational and enjoyable performance. The last film in this season’s Humanities Film Series, Selma, was screened on April 21. Several college students and Jacksonville residents enjoyed this Civil Rights era drama hosted by Lincoln Land Community College Professor Dr. Ashley Green. The inaugural “Butterflies, Bees, Gardens and Trees” lecture was held on April 11. Herbalist and organic farmer Kathryn Chapman gave an interesting talk on Wild Edible Plans to a very nice sized audience. On Saturday April 23, the library hosted a very educational and well attended program entitled “I Heard French at Wal-Mart: Welcoming Congolese Immigrants to Central Illinois”. French students from Illinois College, under the direction of Dr. Emily Adams, as well as local Congolese “language partners” of the students gave an excellent talk and power point presentation about the history, culture, politics, and geography of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The program served as an opportunity for Jacksonville Residents to meet their new neighbors and learn a little about them and what brought them to this area. A punch and cookies reception followed the presentation. Instead of the regular Poetry Group meeting, the library hosted an Open Mic Night at the Soap Co. Coffee House on the Square on the evening of April 7. The Book Club met on April 28 to discuss The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. A great discussion was held. The Friends of the Library was busy in April. The group held its annual Author of the Year Contest Awards Ceremony on the evening of April 12. The first through third place winners in both poetry and prose read their winning entries. Cash awards were given by Farmers State Bank and Trust. A reception followed the awards and readings. On Friday April 22 and Saturday April 23, the Friends of the library held its annual used book sale. A ton of work was done by several members of the Friends Group to make this a successful sale. Special thanks go to Mary Lou Lael, Marty Reid, Sue Hackett, Sharon Zuiderveld, Sally Nurss, Carol Chesebro and John Meece. Thanks are also given to the Jacksonville Congregational Church, UCC for allowing the Friends Group to store the books at the church throughout the year and then hold the sale in their basement fellowship hall. The sale netted over $1,500. The City Fire Inspector visited the library on April 14. The library passed this annual inspection. On Sunday April 17, Bob and Aaron Meek spent several hours at the library upgrading the libraries time and print management software. The upgrade of the print management software was necessary to allow for the addition of Mobile Printing. The library will be proceeding with the setup and installation of the mobile printing as soon as we are contacted by the “implementation consultant” from Envisionware. Chris also put together information and photographs to be included on a library web page on the City of Jacksonville’s new web site. On April 21, Kim Pohlman was able to upgrade to the latest version of Quick Books and add the option of Direct Deposit of Payroll. As soon as everyone participating has given her their bank information, routing number etc.., she can proceed with Direct Deposit. This will most likely begin with June’s payroll. Other tasks keeping Chris busy in April included program planning and publicity; Facebook and Web Site maintenance; collection development; working with the two ongoing building projects; and maintaining the day-to-day operations of the library. Adult Services In April, Hillary attended the Public Library Association conference in Denver, Colorado. She attended sessions on reaching foreign language speaking patrons, circulating nontraditional materials, and programming for patrons with disabilities. She is putting these ideas into practice with the library’s summer bookmobile for children and by working with Library Clerk Bridget Dean to offer programming for Jacksonville residents with disabilities who are not currently using the library. Hillary worked with Chris on the library’s portion of the new city website and began work on a new page of the library’s website to offer the necessary information to patrons wishing to use mobile printing. She had her first technology appointment, helping a patron learn how to use her new iPad. She also created the May newsletter and distributed it to a variety of media and social service outlets, and maintained the library’s website to reflect current collections and programs. Hillary advised patrons on reference questions; helped patrons with computer and technology tasks; contributed to the weekly Shelf Life newspaper column and continued her work on adult collection development. Interlibrary Loan/Holds In April there were 801 items borrowed from other libraries; 550 items were lent to other libraries; and there were 516 reciprocal circulations. Circulation Services The Circulation Department has continued to provide great customer service to all Jacksonville Public Library patrons. In April, the circulation staff has continued to weed the DVD’s that haven’t been circulated in over 2 years in order to make room for newer additions. Circulation staff also sent out letters to local businesses to inform them of the library’s Adult Summer Reading Program and ask them if they would like to become sponsors. A good response was received; so far, 9 businesses have donated gift certificates and money. Sarah worked on the promotional material for the Adult Summer Reading Program throughout the month. Sarah also prepared for and taught beginning computer classes during the month of April. Everyone who attended the classes learned new skills and progress could definitely be seen by the end of each night. Sarah had one technology session in April where she showed a patron how to upload photos to Google Drive so that they could be accessed on multiple devices. National Library week was April 10-16. During this week, the library celebrated by having a few giveaways. Last but not least, Sarah attended Lincoln Elementary School’s family night with Cindy in order to sign patrons up for library cards and educate families about the Summer Reading Program. Extension Services April was "spring cleaning" month in the Large Print Collection. Circulation list in hand, Diane pulled 103 large print books to withdraw based upon low checkouts or inactivity over recent years. That was only in the first 4 sections of fiction shelves! It's going to be a long process, but the end result should be a more attractive and inviting area. Some of the books were donated to the Little Free Library project while others were donated to area nursing homes or placed on the "free" shelf in the west entryway. At the Morgan County Professionals for Senior Wellness meeting on April 7, Diane talked to the director of the Illinois Presbyterian Home about holding a meeting with residents at the Decastro Residence (behind School Apartments) to let them know about library services. Diane also attended the April 14 meeting of the Morgan/Scott/Greene County Planning Committee at Passavant Hospital. The Knollwood Book Club met on April 8, and the Jacksonville Area Senior Center Book Club on April 26, with "History of Illinois" the topic. Youth Services April was a nice break from the hustle and bustle of the previous months and the months to come! Cindy started out the month presenting at the Illinois Youth Services Institute and the reviews from her program on the Children’s Garden Group were very positive! All of the regular Youth Services programs, such as Story Time, Lego Club, Lap Sit and Fingernail Art, continued to draw a crowd. Cindy will take a break from Lap Sit for May and part of the summer due to a busy schedule. It will start again in the fall. Gardening Club began in April as well. A new day care will be attending this year --the 4 and 5 year olds from Our Redeemer. A thank you is owed to Mary Lou Lael and Don Pigg for helping Cindy with the program. Cindy and Sarah attended the Lincoln Elementary School Family Night to promote Summer Reading and to sign people up for library cards. In addition to all of that, Cindy began visiting schools to promote the Summer Reading program. May is jam packed with school visits and then it’s time for Summer Reading itself. Technical Services Things continued to operate smoothly in Technical Services. Diane Darnell efficiently kept up with cataloging. Heidi and Kim Pohlman processed materials. Volunteer Linda Little continued to work on special projects and assist where needed. COMMITTEE REPORTS Automation/Technology None Building and Grounds Albers reported on a change order for the steps project in the amount of $5,473 that he approved based upon prior authority granted him by the library board. The change order was for unforeseen work needed to shore up the crumbling foundation under the steps. The written change order was signed by President Fergurson. Albers also mentioned the possibility of Larry Quenette retiring in the near future and suggested the board begin thinking about a replacement for the type of work Quenette has done for the library in the past (i.e. overseeing building projects from start to finish). He also mentioned that it might be a good thing to have a fresh set of eyes look at the building when we have our next Facilities Assessment Report. Finance None Personnel None Public Relations None FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY Ashmore reported on the Friends of the Library Author of the Year Awards Ceremony which was held on April 12. The top three finishers in both the prose and poetry categories read their winning entries to a nice crowd and received cash prizes from Farmers State Bank. Ashmore also reported that the Friends of the Library held their annual book sale on Friday April 22 and Saturday April 23. The group made about $1,500 on the sale and the remaining books were donated to Pathway. RAILS/RSA None OLD BUSINESS None NEW BUSINESS None Underbrink made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 5:30 PM, seconded by Keaton. Motion carried. Respectfully submitted by Chris Ashmore