LIBRARY AND LITERACY COMMISSION Tuesday, January 12, 2016 5:30 p.m. CITY HALL MCCRACKEN MEETING ROOM 291 NORTH MAIN STREET PORTERVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY AGENDA I. CALL TO ORDER II. ROLL CALL Esther Figueroa (10/2018) Allan Bailey, Chair (10/2018) Jennifer Biagio (10/2016) Tamara Bishop-Mitchell (10/2016) Patience Christenson (10/2018) Catherine E. May, Vice-Chair (10/2016) Edith La Vonne (10/2018) III. ORAL/WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS FROM PUBLIC All items not scheduled should be addressed to the Library and Literacy Commission at this time during Oral Communications. Anyone wishing to address the Library and Literacy Commission should state their name for the record. In order to proceed in a timely manner, please limit the duration of your comments to three (3) minutes. IV. REPORTS This is the time for the Library and Literacy Commissioners to report on advocacy activities. V. CONSENT CALENDAR Consent Calendar items are considered routine and informational in nature and will be enacted in one motion. There will be no separate discussion on these matters unless a request is made, in which event the item will be removed from the Consent Calendar. 1. Library and Literacy Commission Minutes from December 8, 2015 2. December Monthly Highlights Re: Consider approval of monthly highlights report for December. 3. Literacy Report Re: Consider approval of monthly Read to Succeed program report. 4. Chamber Ambassador Report Re: Consider approval of monthly activity report from staff. 5. Update on Centennial Plaza Literacy Center Re: Informational report from staff 6. Update on the Peter M. Brown Living Trust Re: Informational update on this City Library Gift 7. Announcements Re: Informational report regarding upcoming activities of interest to the Commission. VI. SCHEDULED MATTERS 1. Attend Foundation Meeting Re: Staff report about the invitation to attend an upcoming meeting of the Tulare County Library Foundation 1
2. 2016 Commission Goals and Objectives Re: Continued discussion from the last meeting and review of work plan 3. Strategic Planning Re: Continued discussion and review of staff proposal to utilize the advocacy tool kit from the Public Library Association 4. Commission Advocacy Opportunities Re: Consider the February Schedule VII. COMMENTS FROM COMMISSIONERS The Commissioners opportunity to comment on any item or issue that is under the purview of the Library and Literacy Commission that is not on the agenda. VIII. SCHEDULED ITEMS FOR FUTURE MEETINGS Agenda items for subsequent Commission meetings. IX. ADJOURNMENT In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and the California Ralph M. Brown Act, if you need special assistance to participate in this meeting, or to be able to access this agenda and documents in the agenda packet, please contact the Office of City Clerk at (559) 782-7464. Notification 48 hours prior to the meeting will enable the City to make reasonable arrangements to ensure accessibility to this meeting and/or provision of an appropriate alternative format of the agenda and documents in the agenda packet. Materials related to an item on this Agenda submitted to the Library and Literacy Commission after distribution of the Agenda packet are available for public inspection during normal business hours at the Library, 41 West Thurman Avenue, Porterville, CA 93257. The mission of the Porterville Public Library is to be a visible learning center by providing literacy materials and services for all ages throughout our community for personal enrichment, the power of information, and the joy of reading. 2
1. Library and Literacy Commission Minutes December 8, 2015 LIBRARY AND LITERACY COMMISSION Tuesday, January 12, 2016 5:30 p.m. CONSENT CALENDAR Call to Order: The meeting was called to order at 5:35 pm. Roll Call: Chair Bailey, Commissioner Figueroa, Commissioner Bishop-Mitchell, Commissioner Christenson, Commissioner May, and Commissioner La Vonne. Also Present: Vikki Cervantes, City Librarian; Anthony Arellano, Library Supervisor. Oral/Written Communications from Public: None. Reports: Commissioner May reported that she attended the TUTOC meeting. Chair Bailey attended the City Council meeting and gave the report for the Library and Literacy Commission. Consent Calendar: Commissioner Bishop-Mitchell pulled item #7. Commissioner La Vonne motioned to approve the remainder of the Consent Calendar. Commissioner Christenson seconded and the motion passed. Item #7. Update on the Peter M. Brown Living Trust. Vikki reported that there was no additional information at this time and that she would make an inquiry to get an update. Scheduled Matters: 1. Library Advocacy. Commissioner May presented information regarding aspects of advocacy, such as branding, logos, need, cause, making personal contact, and managing the message. Chair Bailey suggested skipping to scheduled matter #3 since the discussion of advocacy tied in closely with 2016 Commission Goals and Objectives. 3. 2016 Commission Goals and Objectives. The Commission s discussion is illustrated in the attached chart. 2. ABCmouse Resource. Tony talked the Commission through the new free ABCmouse resource with a PowerPoint presentation. 4. Commission Advocacy Opportunities. Commissioner Figueroa volunteered to attend the P&L Commission meeting on January 7. Commissioner May will attend the City Council meeting on January 19 and, schedule permitting, the Friends of the Library meeting on January 13. Commissioner Bishop- Mitchell plans on attending the Youth Commission meeting on January 11. Comments from Commissioners: Vikki confirmed that the Commission would like the discussed Goals and Objectives in a grid format and emailed out to the Commissioners. She also announced that Commissioner Biagio was still on Medical Leave. Commissioner May reported that she purchased 628 books for Porterville Celebrates Reading and that the PCR Committee will have its first meeting on January 28 th. Commissioner Bishop-Mitchell announced that the Inter Se Club will be delivering a donation of books to the library on Friday. Schedule Items for Future Meetings: As discussed. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 7:06 pm. 3
2016 Commission Goals and Objectives - Draft Goals and Objectives Timeline for Discussion Work Completed Logo/branding Community Contact o Engage City Groups o Target Demographics Fundraising o Friends o Library Foundation o Explore Endowments Talking Points o Elevator Speech o Consistent Message Cards Strategic Planning January Logo/branding February Community Contact March Fundraising April/May - Talking Points Strategic Planning create a place on the Agenda, like Commission Advocacy Opportunities, to tackle this topic bit by bit. Goal/Objective: Date: 4
2. December Highlights The Porterville City Library serviced the community by providing photo opportunities with Santa during the Santa Claus @ Your Porterville City Library campaign. Participants had the option of bringing a new unwrapped toy to donate to Toys for Tots or a nonperishable food item to donate to the Kiwanis Food Pantry. Santa made appearances on the following dates: December 1: Porterville City Library. There were 80 participants. December 5: Porterville City Library. There were 171 participants. December 9: Margaret J. Slattery Children s Library. There were 78 participants. December 12: Pictures & Pancakes with Santa at the Porterville City Library. Staff provided pancakes for 121 participants. There were 250 total participants. December 15: Porterville City Library. There were 145 participants. December 19: Porterville City Library. There were 266 participants. There were 656 pictures printed for participants. Grand total in attendance for the Santa program was 990. There were 752 canned foods collected and donated to the Kiwanis Food Pantry, and 48 toys were collected and donated to Toys for Tots. Other announcements Saturday Game Day @Your Library. Participants had the opportunity to play a variety of card, board, and video games. There were 24 participants. Bring Your Own Game Day is held every Sunday in the Community Room at the Porterville City Library from 1:30 pm 4:30 pm. There were 106 participants for the month of December. December 9, 2015, staff conducted 4 library tours for the 2 nd grade students from John J. Doyle Elementary. Staff read them stories, walked them through the facility, educated them about library programs and services, and answered their questions about the library. There were 110 participants. December 15, 2015, Snow Many Books Reading Incentive Program started for ages: 0-17 years old and will run through January 31, 2016. December 17, 2015, staff celebrated Patron Appreciation Day. Staff served refreshments and cookie throughout the day. They also served lunch to patrons during the lunch hour. Patrons had the opportunity to enjoy a special Christmas holiday performance from the Porterville Bell Ringers. December 21, 2015: Porterville Library s Winter Events started for all ages and run will run through January 9 th. Food for Fines campaign officially ended. There were 1451 canned foods collected in lieu of $1,033.15 in fines waived. 5
December 26, 2015, Lego Club @ Your Library. Participants had the opportunity to play with a variety of Legos. The children learn how to share and use their imagination. Participants got to watch the Star Wars Yoda Chronicles. Staff raffled the Star Wars New Yoda Chronicles Lego movie. There were 16 participants. December Monthly Volunteer hours 12 Volunteers: 201 hours 5 Community Service: 99 hours Staff conducted 1-Hour courses on the following Computer Topics: 12/5: Introduccion a correro electronico 12/12: Keyboarding Practice 12/19: Practica Del Teclado 12/26: Job Scout Total participants: 8 Tuesday Morning Story Times: preschoolers enjoy singing, dancing, and books. There were 296 participants. Tuesday Evening Spanish Story Times: preschoolers enjoy Spanish stories, Spanish songs, and crafts. There were 79 participants. Boppy Times for Babies: parents and their babies get to play and bond together. There were 21 participants. Sunday traffic counts for December: Sunday, December 6: 250 Sunday, December 13: 217 Sunday, December 20: 265 Sunday, December 27: 216 3. Literacy Report May- July Tutors trained: 1 Learner assessments: 1 Tutor matches: 1 Learners Achievement Corner Alex R. passed her Citizenship exam. Juan A. Tutor David has shared with staff that Juan is improving on his Reading and Writing skills. December 16, 2015, Read to Succeed staff and Literacy participants gathered to watch a motion picture Polar Express. Staff provided refreshments and goodies. There were 17 participants. English as a Second Language Conversation Circle group currently meets Tuesdays and Thursdays evenings. The group is currently utilizing the Life Skills series and continues to work on vocabulary phrases, expressions, and greetings. The Tutors have separated the students into 3 levels; Beginners, Intermediate, and Advanced. The group took a Christmas break. Classes will resume January 2016. There were a total of 28 participants. 6
English as a Second Language - Arabic group meets Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday mornings. There were 53 participants. The Library has partnered with the Police Department Thunderbolt Program staff. We currently have 2 students who are meeting with Tutors for assistance with their writing assignments. 4. Chamber Ambassador Report December 3, 2015, staff attended First Friday Coffee sponsored by The City of Porterville. 5. Update on Centennial Plaza Literacy Center The demo of the 6ft between the two suites and painting has been completed. Staff is awaiting the furniture installation schedule. Staff anticipates the move in date to be in the early part of February. 6. Update on Peter M. Brown Living Trust At this time staff does not have an update to share. 7. Announcements Staff has booked the McCracken Meeting room for the 2016 public meetings scheduled by the Library and Literacy Commission. CITY COUNCIL City Council will have a place on their Tuesday, January 19, agenda for the Library & Literacy Commission to report. Commissioner May has volunteered to deliver the report. 7
SCHEDULED MATTERS 1. Attend Foundation Meeting The Commission has been invited to attending a 2016 meeting of the Tulare County Library Foundation. The TC Library Foundation has shared the following meeting dates for the Commission to consider: January 28, March 24, and June 23. All meetings start a 4pm at the Central Library in Visalia. Also, staff has requested that a tour of the renovated and expanded library facility take place during this planned visit. Staff would like the Commission to determine a feasible date and remind the Commission that the selected date will be publicly noted as an Adjourned Meeting of the Library and Literacy Commission. 2. 2016 Commission Goals and Objectives This item has been placed on the agenda to continue discussion and review the draft work plan. Please refer to the chart on page 4. Staff has added a goal and objective worksheet for the Commission to utilize for organization of the collective process (see attachment). Staff has begun preliminary information gathering on branding and has made contact with a local agency that recently completed a rebranding for their organization. Staff would like the Commission to invoke their own knowledge base of our local community and view some of their images on their business signage, letterhead, vehicle decals and process the basic questions of why do we brand and why is it important: Branding is the art of setting yourself apart from everyone else. A brand is a perception what people think when the Porterville Library is mentioned. It s also a promise that you will deliver on that perception (good or bad). A great brand evokes emotion. It s a feeling someone has about you. This is why you focus on activities more than physical attributes. Staff will be facilitating information on the branding development process from two print resources: Breakthrough Branding: Positioning your library to survive and thrive by Suzanne Walters and Kent Jackson Creating Your Library Brand: Communicating your relevance and value to your patrons by Elisabeth Doucett Staff will have additional information to share at your meetings as we begin the collaborative process of branding. Please refer to the attachment provided to review the Three Dimensions of Branding. 3. Strategic Planning The Commission has had a long standing desire to strengthen advocacy and build a strategic plan for the purpose of establishing a 2030 Library Facility. Staff recommends that the Commission work through an advocacy tool kit published by the Public Library Association called Libraries Prosper with Passion, Purpose and Persuasion! This tool kit brings focus to the ongoing advocacy efforts of the Commissions and aligns well with the desired outcomes of the established goals from your last meeting. If the Commission agrees to utilize this advocacy tool kit as their strategic planning process, then staff will prepare the facilitation of the tool kit content and disseminate at your February meeting. 8
4. Commission Advocacy Opportunities Upcoming meetings: P&L Commission February 4 Council Chambers @ 5:30 pm. City Council February 16 @ 6:30 pm. Friends of the Library February 10 Library Local History Room @ 4 pm. Youth Commission February 8 Council Chambers @ 4pm. VII. VIII. IX. COMMENTS FROM COMMISSIONERS comments on any items or issues not on the agenda SCHEDULE ITEMS FOR FUTURE MEETINGS ADJOURNMENT Adjourn the meeting 9