Board of Directors Meeting Minutes, September 17, 2013

Attention: This post is over 2 years old and the information may be out of date.Attention: This post is over 2 years old and the information may be out of date.

Agenda

Tuesday, September 17, 2013, 9:00 a.m.

Harold Washington Library Center
400 S. State Street
Multi-Purpose Room, Lower Level
  1. Approval of the minutes of the regular meeting on June 18, 2013 (action required)
  2. Schedule of Requisitions, Contracts and Licenses (action required)
    • Brian Bannon, Commissioner
  3. Complete the Annual FY Illinois Public Library System Per Capita Grant Application (action required)
    • Kathryn Ludwig, Deputy Commissioner of Administration and Finance
  4. Revised Internet Use Guidelines (action required)
    • Greta Bever, Assistant Commissioner of Central Library Services
  5. Commissioner’s Report (info only)
    • Brian Bannon, Commissioner
    • Guests: Michelle Frisque, Director of Library Technology and Andrea Saenz, First Deputy Commissioner
  6. Report of the Committee on Facilities
  7. Chicago Public Library Foundation Report
    • Rhona Frazin, Chicago Public Library Foundation President & CEO
  8. Questions and comments from the audience
  9. Executive Session: Personnel (info only)
    • Brian Bannon, Commissioner

Next Board meeting:
Tuesday, October 15, 2013, 9 a.m.

Harold Washington Library Center
400 S. State Street
Multi-Purpose Room, Lower Level

Open Session Minutes

Board Members in Attendance

Physically Present

  • Linda Johnson Rice
  • Christopher P. Valenti
  • Cristina Benitez
  • Josephine Gomez
  • Chaka Patterson
  • Lynn Lockwood
  • Barbara Bowman
  • Jodi Block

Present by Means of Video or Audio Conference

None

Absent

None

Approval of Minutes

The Board voted (8-0) to approve the open session minutes of the June 18, 2013.

Schedule of Requisitions, Contracts and Licenses

Andrew Medlar, Assistant Commissioner for Collections, provided a brief description and requested approval of three new E-Content licensing agreements: Brainfuse, CONTENTdm, and Zinio. These proposed agreements will provide additional and enhanced electronic content and services which the Library will provide concurrently with the launch of the new CPL website in November.

The Board voted (8-0) to approve the Brainfuse, CONTENTdm and Zinio E-Content licensing agreements.

Annual FY Illinois Public Library System Per Capita Grant Application

Kathryn Ludwig, Deputy Commissioner of Administration and Finance, presented information on the FY Illinois Public Library System Per Capita grant application and requested that all Board members review the grant application, specifically questions number 9 and 12 that require responses from CPL Board of Directors. Draft responses were generated for both questions and presented for Board approval.

The Board voted (8-0) to approve and submit the FY Illinois Public Library System Per Capita grant application.

Revised Internet Use Guidelines

Greta Bever, Assistant Commissioner of Central Library Services, requested approval for a revision to the CPL policy on Guidelines for Computer and Internet Use. The revised policy would state “The Chicago Public Library reserves the right to intervene when activities on a Library or personal device cause a disruption to library users and a complaint is received. We will call police when such activities violate local, state or federal laws.”

The Board voted (8-0) to approve the revision to the Guidelines for Computer and Internet Use policy.

Commissioner’s Report

New Programs

Andrea Saenz, First Deputy Commissioner, provided an update on programs that took place during the summer break including the Citizenship Hubs which focuses on creating partnerships with community organizations that host programs related to immigration and citizenship; Geeks in residence which occupies space in the Harold Washington Library and offers one-on-one business mentoring sessions for entrepreneurs, this program will last through the beginning of 2014 ; the Innovation Lab which will continue to serve as a space for the library to test new ideas after the MakerLab pilot is complete and is a nominee for the 2013 Innovation award; and a final look at this year’s Summer Learning Challenge.

Technology Update

Michelle Frisque, Director of Library Technology, gave an overview of the new CPL website that will launch in late November and described key enhancements that include a mobile application for both iPhone and Android devices; an option to review books and create a list of favorite reads; the ability to stream videos and music; an expanded ebook collection and digital magazines.

Report of the Committee on Facilities

Director Valenti delivered the report of the September 11, 2013 Facilities Committee meeting that was held at the West Lawn branch Library. The report included a brief history of the West Lawn branch; results of the branch’s Summer Learning Challenge in which 365 children participated; mentioned local partnerships with community organizations. The report also provided information on capital projects and described branches that opened over the summer break including the Edgewater and Back of the Yards branches; the Innovation Lab; the ground breaking ceremony for the AlbanyPark branch and the Bookmobile which will serve the AlbanyPark community while the new branch is under construction.

Chicago Public Library Foundation Report

Rhona Frazin presented the report of the Chicago Public Library Foundation which supplied information on private funding activity since the September meeting including seven new grants; the Chicago Sun-Times Foundation match program and contributions to the Carl Sandburg Literary Awards Dinner occurring on October 23, 2013.

Questions and Comments from the Audience

None

Executive Session

Closed

Next Board Meeting

The next board meeting will be held on Tuesday, October 15, 2013 at 9:00 a.m. at the Harold Washington Library Center, 400 S. State Street, Multi-Purpose Room, Lower Level

Attachment A: Commissioner’s Report – September 2013

New Programs

Citizenship Hubs

  • All library locations have one or multiple copies of the Civics and Citizenship Toolkit available for check-out to the public
  • 27 “Citizenship Corner” locations are making USCIS publications available to the public as well as enhanced collections on immigration and U.S. citizenship
  • In addition to the above resources, 13 “Citizenship Hub” locations are engaged in or seeking partnerships with community organizations and will host immigration, citizenship and other related programs
  • 5 locations are actively working on partnerships with community organizations to provide enhanced services
  • Over 50 librarians were trained in April 2013 on citizenship and immigration resources by USCIS staff and their community partners
  • A link to Citizenship Resources at the Library is ready to go for the CPL website once the announcement has been made

Geek in Residence

  • Launched two weeks ago with public programs in the maker space and one-on-one business mentoring sessions
  • Public Good Software is helping us design and pilot this enhanced peer mentorship services for entrepreneurs
  • They’ll be in residence through early 2014, at which point we’ll decide if we can continue to enhance our business services through this model

Innovation Lab

The Maker Lab is the first project for our Innovation Lab.  The Innovation Lab will continue to serve as a space for the library to test new ideas after the MakerLab pilot is completed

Summer Learning Challenge

Read: basic literacy = 300 minutes

Learn: critical thinking and problem-solving = complete a STEM brain game

Discover: digital literacy and critical thinking = complete ONLINE steam LEARNING CHALLENGE

Create: creativity = draw, build, etc. an original work

Achieve for doing it all

Technology Update – New Website

New Home

  • Beta-launch is in late November
  • The home page will be made up of “cards” that will highlight the library’s collections, services and events
  • When a patron clicks on the card they will be taken to a page that gives more information about the service, collection or event featured in the card
  • If the patron clicks on the link above the card like “Plan a trip” they will be taken to a web page that lists various resources that relate to the topic
  • Staff is currently being trained on the new website including blogs

Mobile App + Browser

  • The catalog will be available as a mobile application for both iPhone and Android devices
  • Website will be optimized for a mobile web browser

Social/Online Engagement

  • There will be significant improvements with search, discovery, social media, and the online community. - The entire site will function and work more like Amazon. Users can review books, create lists of their favorite reads, follow reviewers etc.

New Content

The new site will also feature three new content areas: expanded eBooks, streaming video/music, and digital magazines. Here is what we will offer in these three areas:

  1. Expanded ebooks: We will have more titles and will be much easier to download eBooks on any devise (computer, iPhone, etc). Similar to Audible.com & Amazon Kindle we will use the 3M app - all content available with library card
  2. Streaming Video/Music: With library card, users will be able to stream movies, TV shows, music etc. - there is cross over content with Hulu, iTunes, and Netflix - all commercial free and free to users with library card. Here is more info on the vendor we will use: https://www.hoopladigital.com/home
  3. Digital Magazines: This is a partnership with Zinio - world’s largest online newsstand. We will subscribe to 100's specific titles (e.g. ART News, Consumer Reports, Forbes, etc.). Here is what it will look like: http://www.rbdigital.com/clcoh/service/zinio/landing?

In summary, this will take us years ahead of where we are today. We are moving from an online environment that was created (and then stayed) in 2006 to a digital space that sets a new bar for libraries.

Attachment B: Facilities Committee Meeting

September 11, 2013 – 10:30 a.m.
West Lawn Branch
4020 W. 63rd Street

Board Members in Attendance

Physically Present

  • Linda Johnson Rice
  • Cristina Benitez
  • Christopher P. Valenti
  • Josephine Gomez

Present by Means of Video or Audio Conference

None

Absent

None

Approval of Minutes

The Committee voted (4-0) and approved the minutes of the Facilities Committee’s June 12, 2013 meeting.

History of the West Lawn Branch

West Lawn’s branch manager Elizabeth Garcia provided a historical overview of the West Lawn branch which relocated to its current location in September, 1986. Ms. Garcia gave information on key programs held at the branch such as the Summer Learning Challenge in which 365 children completed the program and 43 other programs were offered. She also mentioned that the West Lawn branch library is the third top circulating branch in the South District, serves 11 local area schools, partners with two area daycares and participates in the monthly CAPS meetings. The West Lawn area is also home to the largest Lithuanian museum (Balzekas Museum of Lithuanian Culture) outside of Lithuania.

CPL Capital Projects and Facilities Reports

Assistant Commissioner Telli supplied the Capital Projects report and presented information on branches that have completed construction and opened over the summer break including the Edgewater branch which opened its doors on June 22nd and circulated over 1600 items its first day, the Innovation Lab which opened July 8th and was recently nominated for the Chicago Innovation Award and the Back of the Yards branch which opened August 26th and has a brand new opening day collection focused on teens. Also mentioned was the ground breaking ceremony for the AlbanyPark branch that occurred on August 30th (the Bookmobile is currently available 20 hours/week to serve the residents of the AlbanyPark area) and the Illinois State Library Public Library Construction Act Grant that was submitted to the State and has been approved.

Other Business

None

Questions and Comments from the Audience

Staff received a statement and addressed comments from the residents of the Gage Park are that expressed their concern and need for a new library to be built in Gage Park and replace the current storefront location.

Next Facilities Meeting

The next Facilities meeting will be held on Wednesday, October 9, 2013 at 10:30 a.m. at the Legler Branch located at 115 S. Pulaski.

Attachment C: Chicago Public Library Foundation Report to the Board of the Chicago Public Library

September 17, 2013

The Chicago Public Library Foundation is pleased to report to the Library Board on private funding activity on behalf of the Chicago Public Library since your last meeting.

New Grants Include

  •  $125,000 from the McCormick Foundation for development of a News Literacy Initiative with a special focus on youth.
  • Comcast grants of $20,000 for a CyberNavigator at the BrightonPark branch and $35,000 for 80 laptops for use by Teachers in the Library (TIL) and CyberNavigators (CN) at each Library location
  • $100,000 in proceeds from the dissolution of the Parkways Foundation to fund Special Collections’ archiving and digitization of the archives of the Chicago Park District
  • $50,000 from the Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation for the Vivian Harsh Collection archiving project at the Woodson Regional Library
  • Grants of $25,000-$30,000 from Northern Trust and Bank of America in support of the Teacher in the Library and CyberNavigator Programs
  • $10,000 from the Motorola Solutions Foundation for YOUmedia
  • $25,000 from the Walter E. Heller Foundation for the 2013 Summer Learning Challenge

In addition, nearly $3 million in grant requests are currently pending for

  • Growth and sustained funding for YOUmedia over the next three years
  • CyberNavigators
  • And the 2014 Summer Learning Challenge.

The Chicago Sun-Times Foundation Match

The Foundation is proud to share the news that we have received a $50,000 matching grant from the Chicago Sun-Times Foundation, a fund of the Chicago Community Trust.  The Sun Times will match all gifts of up to $1000 received by the Foundation, dollar for dollar to a total of $50,000 received between Oct 1-Dec 31, 2013.  Tailored mail and online appeals are going out to general supporters and prospects, as well as to Board and Sandburg Society members.  This is a wonderful opportunity to double the impact of all gifts to support the Library-- so please help spread the word.

Carl Sandburg Literary Awards Dinner

On behalf of Tom Ricketts and Marcy Carlin, Co-Chairs of this year’s Carl Sandburg Literary Awards Dinner I am pleased to share that more than $1.32 million has already been contributed to this October 23 event—honoring Chilean/American Fiction Writer Isabel Allende and Business writer Michael Lewis—author of Moneyball, The Blind Side, The Big Short and Liar’s Poker. Chicago Novelist Christine Sneed will receive the 21st Century Award to an emerging talent.

We hope to be on track for yet another record-breaking year for this wonderful literary evening—which is the only major fundraising event of the Chicago Public Library Foundation.

Foundation Director Donna LaPietra once again serves as producer for the evening, which is emceed by Bill Kurtis.  NPR Weekend Edition host and noted author Scott Simon will conduct the conversation with our esteemed honorees.

If you need even more reason to get charged up-- each table will feature one of 70 fabulous authors—representing every imaginable genre of writing and media available for free at the Chicago Public Library.  To name just a few…

  • Famed graphic novelist Chris Ware
  • Pulitzer prize winning journalist and author Jack Fuller
  • Mystery writers Kevin Guilfoile, James Finn Garner and Libby Fischer Hellman
  • Playwrights Susan Nussbaum and Henry Godinez
  • Chef Art Smith and sustainable food writer Anna Blessing
  • Award winning non-fiction author Rich Cohen
  • Poets Jeffery Renard Allen, Elizabeth Crane, Rosellen Brown and Elizabeth Paschen
  • Fashion writer Tavi Gevinson
  • African American historians Dr. Adam Green and Dawn Turner Trice
  • Theatre Critic Chris Jones
  • Award-winning filmmaker of Hoop Dreams Steve James
  • Novelists Adam McComber, Brigid Pasulka and Jian Ping
  • Sports writer Ron Rapoport
  • Science Writers Dr. Neil Shubin and Rebecca Skloot
  • Distinguished  University of Chicago anthropologist Marshall Sahlins
  • And the Editor of GQ, Michael Hainey AND the editor of Slate, Jacob Weisberg

A line-up of literary superstars!  And one will be seated with you and your guests.  Thank you to those members of the Library Board who have already made their reservations, and we hope that all of you will generously support the event this year.

Submitted by:
Cristina Benitez
Secretary