Rockingham Free Public Library
Board of Trustees Meeting
Tuesday, January 22, 2019
Click here to download a .pdf of these minutes.
Present: John Bohannon, Ellen Taetzsch, Martha Rowley, Kate Kane, Don Tretler,
Gary Fox, Célina Houlné
Absent: Heidi Lauricella, Brady Weinstock, Susan Spaulding
Guests: None
1. Call to Order : 6:08 PM
2. Additions to Agenda for routine administrative matters and/or pressing matters that will require ratification at a future meeting : None
3. Public Comment (3 minutes per person) : None
4. Approve Minutes of November 27 Meeting : Ellen moved, Martha seconded. Approved unanimously with no discussion.
5. March Election and Board Positions : Ellen is running again for a position on the board, and Kathleen Hacker and Dale Kondracki have taken out petitions. Town Meeting is March 4th. Célina will send out a list of talking points in the event that someone from the board needs to speak in support of the library budget.
6. Director’s Report : Fundraising appeal is in good shape. Novus has begun operation; we should see a change in our electric bill next month. The Friends are having a trivia event at Wunderbar on March 2nd, with March 9th as the snow date. The Friends also made a $1000 donation to the library.
7. FY 19 Budget Update : Our revenue is projected to be $9000 under budget due to the fluctuation in the Barker Trust account, and expenses are projected to be over budget by about $10,000 due to a sharp increase in the pension expense and an increase in insurance due to one employee switching from a couple to a family plan. This results in a projected deficit of $19,000 at year end. .
8. Long Range Plan Update : Célina presented the updates to the 2017-2022 Long Range Plan including program collaborations with schools and early childhood services, interior storm windows (indows) for the top floor, filming programs for FACT TV, and much more. The Long Range Plan is a working document which is updated on a regular basis. John asked for time-phasing on the plan, indicating what has already been done, what is expected to be done this year, and when all remaining items are expected to be completed. Ongoing items could be listed separately on the plan. Célina will work on this.
9. Other Business : None
10. Review Action Items, and Proposed Agenda Items for Next Meeting : None
11. Date for Organizational Meeting: March 12, 2019, at 7:30 PM
12. Director’s Evaluation – Executive Session : Ellen moved that premature general public knowledge of the details concerning a personnel matter involving a RFPL employee will clearly place the employee and the Board at a substantial disadvantage by disclosing the personal details of this topic. The motion was seconded by Gary and approved unanimously.
Ellen moved that the Board enter into executive session to discuss a personnel matter where premature general public knowledge would clearly place the RFPL at a substantial disadvantage, and that the Director be invited to attend. The motion was seconded by Gary and approved unanimously.
The board entered executive session at 6:55 PM. The board exited executive session at 7:05 PM. No action was taken.
13. Adjourn : Ellen moved, John seconded. Meeting adjourned at 7:20 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Kate Kane
Secretary