DOUGLAS COUNTY LIBRARIES
Board of Trustees Meeting
August 16, 2012
Philip S. Miller Library
Castle Rock, CO
President Heath called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m.
The following were present:
TRUSTEES: Barbara Dash, Demetria Heath, Bob McLaughlin, David Starck, Mark
Weston, Bob Morris and Amy Hunt.
STAFF: Jamie LaRue, Cecily North, David Farnan, Keith Carlson, Colbe Galston,
Leslie Good, Erica Olivier, Teresa LeFevre, Art Glover
GUESTS
Colbe Galston spoke about her first year as the BizInfo Librarian. She was
awarded first place by the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) for a
Business Plan that she wrote for BizInfo. Galston noted the return on investment
in the past year. The business librarians have been working with the SBDC and
she agreed to become a consultant with them where all Douglas County
residents are referred to the library for our services. She has also recently
become a mentor for the Castle Rock Chamber Young Entrepreneurs program.
Galston noted she has made an appearance on the “Experience Pros” radio show
and will be appearing again on August 20th.
Hunt asked about the SBDC program that Galston went through. It lasted from
April to June, 2012. She also noted that she has received six referrals from June
to July, 2012.
LaRue noted that Arapahoe/Douglas Works! is now in the Philip S. Miller library
and they will be hosting a grand opening on Sept. 27th, 2012 at 4pm.
Weston asked if there was a better way to track referrals and find where people
are discovering our services. Galston reported that our online submission form
has changed and they are tracking where people were referred from in a more
reliable manner.
PUBLIC COMMENT
None.
CONSENT AGENDA
Approved- Minutes, July, 2012; Financial Statements, July 2012.
MOTION 12-08-01: Morris moved and the motion carried unanimously to
approve the consent agenda.
Starck clarified that the ContentDM email poll passed. LaRue spoke to the need
for ContentDM to replace PastPerfect. The Research Center outgrew a tool, and
this one can handle more information and can be managed by IT. Weston stated
there must be a need for urgency in a phone or email poll. An important piece
of the approval process is discussion which is lacking in a poll between
meetings. Dash appreciated Weston’s comments to the polls. Dash noted she
sees the benefit of discussion before we act on a contract.
STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS
No conflicts of interest were declared.
Buildings and Grounds Committee
Hunt brought up a recent YourHub article reporting on a survey of Castle Pines
residents and whether they were in favor of building a city community center.
The result was overwhelmingly yes and discussion will begin in September or
October 2012. The mayor continues to be interested in the possibility of
sharing space with a new library.
Heath mentioned there was a similar conversation at the Partnership of Douglas
County Governments meeting held on August 15th, which talked about a civic
plaza space in Castle Pines. Weston clarified the location of these proposals.
LaRue confirmed they are the same location as proposed previously.
Bylaws and Policies Committee
No report.
Finance Committee
McLaughlin reported there will be a Finance Committee meeting held on both
Sept. 20th, 2012 and Oct. 18th, 2012.
Foundation Board
No report
Government Relations Committee
No report.
LaRue noted that the Elected Officials Caucus will be held at the PACE Center in
Parker on November 14th, 2012 from 5:30 – 7:30.
Personnel Committee
Compensation Study and Contract
Glover is proposing a salary study to see how we compare across the country
and how we can adjust grades and our compensation philosophy. In the past,
DCL has strived to pay staff in the top third of libraries across the Front Range.
We have not succeeded in that for the past couple of years, especially with IT
positions.
McLaughlin asked how many libraries are sampled. Glover replied that the
Mountain States Employers Council (MSEC) does a public library salary survey
every year which surveys over ten libraries.
Dash clarified that we still have a membership with MSEC, and asked how
MSEC’s proposal stack up against the other proposals. Glover stated that MSEC
was in the top five choices but the proposal was cost-prohibitive. He spoke with
them, and they would be willing to lower the price but not enough, and because
we are a member, DCL still has access to MSEC data.
Morris noted how much the preferred company would accomplish for such a
low price. Weston asked about a reference in the proposal to a database
system. Glover clarified this would be something we have access to as long as
DCL continues to update the information. Glover noted they are willing to work
with us for a year after the contract is over, at no extra cost. The database is
basically a spreadsheet, however.
Dash noted that have the private sector perspective would be good to have for
IT positions. Glover stated that MSEC does perform an IT study for the private
sector.
MOTION 12-08-02: Morris moved and the motion carried unanimously to
approve the Compensation Survey contract.
Technology Committee
Starck pointed to a recent study that LaRue, with the help of Collection
Development, did on the cost of Ebook purchases. Starck and LaRue discussed
the possibility of publishing a monthly cost comparison of the price of ebooks
to libraries by various vendors, and contrasting that with the cost to consumers.
What has been learned so far: Overdrive charges more than the consumer to
libraries, 3M charged 16 to 17% higher than Overdrive. 3M was made aware of
this fact and they lowered prices to match OverDrive’s for the opening day
collection.
The goal is for DCL to produce a monthly report and publish it. This would be a
standard tool with the DCL brand attached to it, which would be prestigious for
DCL.
Hunt noted this would be an excellent way to promote independent authors,
and other entities like Smashwords. This could also be used to communicate to
taxpayers that they are getting value for their tax dollars.
DIRECTOR’S REPORT
LaRue noted that the Digital Branch launched on August 15th. As of that date,
DCL held:
18,000 titles from Overdrive, 3M
10,000 Independent and midlist publishers
11,000 Smashwords
The RunWild event at Castle Pines has been moved to October 20th, in order to
avoid competition with Oktoberfest.
Weston noted that there is a CAL Trustee position open.
EMERGING ISSUES & DIALOG
None.
OTHER BUSINESS
DETERMINATION OF NEXT MEETING
7 p.m. on Thursday, September 20th, 2012, Parker Library; 6:30 p.m. dinner
President Heath adjourned the meeting at 8:09 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Amy Hunt, Board Secretary
Minutes prepared by Cecily North-Hurianek
Attachments:
July Minutes
July Financials