The election of MHLS trustees will be an item of business at the MHLS Annual Membership Meeting on Friday, October 22nd. MHLS is governed by a fifteen-member board made up of trustees from each of the five counties served.
Procedures for Election of Trustees:
Article II. Nominations:
Section 2.01 -The county library association of each county for which a trustee is to be elected shall meet for the purpose of selecting a candidate from their county to nominate at the MHLS Annual Membership Meeting. The chair of the county library association shall submit to the MHLS Executive Director the name of the county library association's nominee no later than two months prior to the Annual Membership Meeting.
Section 4.03 - Each member library is a voting unit having one vote.
Three MHLS Board of Trustee vacancies are to be filled for terms commencing in January 2022:
-The Greene County Library Association has nominated Alexandra L. Prince, PhD for her first five-year term (2022-2026).
Dr. Prince is currently the Director of Operations for The Mountain Top Historical Society and an adjunct Professor at Skidmore College. She was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Center for Disability Studies at the University at Buffalo, focused on the intersection of American religious identity, race and madness. Dr. Prince was also a Public Humanities Fellow at Humanities New York and created History+Wikipedia, a public digital humanities project and consulting organization for schools, public libraries, and historical societies focused on teaching skills necessary to become responsible scholars through engagement with Wikipedia article editing and authorship.
-The Putnam County Library Association has nominated Carla Taylor to serve her first five-year term (2022-2026).
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Ms. Taylor is currently the board president of the Reed Memorial Library in Carmel, NY. She grew up on the island of Jamaica and immigrated to the United States almost 30 years ago. Ms. Taylor notes that the Reed Memorial Library has been an integral part of her family’s life since her children participated in the library programs as toddlers and preschoolers. She has been a member of the library board of trustees since 2014.
-The Ulster County Library Association has unanimously nominated Ken Goldberg to serve a second five-year term (2022-2026).
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Mr. Goldberg is a retired Professor Emeritus in Mathematics Education from New York University, having retired in 2009 after 38 years of service. He has lived in Saugerties with his wife and family since 1977 and served on the Saugerties Public Library Board of Trustees, including as Vice President and Treasurer, for many years. Ken and his wife Jeanne are proud, longstanding members of the Friends of the Saugerties Public Library. Ken also has served on the Town of Saugerties Planning Board since 2008. Ken has been a local library member for 64 years, ever since his fifth-grade class made a visit to his local library in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn NY and he carefully signed his name to his first library card.
Register for the Annual Membership Meeting
Register for the Keynote Speaker at the Annual Meeting
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The Board of the Mid-Hudson Library System met on Tuesday, September 14th, 2021. At this meeting the board:
- Adopted a refreshed mission statement and the organization’s first vision and values statements after receiving input from member library directors, MHLS staff and trustees during this year of strategic planning focus groups:
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Mission Statement
The Mid-Hudson Library System acts to uphold the public’s right to free and equitable access to information and library resources; facilitate economical resource sharing; and promote professional and inclusive library services in partnership with our independent member libraries.
We envision a world in which individuals, families and communities thrive when they have access to information, resources, learning environments and library services that respect the triple bottom line of social equity, economic feasibility, and environmental stewardship.
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Core Values
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Responsive Customer Service: The staff and board of the Mid-Hudson Library System strive to be active listeners and timely problem solvers that create a culture of support and professionalism with each other and our member libraries.
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Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion: The staff and board of the Mid-Hudson Library System believe in working together to co-create a society that is free from structural inequities.
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Environmental Stewardship: The staff and board of the Mid-Hudson Library System are committed to minimizing our organization’s ecological impact and maximizing future generations’ ability to live, work, and play in our shared natural environment, with equal access to clean air, clean water, and natural resources.
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Economic Feasibility: The staff and board of the Mid-Hudson Library System are committed to achieving sustainable funding both for the System and for member library services.
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Future-Focused: The staff and board of the Mid-Hudson Library System are devoted to optimizing, balancing, iterating and innovating services to equip member libraries for the future.
- Adopted a Sustainability Policy to better articulate the board’s commitment to using the triple bottom line of economic feasibility, environmental stewardship, and social equity to make decisions on behalf of the organization;
- Adopted a Board of Trustees and Employee Ethics Policy;
- Addressed the organizations’ reserve fund strategy in light of the financial challenges brought on by COVID-19 in FY2020, including the creation of a new “Employee Benefits Accrued Liability Reserve Policy,” as per a recommendation from the Office of the State Comptroller;
- Awarded the 2020 Audit Services Contract to local firm, Sickler, Torchia, Allen & Churchill; and
- Recommended award amounts for the 2021-2022 State Aid for Library Construction Program.
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Pictured (l-r): Tobi Farley, Philmont Public Library Director and Assemblymember Didi Barrett.
Assemblymember Didi Barrett secured $5,000 to support the Philmont Public Library’s Tool Shed Library. The library has rakes, post drivers, drills and more for patrons to borrow. Philmont will now join The Library of Local Project as a satellite location! |
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There is still time to register for Lessons From the Family Literacy Grant Cohort & Summer Reading Wrap Session on Friday, September 24th at 10:00 am. At this online program, we’ll review the outreach and programming work done by member library staff that participated in 2020’s Family Literacy Grant cohort. At this program, we also want to hear from you, our attendees, about what 2021’s Summer Reading Program was like. Stories of successful programs and services are welcome as well as tales of programs that could have gone better. Participants will understand outreach strategies that can be used in the pandemic and beyond and learn about other libraries’ work in engaging communities in Summer Reading Programs and share their own experience.
Learning Objectives:
- Participants will understand outreach strategies that can be used in the pandemic and beyond
- Participants will learn about other libraries’ work in engaging communities in Summer Reading Programs and share their own experience
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The Banned Books Symposium at Mount Saint Mary College will be taking place virtually on March 5 th, 2022. If you are interested in presenting at this conference, please submit your proposal here by November 1st, 2021. Sessions will be 30 or 45-minute blocks with time for Q&A on topics including experience with a book challenge, using challenged/banned books in the classroom, policies and procedures for challenged books, and more. The half-day conference will feature presentations in all capacities of banned and challenged books with the keynote provided by John Piche, Outreach Librarian for Heights Libraries in Cleveland, OH. John is the creator and implementer of the Heights Libraries 1619 Project--an ongoing program featuring speakers and events surrounding the often-challenged works of the 1619 Project which was produced by The New York Times. |
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Resource Sharing & Sierra |
Action Memo # 21:05 eResources Annual Update: Once a year MHLS issues an Action Memo to get an update on the electronic resources that your library subscribes to. This Action Memo provides a review and update process for our catalog links and assures that our catalog is up to date. The memo also provides a comprehensive collection of information that can be used by directors to understand the system wide environment of eResources.
Please fill out the form including resources, you are in the process of adding or that your library has access to through the County Association or any other collaboration. Member library directors or staff designated by the library director should complete Action Memo # 21:05 by September 30th.
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The Directors Association met on Friday September 10th and approved an amendment to the Resource Sharing Standards related to indicating damage to an item. Section 9 of the Resource Sharing Standards is now named “Indicating damage to an item”. A new subsection B has been added to indicate that post-it notes, and other physical notes should not be included within or on the item. Instead, staff should follow the policy defined in new subsection C, and enter a message into the item record. This policy is the first entry in new policy in managing damage recognized within the circulation process, the committee will follow up in future meeting (s) to create policy for items that are damaged beyond an acceptable level for circulation. All staff particularly administrators and those staff who work in circulation should be familiar with the current Resource Sharing Standards. The Resource Sharing Standards are posted on the Knowledge Base website at https://kb.midhudson.org/resource-sharing-standards/. |
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Join us on Tuesday, September 28th at 2:00 pm for an introduction to the Sustainable Libraries Certification Program. This webinar will present an introduction to the Sustainable Libraries Certification program, an award-winning project developed to guide library leaders through a step-by-step process to embed sustainable thinking into every level of their organization. An overview of the 12 categories of action items that comprise this rigorous, reflective, and most importantly, entirely achievable certification process will show how this program is organized and how libraries of every size and scale can customize their own path to certification. Examples drawn from recent certification recipients will highlight the ways that the certification program has benefited library staff, strengthened relationships with other community organizations, and helped libraries be recognized for their role in helping their communities to thrive.
Presenter: Annemarie Gordon (she/her), Sustainability Coordinator for the Sustainable Libraries Initiative and the Suffolk Cooperative Library System, is a librarian and recent graduate of the University at Buffalo’s MILS program. Her library experience includes serving as a Trustee and Treasurer at the Brookhaven Free Library on Long Island and as computer trainer in libraries in Midcoastal Maine through an AmeriCorps project. You will find her outside all year round, skating, surfing, snowboarding, and stand-up paddling.
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Calling all Friends Groups for the 2021 MHLS Member Library Friends Group Online Meetup on Thursday, October 7th from 3:00-4:30 pm. Join MHLS staff and fellow member library Friends Groups for a discussion on fundraising and membership in the pandemic and beyond. All MHLS member library Friends Groups and individuals interested in creating a Friends Group for their local library are welcome to come and share their experiences, questions, and concerns for building and sustaining a Friends group and supporting their local library. This session will be hosted online by Kerstin Cruger, MHLS Outreach & EDI Specialist, and Casey Conlin, MHLS Library Sustainability Coordinator.
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Governor Kathy Hochul announced the launch of the multi-faceted statewide #VaxtoSchool campaign to support increasing COVID-19 vaccination rates among school-aged New Yorkers, furthering the administration's commitment to making the health and well-being of students, teachers and families a top priority.
As part of this campaign, the Governor announced a new, dedicated website at ny.gov/vaxtoschool with critical resources and materials for parents and guardians of school-aged New Yorkers and school communities. The new site includes information, and an FAQ for parents and guardians, as well as a multitude of ready-made signage and marketing materials. |
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American Library Association (ALA) Let’s Talk About It: Women’s Suffrage applications are now open! ALA has announced this grant for libraries to examine a key part of American history. Participants will read a series of books curated by humanities scholars and discuss the people and events from this often-under-taught part of history.
Twenty-five libraries will be selected to receive a $1,000 grant to support programming costs, as well as ten copies of five themed books, access to programming guides and support materials, virtual training on the LTAI model, a suite of online resources, and much more!
For more information, please visit ALA’s FAQ page and review their grant guidelines. Applications will be accepted until December 1 st, 2021. Libraries can visit ala.org/ltai to apply. |
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Next up in the MHLS Trustee Education Series, Legal Issues: NYS Minimum Standards and Financial & Fiduciary Responsibilities. These intermediate-level courses are for trustees who have been on the board for at least a year.
Legal Issues: NYS Minimum Standards | Tuesday, October 12th | 10:00-11:30 am | Register
There are a number of laws and regulations that directly and indirectly apply to and impact libraries in New York State. This program provides a primer on what trustees need to know about how libraries are governed in NYS including an overview of minimum standards for public and association libraries. All MHLS member libraries are required to meet these standards, which include requirements for library planning, staff training, library services, and community engagement.
Learning Objectives:
- Library stakeholders will understand the minimum standards applicable to their library.
- Library stakeholders will be aware of ways to meet the minimum standards.
- Library stakeholders will be aware of resources to support them if they are not currently meeting standards.
Financial & Fiduciary Responsibility | Thursday, October 14th | 5:30-7:00pm | Register
Library boards are trusted with public and private funds to provide quality library service to their community. Transparency and accountability must be at the forefront as a board makes decisions pertaining to the library’s finances. This course will focus on the financial and fiduciary responsibility involved with:
- The library’s budget
- Library funding
- Financial policies
- Reports to the board
- External audits
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Administration & Management |
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The American Library Association is accepting applications for the Spectrum Scholarship program until March 1st, 2022. Through the Spectrum Scholarship Program, the American Library Association affirms its commitment to diversity and inclusion by seeking the broadest participation of new generations of racially and ethnically diverse librarians to position ALA to provide leadership in the transformation of libraries and library services.
The Spectrum Scholarship Program actively recruits and provides scholarships to American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, Middle Eastern and North African, and/or Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander students to assist them with obtaining a graduate degree and leadership positions within the profession and ALA. Learn more and apply.
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Library Assistant, Kent Public Library
The Kent Public Library has an opening for a Library Assistant who is proficient with computer technology, including managing a webpage. This is a civil service position, and the successful candidate must have civil service status as a Library Assistant in Putnam County. Pay is between $16 and $20 per hour, and the position may be full time or part time. If you are interested, please send a résumé to Carol Donick at cdonick@kentlibrary.org and mention the words "Library Assistant" in the subject line. |
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Library Director, The Woodstock Public Library District
The Woodstock Library is seeking a full-time Library Director. The director will
oversee all aspects of library programs and services. We are looking for a focused,
dedicated, caring individual who will bring energy and progress to the Woodstock
Library, and is excited to be involved in the community at large. The Woodstock
Library is a special district library supported mainly by an annual tax levy that
provides consistent and stable funding. The Woodstock Library is fortunate to
include on staff a full-time librarian, four additional full-time support staff, and
several part-time staff, as well as the director. The annual operating budget is
$672,199. The position requires appointment by the Ulster County Civil Service and
scoring highly enough on the next Director I civil service exam to maintain
employment.
Position Summary:
The candidate should have the ability to supervise all library employees, administer
both short-term and long-term library operations, and foster partnerships with
outside organizations in providing services to the residents of Woodstock. The
director has principal responsibility for library finances, information systems and
technology, buildings and grounds, human resources, collection development, public
relations, community outreach, and customer service. The Library Director
prioritizes and manages many projects simultaneously. The director must foster
strong working relationships with the library’s Board of Trustees, volunteers, staff
members, patrons, and other stakeholders.
This job requires attention to detail, the ability to work independently and with
others, and multi-tasking. Most importantly, the director should possess excellent
communication skills and the ability to connect to people of all ages.
The Woodstock Library is currently in the process of exploring relocation. One of the
major focuses of the director for the next few years will be managing a move,
adaptation of an existing building, reorganization, and expansion of library
programming and services.
The essential functions include, but are not limited to the following:
- Recruits, selects, trains, and evaluates library staff.
- Supervises and schedules library staff.
- Oversees the development and provision of library programs and events.
- Prepares budget with trustees and supervises library expenditures.
- Responsible for resolving all accounts payable and receivable, overseeing a bookkeeper and independent treasurer.
- Reviews, abides by, and enforces all library policies established by the Board of Trustees
- Makes recommendations for policy changes to the Board of Trustees.
- Reports monthly to the Board of Trustees and meets with Board Committees.
- Acts as a liaison between the library and outside organizations, including the Town of Woodstock.
- Stays abreast of developments in the library field, especially as pertains to the Mid-Hudson Library System.
- Seeks alternative funding for the organization (i.e. grants, donations, and sponsorships).
- Oversees marketing and public relations, including library website and social media.
- Oversees the buildings and grounds.
- Oversees expansion project and coordinates with Construction Manager and Facilities Chair.
- Oversees collection development and collection maintenance.
- Administers and maintains library technology.
- Ability to provide readers advisory, circulation, or reference service and/or guide patrons toward materials in print and electronic resources when needed.
- Occasional evenings and weekends are required for Board meetings, programming, and community outreach.
- Sense of humor.
Minimum Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities)
- Previous experience in library management.
- Supervisory experience.
- Working knowledge of library finances and budgets.
- High proficiency with library computer technology and electronic resources.
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, both verbal and written.
- Interest in information needs, preferences, and opinions of local residents.
- Ability to provide reference, programming, and circulation support.
- Ability to work cooperatively with others.
- Masters degree in Library Science.
- Eligibility for or possession of a New York State Public Librarian certification.
- Ability to score highly enough to be reached on the Ulster County Civil Service exam for Library Director I.
Salary and Benefits:
The salary range is $60,000-$70,000 for a 35 hour work week, with 2 days vacation
a month, medical, dental, and vision coverage, personal and sick time, New York
State and Local Retirement System, Employee Assistance Program, Health Savings
Account, New York State Paid Family Leave, and optional New York State Deferred
Compensation.
To apply email resume and cover letter to Dorothea Marcus, Personnel Chair, at
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