WMRLS and the Statewide Merger Discussion Meetings

 WMRLS and the Statewide Merger Discussion Meetings

•  Lee Library - March 23, 2010 ~ 25 staff and trustees of WMRLS member libraries attended this session
• Agawam Public Library - March 24, 2010 ~ 20 staff and trustees of WMRLS member libraries attended this session
• WMRLS Headquarters, Whately - March 25, 2010 ~ 42 staff and trustees of WMRLS member libraries attended this session

Summary of WMRLS and the Statewide Merger Discussion Meetings

John Ramsay, WMRLS Regional Administrator; Betty Johnson, Colrain Library Director and member of the WMRLS Board and Transition Team; and Sue San Soucie, Montague Library Director and member of the WMRLS Board and Transition Team; each led one or more of this week’s WMRLS and the Statewide Merger Discussion Meetings. They welcomed the participants at each of the three discussion roundtables and also thanked them for their participation and support. 

John, Betty, and Sue, gave balanced presentations of the key things that have brought us to this point in a consolidation effort. They distributed and reviewed the first 7 pages of the March 8 Comment Draft and made the point that the MBLC will receive the Final Recommendations Report from the Transition Team on April 1. They also mentioned that a “Transition Manager” may be named to give time to hire an Executive Director for the MLS.

The following is a compilation of the questions and points were made by attendees at each of the three discussion sessions:  [Responses from Transition Team and WMRLS Staff appear in italics]

• How will these changes affect the MBLC?
• What’s the total cut to the Region Library Systems since 2003? (About 37%)
• WMRLS has been first in many things statewide, a leader.
• Do we have legal rights as a minority group?
• Does the MLS know what the costs will be to pay for legal advice, hire an interim manager, and buy out regional office leases? How is the MBLC advocating to the Governor on behalf of the Regions? The MBLC Legislative Agenda requests full statutory funding for account 7000-9401, which would actually be an increase over the FY10 levels.
• Does it make sense for members to maintain a regular presence at the WMRLS HQ during the Transition Year, to keep the pressure on?
• Librarians need to act fast---each person should get 10 people to contact the Commissioners, legislators, and the Governor SOON about this issue
• Will the MA Library System be a state agency or 501.c3 organization? 501.c3. The MetroWest Region is expected to reorganize into the new entity, a much smoother, faster path than starting a new 501.c3. The new organization will be almost exactly like the old regions organizationally. The other regions will become dormant in case needed in the future. The regional administrators have sought good legal advice to determine necessary steps. This is considered a merger of assets and liabilities from the current regions to the new entity.Everything will be at a reduced level. Only delivery will be maintained at a current level for one year. This is not a cure for the ongoing budget crisis. If the budget is worse than the $6.9m projection, services will be further reduced. Advocacy is aimed at increasing the funding levels in 7000-9401.
• Library participants expressed concerns that delivery will be reduced in the number of days delivery is provided. The stated intent is that current levels of delivery services will be maintained for FY11. There is concern that in the future there will need to be cutbacks due to the budget.
• Library participants expressed concerns that it is important to be vigilant that services are evenly provided. Success rates must be equivalent throughout the state and not just based on volume.
• Location of hub: for next year at MetroWest office in Waltham. After that, 495 corridor along the Pike. An independent consultant should look at where the hub should be, considering costs, effectiveness, etc. Some Transition Team members see the WMRLS building as a liability (due to the mortgage) rather than as an asset. There are also costs of technology to be considered in transitional office. WMRLS has the technology infrastructure right now.
• Can we bookend services between MBLC and LLR in Boston and an MLS presence in Whately that is both functional and symbolic?
• Is it viable to have a ‘spoke’ working on the road in western MA where Broadband and wifi are not available throughout? Can a person in the west act as spoke without more support?
• If you are looking to hire staff from across the country, you’re also looking at a host of moving costs, etc., that are not in the budget. Several regional boards felt that current regional administrators, as well as current regional staff, should receive priority in the hiring.
• Continuing education opportunities must be close to the member libraries. WMRLS libraries don’t have mileage money or subs to allow long travel to workshops. They just wouldn’t have the ability to get there. Basic library courses are required for small library directors; school librarians also need PDP credits they can get to.
• Along with the Friends of WMRLS website, there is also a “We Love Western Mass Libraries” FaceBook presence that has achieved 1,300 fans in just 10 days. Library users comprise most of the members.
• Will only delivery happen in Whately? We hope continuing education workshops and advisory services can also be provided from this office, at least for FY11.
• How will Continuing Education occur out here? Staff will conduct training throughout the state. In other regions, the assumption is that it is easy to find training locations. Not so much here.
• Will all the jobs be outsourced including delivery? No, but there will be fewer of them. Current staff can apply if they want to relocate or possibly work from home.
• Will the building be able to be used by western staff? The current draft Transition Team report calls for MLS staff to work out of Whately or Waltham in FY11, or from home or maybe at member libraries, if space and infrastructure is available. .
• Do you feel there is time to shift the tide? We don’t know how much they can stop this. The MBLC will be receiving a presentation on the plan on April 1. We Love Western MA Libraries Face Book page has 1269 people signed on, including Commissioners, legislators, even the Governor’s office is paying attention. The Commissioners will be making the decision with whatever funding is available. Even if funding is restored, we will not go back to the status quo. The state cannot afford to fund 6 regions. For this area, this is a ‘T’ stop! A place for training that is reachable, with good parking and an easy to get to location! The WMRLS Board voted against the wording in the plan that states a specific location.
• Why not propose two locations, Waltham and Whately, and see what happens? Why make irreversible decisions?
• Is it true that there are no Commissioners from western MA? Yes. They are Governor appointed. We don’t know how decisions are made once appointments are recommended to the Governor.
• Could the new entity be entrepreneurial and charge end users $.25 for delivery? Possible, but complicated to collect and track the expenditures.
• Electronic resources like C/W MARS are easily scalable. Physical resources like delivery are less so. Have networks been in the mix for discussion? They were in the planning a year ago. They get their funding from membership money, less so from the state.
• If there is one MA Library System, will that encourage the movement to one automated network statewide? This would probably make sense, but the MBLC does not have the leverage with funding to move the networks in that direction. Most of network funding comes from membership fees from their member libraries.
• Would state funding for automated networks ever be a possibility? Could, but depending solely on state funding is very risky, as evidenced by the regions!
• There were several comments on the desirability of reducing delivery through allowing patrons to limit holds to their own library’s copy. Maybe the networks, as they explore open source systems, could develop a green option that patrons could select, which would reduce delivery volume. Most borrowing activity is within a regional area.
• How are regional service values developed? A consultant designed a methodology to measure the value of each service, based on usage or savings to libraries.
• How can we better present economic arguments for the value of the Regions?
• The folks making some of these decisions, have no concept of the relationship between the western MA libraries and their Region. There is an ongoing and deep relationship here.
• How has the MBLC been as a leader in this process? What has the MBLC done to protect the services in the underpopulated areas of the state? In many ways, the process has been consensus-driven based on the input and work of the statewide Transition Team.
• The way this process has been run is inexcusable.
• Don’t give up after July 1. Demand the services that your libraries and users need. Make sure that the leadership among the Commissioners and the new MA Library System hears from you. Be involved. Your State tax dollars are supposed to equalize services and meet needs across the State. Whatever the next system, use it and demand services you need, even if they’re not the same as in other parts of the state.
• One librarian shared her motto: “Only those that attempt the absurd can achieve the impossible.”

 ~  Above compilation is edited from each of the full meeting reports by Mary King, WMRLS Regional Librarian; and Jan Resnick, WMRLS Assistant Regional Administrator

Safety on 2 Floors

On Tuesday, March 23, Becky Plimpton, Director of the Joshua Hyde Public Library in Sturbridge, posted the following query to the MBLC "allregions" email discussion list:

We have 2 floors and the downstairs (the Youth Dept) is out of sight from the main floor. Usually there is only one staff member working in the Youth Dept at a time. This is also where the public bathrooms are. Does anyone use a "panic button" system for the staff? Something to wear around your neck - a kind of "I've fallen and can't get up" thing in case of emergency? I've tried walkie talkies in the past, but staff get tired of carrying them around and "forget" :)

A total of 2643 staff, trustees, and friends of Massachusetts Regional Library Systems subscribe to the MBLC Email Distribution Lists.  By subscribing to one of the six regional email discussion lists, one is automattically subscribed to "allregions" which enables one to communicate with thousands of colleagues in a matter of seconds.

Less than 24 hours after her post, Becky received 25 responses and shared the following helpful solutions with all:

Thank you to everyone who responded - I got over 25 emails back. Here is a summary of the responses with some unique solutions!

• 9 libraries have panic buttons installed at the circ desks or around the library. These are generally wired directly to the police department through an existing security system.
• 3 libraries use a phone or intercom system with code phrases. Warning: make sure all the staff are trained to know what to do when someone asks over the intercom "Is the pizza here yet?"
• 3 libraries have portable panic buttons
• 2 libraries issued whistles to staff
•  2 libraries use a wireless doorbell ($15 at Home Depot - genius!) to alert other staff
• 1 uses a boat horn
• 4 don't use anything, but think they perhaps should
• I think everyone agrees that the best solution would be to have 2 staff members on every floor.

Editor's Notes:

1. See Also "Safety/Disaster Library Policies & Plans"
2. Be sure to check the MBLC "AllRegions" Email List Archives as the discussion on this topic continues
   

WMRLS offers a bounty of SRP Programming for Librarians this Spring

Greetings,
  Our upcoming annual WMRLS SUMMER READING PROGRAM POWER WORKSHOP is filled to maximum seating capacity and registrations have closed.
     In addition to our annual WMRLS SRP Power Workshop, we have a number of upcoming workshops that provide a bounty of information for staff who will be conducting your library's upcoming summer reading program.  They are all listed chronologically on our WMRLS online EventKeeper Calendar as follows (register online at http://www.eventkeeper.com/code/events.cfm?curOrg=WMRLS ) :

PROJECT WILD: ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION FOR GRADES K TO 12

Friday April 9, 2010 from 9 to 3:30

and repeated on

Friday April 16, 2010 from 9 to 3:30

Project WILD links students (grades K-12) and wildlife through its mission to provide wildlife-based conservation and environmental education that fosters responsible actions toward wildlife and related natural resources. Through the use of balanced curriculum materials and professional six-hour training workshops, Project WILD accomplishes its goal of developing awareness, knowledge, skills and commitment that result in informed decisions with regard to nature and the environment. Gini Traub and Alexander Gillman of the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation are the program leaders. 

April 9 Location: Lenox Memorial Middle High School Library

April 16 Location: Great Falls Discovery Center, Turners Falls

________________________________________  

READSINMA ONLINE READING PROGRAM AND SUMMER 2010

APRIL 2010: Numerous sessions and locations throughout this region

Are you ready to jump on board the online registration train this summer? If you are interested in offering an online component of the 2010 Summer Reading Program for your library users, you're invited to attend this ReadsinMA.org training. The summer reader from Evanced Solutions offers you better management of in-house registration, prize management and a simple self-service option for your library patrons. You can even post and send e-mail announcements of library events, promote school and library reading lists and add book reviews. Begin THIS summer to offer online reading program registration for your patrons to use throughout the entire year.

________________________________________  

TNK GREN WITH TEEN CRAFTS

Monday, May 10, 2010 from 9 to 11:30

What is better than recycling? REUSING!!! Get prepared for the teen summer reading program, tnk grEn, by seeing what you and your kids can make reusing materials and supplies destined for the trash and recycle bins. Participants in this hands-on workshop will learn to make three crafts from used materials. You'll also get tips on how to lead teens in making their own creations. Possible projects will be totes, wallets, paperbeads, and altered T-shirts. Upon registration, participants will be notified what materials they should bring. Presented by Mia Cabana, YA librarian at the West Springfield Public Library, and Doris Madsen, reference librarian at the Pine Point and Sixteen Acres branches of the Springfield City Library.

Join us for an "On-Your-Own Book Review" from 9 to 9:45. This portion of the program is led by Jean Canosa Albano, Manager of Youth & Outreach Services of the Springfield City Library. 

Location: Community Room, Springfield City Library

~ Sincerely, Janet Eckert, Youth Services Librarian and Continuing Education Coordinator,  Western Massachusetts Regional Library System

ALA Recognizes Digital Amherst

The following press release is featured on the American Library Association "Libraries in the News" website:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The American Library Association (ALA) Office for Information Technology Policy (OITP) has recognized Contra Costa County Library in Pleasant Hill, Calif.; North Carolina State University Libraries in Raleigh, N.C.; and Jones Library in Amherst, Mass., for their use of cutting-edge technologies in library services.

In June 2009, OITP and the subcommittee for its Program on America’s Libraries for the 21st Century issued a call for nominations for best library practices using cutting-edge technology to showcase libraries that are serving their communities with novel and innovative methods.

“We were looking to find creative ways libraries are using technology, such as applying 21st century technologies to provide a new way of delivering a traditional service or using traditional technologies in a novel way for delivering a service. The three winners all fit our criteria,” said Vivian Pisano, Chief of Information Technology, San Francisco Public Library, and Chair of OITP’s Advisory Committee and Subcommittee on America’s Libraries for the 21st Century.

After selecting the winners, OITP produced descriptions of the programs to provide the library community with some successful models for delivering quality library service in new ways.

“The selection committee looked at many submissions, but these three projects stood out because they could be replicated by other libraries,” said Christine Lind Hage, Director, Rochester Hills Public Library, who chaired the selection committee.

“In particular we were looking for creative solutions to common problems using readily available and affordable technology.”

About the Winners:

Library-a-Go-Go, Contra Costa County Library, Pleasant Hill, Calif.
The Library-a-Go-Go service uses fully automated touchscreen materials-lending machines to provide stand-alone library services in non-library environments. For more information: http://ccclib.org/locations/libraryagogo.html

Course Views [Library Tools] Project, North Carolina State University (NCSU) Libraries, Raleigh, N.C.
The NCSU Libraries implemented a cutting-edge service in response to the difficulty of creating and maintaining enough “course pages” – recommended resources for specific courses and assignments – to meet students’ needs. The Course Views system provides pages for all 6,000 courses offered by over 150 departments at NCSU. For more information: www.lib.ncsu.edu/dli/projects/courseviews

Digital Amherst, a project of the Jones Library, Amherst, Mass.
Digital Amherst provides digital historical and cultural materials—photographs and other images, articles, lectures and multimedia presentations—to Amherst locals, scholars and tourists. For more information: www.digitalamherst.org/

New Library Director at Springfield City Library

Molly Fogarty, recently named the new Library Director for Springfield City Library, envisions a state of the art library system for city residents. With 2,000 people visiting the libraries each day, she knows that the library plays a key role in this community, both as a place for resources and as a community meeting place. Ms. Fogarty believes that branch libraries can be tailored to the interests of the neighborhoods in which they are located. In developing its next five-year plan, the Library will need input from the public. Plan to attend focus groups and complete surveys so you can tell us what you need from your Springfield City Library. With that goal in mind, Ms. Fogarty will be working with other City departments, neighborhood and civic associations, Branch Advisory Committees, and other community members to develop a first-rate library system for the City of Springfield!

Molly Fogarty started working for Springfield City Library in 1978, as the supervisor of the Brightwood Branch Library, and was promoted to the position of branch manager a few years later. Her four sons enjoyed attending library storytimes and taking part in Summer Reading Clubs for many years. In 1992 Ms. Fogarty was named Library Co-Director, and then became Assistant Director in 1994, working closely with former Library Director Emily Bader for over 15 years. Together they built numerous collaborations between the library and the community, while continuing to upgrade library buildings, inside and outside. Ms. Fogarty worked with project architects in planning and overseeing building renovation projects at the Indian Orchard, Mason Square, Pine Point, Sixteen Acres, and Brightwood Branch Libraries, as well as the Central Library.
Ms. Fogarty helped develop many unique programs and new services that have enabled our library system to thrive and make a real impact on Springfield residents. She has written and implemented numerous federal, state, and foundation grant proposals to gain funding towards that end. She is a graduate of UMass Amherst and received her Master of Library and Information Science from the University of Rhode Island. Ms. Fogarty supports education and lifelong learning and strongly believes that a welcoming, modern library system is key to Springfield’s future successes. “I am proud of my achievements at the Springfield City Library, making a positive impact on the community and individuals.”

In addition Ms. Fogarty has been active in the state and national library communities for over 17 years, involved in advocacy, planning, and budgeting. She was elected by members of the Massachusetts Library Association (MLA) to represent the interests and needs of Massachusetts libraries and residents for the American Library Association. She has chaired various committees and boards. Currently she is President of the Western Massachusetts Regional Library System, served as President of the MLA from 1999-2000, and has been a program presenter for the Massachusetts Library Association, New England Library Association, Public Library Association and American Library Association Conferences. As the Chair of the American Library Association Legislative Committee, which is responsible for federal, state and local legislative programs, Ms. Fogarty developed policy that opposes any legislation that infringes on the rights of immigrants to use library resources, programs and services.

In her spare time Ms. Fogarty enjoys traveling, loves the beach, the theatre and opera. She has been married to her husband Ed for over thirty years and is “proudest of my four sons, the wonderful young men that they are, their civic mindedness, their accomplishments so far, and what I know they will accomplish in the future.” As far as her favorite authors or books, she “enjoys reading novels by Alice Hoffman, Joyce Carol Oates, Kate Atkinson, Walter Mosely, Amy Tan, and John Grisham, plus those by local authors such as Eleanor Lipman, Suzanne Strempek Shea and Anita Shreve. I recently read In the Woods, by Tana French, and my favorite book that I have read over and over is The Joy Luck Club, by Amy Tan, because it reminds me of my relationship with my mother and my mother’s friends.”

Congratulations Molly Fogarty! We’re glad that Springfield City Library is a place for you. We look forward to helping you achieve your vision of a state of the art library system for this City.

WMRLS and the Statewide Merger

What is happening to WMRLS?

What is this statewide merger all about?

How will it affect our libraries?

Come join your colleagues at one of 3 discussion sessions that have been scheduled across the WMRLS service area. No need to register, just show up and participate!


Learn more about the plans and what effect they will have on you , your library and your users. Those who are working on the merger need your ideas ASAP!

Roundtable discussions are scheduled at:

• Tuesday, March 23, Lee Library Association, 10 a.m.

• Wed., March 24, Agawam Public Library, 10 a.m.

• Thursday, March 25, WMRLS , Whately, 10 a.m.

For directions, please consult the WMRLS website at: http://www.wmrls.org/directions/index.html

~ John Ramsay, Regional Administrator, WMRLS