Birmingham Public Library Board Minutes

Call To Order

• Meeting called to order by President Gwendolyn B. Guster Welch.
• The invocation was given by Katrina Watson, Trustee.

Approvals

• Georgia Blair moved the approval of the agenda. Dora Sims seconded the motion, which carried.
• Georgia Blair moved the approval of the consent agenda. Nell Allen seconded the motion, which carried unanimously.

Staff Spotlight

• All of BPL's LA I's were invited to the Board meeting and presented with certificates of recognition for their service.

Pratt City

• Bruce Harrington and Ann Marie Ellis of Harrington Architects presented the Board with drawings for the new Pratt City Library.
• Katrina Watson moved to accept Harrington Architect's proposed building for the new Pratt City Library. Georgia Blair seconded the motion, which carried unanimously.
• City Council President Roderick Royal was in attendance to promote the new Pratt City building proposal.

Committee Reports

Public Relations Committee Report

• The Public Relations committee met on Wednesday, February 22, 2012 to choose the detailing (colors) of the new BPL logo as well as an honorarium for SIX Branding Logo Design Company.
• Dora Sims moved the approval to accept the darker red color for the new BPL logo as well as present SIX Branding Logo Design Company with an honorarium in which the amount will be determined at a later time. Georgia Blair seconded the motion which passed with a 8-1 vote. (No- Judge Vowell)

Personnel Committee

• The Personnel Committee met on February 23, 2012.
• Georgia Blair moved that the Board enter into executive session.
• Georgia Blair moved the approval to accept a disciplinary action presented by the Personnel Committee. Katrina Watson seconded the motion, which passed with a 7-1 vote. (No- Gwendolyn B. Guster Welch)

Director's Report

Finance and Budget Update

• Let me know if you have any questions regarding the budget reports.

Director's Activities

• The Birmingham Public Library Foundation Board continues to work diligently to support the inclusion of the library in the upcoming bond issue. Jim White, David Herring, Mrs. Welch, and the director met with Mayor Bell on January 25. It was a very warm meeting and the mayor responded positively to our request for funding for library facilities to be included in the upcoming bond issue election. At this point the Council has postponed the bond election until the Comprehensive Planning process is completed. The Foundation Board and the Library Board will organize a PR strategy and plan regarding the renovation of Central and other library improvements we wish to be funded in the City's bond issue.
• Several projects are getting underway at the same time. These include Pratt City renovations and temporary site, new HVAC and roof at North Birmingham, and the Inglenook renovations which are still in the early stages.
• The proposed site for the temporary Pratt City will be 4 Avenue W in the parking lot of an empty office building owned by Reginald Johnson. Council President Roderick Royal has approved this site and approval by the library board is on the agenda for February 23. All else in the plan approved by FEMA will remain the same.
• The long awaited HVAC replacement units are scheduled to be installed at Woodlawn next week.
• We held the first of what we plan to be quarterly meetings of all branch managers. These meetings will focus on issues specific to branches and will be in addition to the bimonthly all managers meeting that includes all library managers. The meeting was very well received.

Miscellaneous

• BPL is hosting the Alabama Humanities Foundation discussion series "Making Sense of the American Civil War" which is a scholar-led reading and discussion series based on readings over five sessions. Sessions will be at the Central Library on every other Thursday beginning on March 15. The final session will be on May 10. You may find additional information by going to http://www.bplonline.org/civilwar.

• BPL is working with the Mayor's Office on plans for celebrating 2013, the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Civil Rights Movement in Birmingham. We will be assisting in producing an exhibit with them and the Museum of Art.

• Saundra Ross, our I Love My Librarian winner, will be honored by the East Birmingham Community and neighborhoods of East Birmingham, Kingston, North Avondale and Inglenook on Sunday February 26 at 4:00. The location is the Saint James African Methodist Episcopal Church, 4200 5th Court North.

• We have arranged to have a very exciting visitor on February 27. Mamie "Peanut" Johnson, one of only three women to have played for the Negro Leagues, will be our guest for two days. We will be selling copies of a book about her career in the Negro League, A Strong Right Arm: The Story of Mamie "Peanut" Johnson by Michelle Y. Green. Mrs. Johnson will present a program for middle school students and the public on Monday morning and for a smaller group of students in the Youth Department that afternoon. We plan to present her to City Council on the morning of February 28.

• In response to the recent tornadoes in our area, we have updated our special information page at http://bplonlinenews.blogspot.com/2012/01/resources-for-tornado-victims-and-ways.html. Please, pass on this information to anyone you know that was affected by the storms.

• The University of Alabama Department of Geography will scan all of BPL's remaining undigitized maps. This is very good news and will greatly enhance our ability to catalog them and make them available to the public. UA digitized a large number of our maps in a similar project several years ago. We are very fortunate they want to do this project because we do not have the equipment or the staff to do such a large project here at BPL. To view the maps previously digitized and other items in BPL's Cartography Collection go to the library's Web site at http://www.bplonline.org/resources/maps/ .

Gifts and Grants Received

• The Alabama State Council on the Arts has awarded Bards and Brews and Word Up! $1,100 each.
• Be sure to write BPL a check or go to our Web page and click on the "Donate Now" button and make a contribution. Also, ask your friends and family to make a donation. The amount you give is not important, but having all board members support the campaign is.

Current and Upcoming Events

• Our Spirit Will Not Be Broken: Voices from the April Storms, a poetry program for victims of the April tornadoes will end on January 31. A publication highlighting these works is planned.
• The Art of Science series of after school programs have been extremely well received. These programs presented by Elinor and Winfield Burks at libraries around the system are funded by the Kresge Arts in Birmingham Grants administered by the Cultural Alliance.

• SaveFirst Tax services are up and running at three BPL branches: Smithfield, Woodlawn, and West End. They will be in operation until mid-April.

• Word Up! Student Poetry Slam 2012 will be held on April 1 at the Central Library. This is the fifth anniversary of this program and a number of special events will lead up to Word Up! They will take place in March.

Exhibits in Central's Gallery

• Works from the African art collection of Mrs. Amamoo in the First Floor display windows during January and February
• February 27 – April 13 : Maurice Cook, Simpler Times : The Paintings of Maurice Cook (Paintings of rural Alabama life)

Reminders

• Dial a Story - Call 226-3650 to listen to a great story over the phone!

• Be sure to check the BPL Blog at http://bplonlinenews.blogspot.com/ to keep up with all the activities going on at this library. You can subscribe and have any updates sent to your email if you have not already done so.

• Sign up for the BPLinks newsletter at http://www.bplonline.org/programs/

• All BPL programs and events are listed on Birmingham365.org (http://birmingham365.org/) to access BPL programs and events only, go to the BPL Web site at http://www.bplonline.org/programs/.

Unfinished Business

• The Board voted 7-1 (No- Georgia Blair) to accept the Pratt City temporary building site.

New Business

• Nell Allen moved to approve budget recommendations made by administration. Katrina Watson seconded the motion, which carried unanimously.
• Gwendolyn Welch made the 2012 Board committee assignments.

Comments

• Samuel Rumore stated that Cynthia Levinson's book, We've Got A Job, was researched at the Birmingham Public Library and is now available for purchase. Mr. Rumore also stated that his son, Samuel Rumore, will be inducted into Beta Phi Mu, which is the Library Honor Society.

• Katrina Watson congratulated the Library Board inductees as well as the new Library Board officers.
• Dora Sims asked that all Board members make a donation to the Trustee Board fund. Mrs. Sims also reminded the Board that the Freedom to Read renewal is due in November of each year and is $10.00 per Board member.
• Georgia Blair stated that Mrs. Welch has been selected to receive the Trustee Citation Award, the highest honor that the Association of Library Trustees, Advocates, Friends, and Foundations bestows upon its members.

• Gwendolyn Welch submitted her midwinter report. (Attached)

• Gwendolyn Amamoo thanked her children and god-daughter for the flowers that she received for being named Vice-President of the Library Board.

Submitted By

Irene S. Blalock, Secretary