Suffolk County Library Association

Minutes of the Executive Board Meeting

April 26, 2003

Location: SCLS Blue Room

Present: J. Clemens, R. Dressler, B. Hoffman, J. Loughren, P. Bornstein, R. McEneaney, F. Byrne, S. Atlas, H. Biblo, C. Gray, F. Altemose, D. Cunningham, E. Cichanowicz, S. Ingram, S. Holden, C. Guzzo, P. Thomson, J. Barr, D. Bucher.

C. Guzzo called the meeting to order at 10:08AM. After a review of the March 21st minutes, necessary corrections made. F. Altemose moved to approve the minutes as corrected. P. Bornstein seconded. None were opposed.

TREASURER’S REPORT: J. Loughren distributed copies of the monthly financial statement for March 2003, which showed a fund balance of $33,937.45. P. Bornstein asked if the LDA expense was paid. Joe reported that it was. R. Dressler moved to accept the financial report. F. Altemose seconded. None were opposed.

PRESIDENT’S REPORT: J. Clemens addressed the issue of budgetary requests, asking that anyone having an item to be considered for the 2004 budget to let her or J. Loughren know as soon as possible. D. Bucher asked for archival material. It was also pointed out that the stationery currently being used still has Angie’s name on it. Joan also reported that a letter was sent to Xerox Corporation asking them to consider being a corporate sponsor for the SCLA Membership Handbook. She requested a $500 contribution. Joan has contacted J. Nichols asking for support for entering data for SCLA’s Statistical Survey. Jerry suggested contacting Mickey Cantwell. Joan asked that if there was anything else that Angie had done in the past that needs to be re-assigned, to let Joan know.

DIVISION REPORTS

DASL: R. McEneaney read the following report. DASL sponsored a program on March 28th at the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception in Huntington. It was a tour of the library and archive and 18 people attended. Elyse Hayes, Director of Library & Information Services gave the presentation and it was noted that she did an outstanding job and that everyone in attendance enjoyed themselves. It was also reported that there are books in the library at the Immaculate Conception written in Latin that need cataloging. Any help that can be offered to address this need would be greatly appreciated. Upcoming DASL programs include a presentation at the Long Island Library Conference on May 7th. The topic is Middle States Accreditation and Gloria Robeson, Associate Librarian at Adelphi University will be the speaker. On June 13th, there will be a DASL Business Meeting at Long Island University, Southampton campus. And on September 26th at Suffolk County Community College, Selden Campus, there will be a program about the PATRIOT Act in Libraries. Tracy Mitrano, Co-Director of the Computer Policy and Law Program at Cornell University will be speaking. S. Atlas mentioned that ALA has a video about the PATRIOT Act that is supposed to be very good as well. 

RASD: D. Cunningham reported that on April 23rd, there was an excellent program offered by the CARE Committee about Long Island Jobs on the Internet. It was very well attended, and Linda Knel, Fred Strum, Barbara Sussman and Grace O’Connor all offered excellent presentations regarding local employment opportunities and search strategies. Deborah also reported that the LI History Committee met on April 15th and that Cynthia Sciacca e-mailed a survey to be completed as to what people would like to see from the committee. Everyone was encouraged to respond. Deborah reported that membership numbers are up and that RASD’s newsletter, Ramblings, has been sent out. A streamer has been added to RASD’s website to announce upcoming events. Upcoming programs include a program at the Long Island Library Conference titled “It’s a Small World: Multi-Lingual Collection Development for Long Island Libraries”. The speaker will be Adriana Tandler and Fred Gitner, Head and Assistant Head of the New Americans Program at the Queens Borough Public Library. Deborah provided a preview of the handouts and catalogs that will be available at that program. Also scheduled is “Asian Authors, Part 1”, offered by the Reader’s Advisory Committee on May 22nd. The RASD Annual Dinner will be held on June 5th at the Irish Coffee Pub in East Islip. Deborah also reminded the group that Julia Alvarez, the author of How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents will be speaking and signing books on April 30th at 12PM at Nassau Community College. All were encouraged to attend.

CATS: No report.

SSD: F. Byrne reported that there was an SSD meeting on April 3rd about Carpet Maintenance. It was very well attended with 14 people present, representing 10 different libraries. They were very pleased, considering how specific an audience they were attempting to target. The SSD Board met on April 15th at the Sachem Library. The purpose of that meeting was to complete plans for the Long Island Library Conference, including their table and their program. The SSD Annual Meeting and Breakfast will be held on June 11th at 9AM. Dan Bubbeo, an author, will be speaking about the women of Warner Brothers. The division is very anxious to be present at the Long Island Library Conference to let everyone know of their presence and to encourage membership. Anyone interested in joining this division or becoming more involved should contact Marie Mueller.

J. Clemens used this opportunity to address the inquiry that was made from a division of NYLA representing library assistants as to whom to contact within SCLA. She reported that it is a bit of a tough fit finding the appropriate division, as library assistants don’t neatly fit into any one division. Joan said she would contact them and let them know that she couldn’t help them at this time.

YASD: P. Thomson read the following report. On April 10th, there were 19 people who attended “Teens and the Working World: Helping Teens Find Jobs, Internships, Volunteer Opportunities and Career Options” at SCLS. Speakers included Lisa Strahs-Lorenc representing LI Works Coalition, Richard Krebs representing Suffolk County Department of Labor, and Noreen Stackpole, representing Community Resources Database of LI. Upcoming activities include a workshop at the Long Island Library Conference called “Poetry in the Branches”. SCLA YASD, along with NCLA YASD, will be awarding the BEST award to Nassau and Suffolk winners, which will take place during the keynote and awards session. Also planned is a meeting on May 15th at the North Shore Public Library called “First Social Meeting” which will include a tour of North Shore’s YA area, a discussion of teen programs, and lunch at Phil’s in Wading River.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

ARCHIVES: No report.

CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS: No Report

CONTINUING EDUCATION: C. Gray reported that the committee met on April 22nd at the Middle Country Public Library, Selden Branch. Three people attended. Items discussed included finalizing details for the program to be offered at the Long Island Library Conference. Their topic is “I Love My Boss, But…Dealing Effectively With Your Supervisor/Employer”. The speaker will be Carrie Mason-Draffan of Newsday. Upcoming events include an October bus trip. One possible destination is the American Museum of Natural History. The concern is that the cost for the day may be too high. Specific numbers for actual costs are still being addressed. Another suggestion was a walking tour of Central Park. It was suggested that the proposed topic scheduled for the February 2004 workshop be changed in order to prevent a conflict with a similar program being offered by Virginia Antonucci of LILRC. The committee discussed it and felt that a workshop about marketing libraries through displays, presentations, and exhibits should go on as planned. It was felt that the programs planned by Virginia for Archives Week would have a different focus. Diane Holliday brought her portfolio of exhibits from Dowling College. The idea of a workshop titled “How to Run Meetings” was well received. It was suggested that, due to it’s potential for wide appeal, the topic be used for a program at the 2004 Long Island Library Conference. The next meeting will be on June 10th at the Middle Country Public Library, Selden Branch.

ELSA: P. Thomson read the following report. The ELSA brochure is ready to be distributed. The committee wished to thank R. Dressler for her help with the update and Paul Miner for a great job printing the brochures. Copies will be sent to libraries one week prior to the Long Island Library Conference. Additional brochures will be available at the SCLA table at the Conference and on the SCLA web page. Letters were sent to library directors on April 16th announcing the call for nominations for the 2003 ELSA Award. A sample publicity item designed as a model for announcing in local newspapers and library newsletters the award and to encourage participation was enclosed. Thanks were also offered to the Smithtown Library staff for printing two flyers for each library to be used when displaying the brochures. The deadline for nominations is June 28th.

FALL DINNER: No report.

INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM: P. Thomson read the following report. K. McCoy is trying to set up a meeting once the academic semester is over.

J. Clemens said that she sees natural links between this committee and the Professional Concerns committee and sees the potential for these two committees to work together in the future.

LDA AWARD: P. Bornstein reported that there were no nominations made either from Nassau or Suffolk Counties for the 2003 LDA Award. Consequently, Paula announced that there would be no LDA Award this year.

That prompted a lively discussion. A few suggestions were made. 

LEGISLATIVE: P. Thomson read the following report. Reminder notes for the September Legislative Breakfast are planned to go out at the beginning of May. The next LILRC Legislative meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, April 29th.

LISTSERV: P. Thomson read the following report. At present, there are exactly 800 people on the listserv. K. McCoy will bring instructions on how to subscribe to the list to the Long Island Library Conference.

L.I. LIBRARY CONFERENCE: No report.

R. Dressler sent around a sign up sheet and asked for volunteers to man the SCLA table at the Long Island Library Conference. She asked that people bring appropriate items for the table. J. Clemens will bring flyers, S. Atlas will bring extra copies of SCLA’s Statistical Survey, F. Altemose will bring t-shirts to be sold, R. McEneaney will bring membership forms, and B. Hoffman will bring copies of the current newsletter.

S. Atlas asked if the purchase price for the remaining Statistical Survey’s should be reduced. A new edition will be released in November 2003. There are 10 copies left, and it was suggested that the price be reduced to $10 (from the original price of $20). S. Atlas made a motion to reduce the price to $10. B. Hoffman seconded. There were no objections.

B. Hoffman is the Suffolk County representative for the Jobs Table for the Long Island Library conference. At present, she only has one job listing. She asked that anyone that worked in a library that had openings e-mail her information to advertise at the Long Island Library Conference. Barbara reported that letters were also sent to library directors. A job description for any job title is acceptable.

The issue of the LDA Award was revisited. One name was mentioned that many people agreed would be a good candidate. E. Cichanowicz offered to have a statement to Paula by the end of that day, and Paula agreed to contact the Nassau representative to discuss whether that person could be considered for this year’s award and if the deadline could be extended to May 1st.

B. Hoffman suggested that, if there is an LDA Award winner, that information be submitted for the newsletter. P. Bornstein said that she would submit something for the newsletter, if there is an LDA winner this year.

D. Bucher brought up the issue of the SCLA t-shirts. She mentioned that she likes the t-shirt, but not the black font that is used. She prefers blue font on the t-shirts.

LONG RANGE PLANNING: S. Holden reported that Queens College has scheduled their annual Career Day program for Saturday, May 3rd. SCLA has been asked to send a representative to answer student’s questions about employment opportunities and issues that relate to Suffolk libraries. The Long Range Planning committee is trying to find one or two people to send to represent Suffolk, and is considering partnering with the CARE Committee to discuss civil service, the wide variety of libraries in Suffolk County and how they function. A call for any volunteers available to attend that day was made to those at the meeting. It was also suggested that CLASC be contacted, as there are likely to be many people interested in children and school media services. St. John’s University, Oakdale Campus is holding an Information Day on Saturday, April 26th, where prospective students will have the opportunity to speak to faculty and to tour the facilities. This information came to the Long Range Planning committee rather late. The committee will contact St. John’s to see if SCLA can be more involved in future orientations as we are with Palmer and Queens. Sheryl Sessa is in the process of contacting library schools to get their upcoming Fall Orientation dates and to make sure SCLA is on the agenda. The next Long Range Planning Committee meeting is scheduled for June 4th at the Northport Public Library. The topic is future projects for 2003-2004. Sue also said that she would like to request more money soon in order to prepare for the fall presentations at various library schools. J. Clemens asked if the same amount as was used in the past would be sufficient. Sue said yes, although she has very little left over. Sue also said that she would bring some brochures for the SCLA table at the Long Island Library Conference.

MEMBERSHIP: R. McEneaney reported that there are currently 736 members, 625 of whom are already members for 2003. Next week, Regina will be dumping those people that haven’t been active since 2002. Membership and raffle tickets will be sent out next week. That will wipe out her supply of SCLA envelopes. Membership packets should arrive at libraries within the next 2 weeks. Regina reported that membership picks up again in June or July. Regina also asked what should be done regarding the Directories of Long Island Libraries and Media Centers. In the past, copies have been offered to the first 50 members. Regina has already received approximately 15 requests for these directories. Nothing was decided at this point in time. It was also suggested that every division and committee post a copy of the membership application on its web page. The source of the outdated membership application was identified and corrected. There is still the question as to what to do regarding those people who used an outdated form and consequently sent in the wrong fees for membership.

NEWSLETTER: B. Hoffman reminded everyone that May 1st is the deadline for the June/July/August newsletter. It is important to get all the information to Barbara in a timely fashion, so she may meet her deadline. She will be working on copy the first week of May and the material will be sent to the printer the last week of May.

NOMINATING: Ballots are usually ready at the end of July. C. Guzzo is working on creating a slate. She asked that anyone interested in being considered for the 2004 slate to contact her as soon as possible.

PROFESSIONAL CONCERNS: No report.

PUBLIC AWARENESS/PUBLICITY: S. Ingram stressed the importance of nominating people for the awards that are available and strongly encouraged everyone to nominate at least one deserving candidate for the ELSA Award.

SCHOLARSHIP: P. Thomson read the following report. The SCLA scholarship raffle tickets (1500) with a wide variety of prizes were printed and sent to R. McEneaney’s attention. Regina will include them in her mailing to all members and have some for the SCLA table at the Long Island Library Conference. Printing costs of $175 was submitted to J. Loughren. Fifteen scholarship applications were mailed to prospective candidates during March. Regina added that there might be 2 additional applications sent.

STATISTICAL SURVEY: S. Atlas reported that there has been $660 collected from sales of the survey. There are some extra copies that haven’t yet sold. Sandy thanked R. Dressler for her assistance. She mentioned that there’s a significant problem regarding data entry. Sandy needs assistance in order to get the directories ready for this year. J. Clemens is working on resolving this problem. Sandy said that Sunday pay is likely to be a new question in future surveys. She’s hoping to be able to insert the question without changing the format. She also has to make sure that the pages don’t shift. Sandy is hoping to get out the request for information at the end of May and receive completed questionnaires at the beginning of July. She hopes to have the survey ready by November. J. Clemens said that she feels that the responsibility of entering the data should not fall on SCLA. Rather, she feels that SCLS should be doing that aspect of the work needed for the survey. R. McEneaney mentioned that she printed out lists of people who expressed interest in each division and committee. Regina gave Sandy a list of people who expressed interest in her committee. Regina asked that anyone who hasn’t yet received a list for their division or committee to contact her as soon as possible. Joan stressed the importance of contacting those people who are interested in participating, and asked everyone to do so as soon as possible.

SUFFOLK COUNTY JAILS LIBRARY SERVICE: No report.

WEB PAGE: No report.

LIASONS

CLASC: No report. Someone mentioned that the CLASC Annual Dinner was scheduled for the upcoming week.

BOCES: J. Barr handed out copies of the most current School Library System newsletter. J. Clemens complemented Janet on the excellent write up summarizing the Library Advocacy Forum. Janet thanked everyone for the help offered in making the day a success and encouraged everyone to write more letters to legislators.

LILRC: H. Biblo explained that he and V. Antonucci are sharing the responsibility of being the liaison to SCLA. LILRC’s Legislative Breakfast is scheduled for September 19th. There will be approximately $7-$10 registration fee, but legislators and their aids will not be expected to pay to attend. More details will follow in the upcoming months. Herb reminded everyone that New York State budget proposals will be released next week and that it’s important that library funding be present in and not cut in any way. LILRC’s newsletter will be released next week. Herb also reminded everyone that coupons for New Horizons Computer Classes are available. LILRC will be spending considerable time reaching out to libraries. In past weeks, there have been meetings with public library directors from the East End, Brookhaven, and Islip zones. One thing that LILRC learned is that all mailings should go both to directors and heads of reference in each building. LILRC hopes to implement more useful suggestions in future months. Another thing learned is that many directors are unaware of the databases available through LILRC. Herb reminded everyone of the availability of WALDO, a cooperative entity available to all New York State libraries to purchase additional databases. Some staffing changes at LILRC include Judy Neufeld’s return after a 6-month leave and the elimination of the title Special Projects Coordinator as of June 30th. LILRC’s Annual Conference is scheduled for October 16 & 17. The theme is The Information Commons: Delivering Library Service in a Virtual World. Amy Goodman, host of Democracy Now, will be the guest speaker. LILRC’s Digitization Symposium is scheduled for May 15th. OCLC and librarians currently working on digitization projects will speak. Herb stressed that digitization is a major activity for LILRC. Hofstra University is once again a participant in the Research Loan Program. 

NCLA: P. Thomson read the following report. The Directory of Long Island Library and Media Centers 2003 will not be ready in time for the Long Island Library Conference. They are expected to be available soon after the May 7th date. Art Friedman, who happens to be President-Elect of NYLA, has recently earned his Doctorate. There are 796 members of NCLA as of March 2003. NCLA is considering purchasing New York Publicity Outlets & Marketing Library Services. It is published twice a year and it has names of people to call or write for public relations information. The cost is approximately $135. Nassau committee members of the Long Island Library Conference Public Relations committee felt this would be a valuable resource in saving time when planning for the conference. The NCLA Annual Dinner will be at the Sand Castle in Franklin Square on December 3rd from 5:30-10:30PM. Price is not yet determined. The NCLA Nominations Committee has sent out letters to all Division Heads to select one volunteer to serve on the committee for next year’s election.

PLDA: No report. J. Clemens has asked to have a new liaison, as the position is vacant at this time.

SCLS: No report.

SLA: No report.

OLD BUSINESS: E. Cichanowicz has spoken to representatives at Palmer Vineyards. Ticket prices for the Writers on the Vine Series will be sold to the general public for $8.50. Palmer will sell the same tickets to SCLA for $6.50. Last year, SCLA sold all 50 tickets to members for $10. This year, there is a very strong slate of authors speaking, including Nelson Demille and Susan Isaacs. After much discussion, it was decided that Edana should get 75 tickets and sell them for $12. Edana asked if tickets could be sold at the SCLA table the day of the Long Island Library Conference. D. Bucher made a motion to approve the sale of tickets at the SCLA table the day of the conference, and C. Gray seconded the motion. There were none opposed.

J. Clemens asked for a volunteer to take over the sale of Ducks tickets. D. Engelhardt had handled the sale in the past. Joan asked for one or more Members-At-Large to volunteer. F. Altemose agreed to coordinate the sale of tickets. Joan thanked her for her help.

D. Bucher spoke of her research into the suggestion made by C. Guzzo about a fundraiser based on the sale of candy or some other food item. Della researched the logistics that would be involved, and she feels it’s not practical for our situation. Getting the number of items to individual libraries could be a huge imposition on SCLS’s delivery system, and anyone Della spoke to who has done similar fundraisers in other venues has spoken about the large amount of work involved. Della then spoke about the White Elephant Sale. She will not be able to do as much during her typical workday as she has done in the past, so if it’s decided to offer a white elephant sale, it is going to require the help and participation of a lot of people. Della is still willing to coordinate the sale and reported that past sales have generated approximately $1000 in pure profit. But she stressed that anyone who volunteers to help must follow through on the commitment, because a lot of help is needed the day of the sale. Last year, the large majority of people who volunteered backed out last minute, and that cannot happen again this year. J. Clemens also brought up the problem that Harborfields does not have a lot of space this year to store items before the sale. Della also made the suggestion that people donating items wash items and price them before sending them along. Joan asked for additional fundraising ideas and asked that they be submitted by June's ’meeting. Della requested a list of those people who expressed an interest in participating in fundraising. R. McEneaney will run a list for Della and get it to her as soon as possible.

NEW BUSINESS: None.

CORRESPONDENCE: Debbie Engelhardt forwarded information about a Business Expo and suggested that SCLA consider having a booth to promote library services that could help small, local businesses.

S. Holden asked again for people to volunteer for Queens College’s Career Day program. Sue also asked about people’s decision as to whether or not they will be attending ALA’s Annual Conference in Toronto with the travel advisory regarding SARS. A brief but lively debate ensued.

C. Guzzo asked for a motion to adjourn. R. McEneaney made the motion. The meeting was adjourned at 11:45AM.