Board Minutes

2025

NOVEMBER 2025

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on November 5, 2025 at the Ainsworth Public Library.  The meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, over the radio, and posted at the Library.  President Gilliland called the meeting to order at 5:04 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed four members present.  They included Stacey Gilliland, Laurie Goodloe, Jean Hunt, and Alane Lentz.  Member Luke Hitchcock was absent.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

No one was present for Public Comment Time.

Jean Hunt moved to approve the minutes.  Laurie Goodloe seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Alane Lentz made the motion to approve the claims for payment.  Jean Hunt seconded this with all voting in favor of.  

The Monthly Library Report for October was presented as well as the Summary Report for the 2024-2025 fiscal year.  It was noted that the company which handled the yearly public library survey is going out of business.  The Library Commission is currently looking for a new company and we are not sure when we will be able to submit our information.  The director reported that she has finished with her medical treatment and does not have to go back to the doctor until in January.  

The Fall Library Crawl was discussed.  This will run until the end of November.  The events planned for this included the Quilt Show.  The Threads of Time Quilt Show was held on October 25th.  We had 60 quilts for people to enjoy viewing.  40 people signed the register.  Everyone liked the history books and other information by each quilt.  A Night at the Library Book Basket Auction will be held on November 15th from 5-7 p.m. We will serve food and have some Spanish musicians providing entertainment at 6 p.m..   Library board members were encouraged to bring food and/or a basket for the event.   Proceeds will go towards the purchase of a drinking fountain with a bottle filling station.  

Library events from October to December were discussed.  This includes Storytime on Oct. 7 & 21; Nov. 4 & 18, and Dec. 2 & 16.  Book Club will have the titles of the One Book/One Nebraska title “The Long March Home” on Oct. 20th; “Little Fires Everywhere” on Nov. 17th; and “A Christmas Prayer” on Dec. 15th.  It was noted that the library had a Banned Book Week display up from Oct 6-11th and an American Revolution: Ken Burns library display to promote the 250 celebration of the United States.  Library staff attended the Trick or Treat Main Street event on October 31st.  We had 350 items to hand out and run out.

The VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) program for 2026 tax season was discussed.  We will have three people doing taxes this year. They will take appointments on Thursday evenings from 5-7 p.m. and on Saturday mornings from 9-12 a.m.   A Kick Off Event will be held on Jan. 30th from 11:30-1 p.m.  Appointments will be taken from Jan. 31st to April 4th.   The Library will be doing the schedule of appointments as we did last  year.   

It was noted that the Library has found a Library Helper as needed.  Mary Ritter is willing to do this.  We will be setting up a time to start training her so she will be ready to go when needed. 

Meetings and workshops attended by staff were shared.  The director attended the Thursday Library Zoom meeting on Oct. 2 & 9; and the Public Library Survey Workshop on Oct. 6.  The Nebraska Makerspace Conference was held in Lincoln on Nov. 4 & 5th.  No one from our library attended. Meetings coming up include the Ainsworth Library Foundation Board Meeting on Nov. 6th and the State Advisory Council on Libraries on Nov. 21st in Lincoln.

Under correspondence, information was shared on the 2025 Public Library Services for Strong Communities Survey; partnering information with Sesame Street on Library Programs for kids and families; Baker and Taylor winding down operations; and the 2026 Science Kits for Public Libraries Grant. Articles of interest from library journals and newsletters were also shared.

The board approved the holiday closings for Nov. 11th (Veteran’s Day); November 27th (Thanksgiving Day); December 24th and 25th (Christmas) and December 31st and January 1st (New Year’s).  A library staff member asked if we could be closed the Friday after Thanksgiving (Nov. 28th) and the Friday after Christmas (Dec. 26th).  Laurie Goodloe made the motion to close the day after Thanksgiving but not after Christmas. Jean Hunt seconded this with all members voting in favor of.

The Board does not usually meet in December unless some important item comes up.  The next meeting will be January 7th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:44 p.m.

OCTOBER 2025

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting at the Ainsworth Public Library on October 1, 2025.  This meeting was advertised in the newspaper, on the radio, and posted at the Library.  The meeting was called to order at 5:05 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed four members present.  They included Stacey Gilliland, Laurie Goodloe, Luke Hitchcock, and Jean Hunt.  Member Alane Lentz was absent.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.  No members of the public was present to do a public comment time.

Luke H. made the motion to approve the minutes from the last meeting.  Laurie G.  seconded this.  All members voted in favor of.  Luke H. moved to approve the claims for payment.  Jean H.  seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  A budget spending sheet was shared on  2024-2025.  The Monthly Library Report for August and September was shared.  A list of titles purchased was also shared at this time.  It was noted at this time that the director will try to have the end of the year statistics at our next meeting.  The director will be starting treatment and may need to be out of the library for a few days here and there with sick leave.  The library will be closed on October 13th for Columbus Day.

An update was given on the 2025-2026 budget. This budget will run from October 1, 2025  to September 30, 2026.  The City Clerk stated that nothing was changed on the budget that we presented. Discussion was held on maybe hiring another part-time employee to cover when regular staff could not.  It was noted that we had $1200 in this new budget which could be used to cover the cost of such a person but we could not do a regular part time job.  We would need to budget more for this the next time we prepare the budget.  Several names were provided of people that the Board felt might be interested in this.

The Fall Library Crawl was discussed.  In September, our library had 10 stamps given out (five from Grand Island, 1 from Lincoln and the rest from the local area).  The Crawl will continue till the end of November.  Our library was holding several events to draw people into the library during this time.  We held a Bookish Fall Bling on Sept. 27th by recycling a book with fall florals.  We had several ladies make beautiful fall decorations.  Events in October will include the One Book/One Nebraska title of “The Long March Home” on the Book Discussion of Oct. 20th and the Threads of Time Quilt Show on the 25th.  A Book Basket Auction will be held in November.

Discussion was held on October library events.  The Silent Witness display will be up from Sept. 29th to Oct. 6th.  The Ainsworth Art Guild Fall Display is currently at the library till Oct. 18th with their theme of “owls”.  Storytime will be held Oct. 7th (Black Cat Theme) and on Oct. 21st (Pumpkin Theme).  Book Club will be held on Oct. 20th with One Book/One Nebraska title.  Trunk or Treat Main Street will be held on October 31st.  The board agreed that the library could close early and attend this event. 

Banned Book Week will be observed from October 6-11th.  The theme will be “Censorship is so 1984”.  A poster and banned books will be on display for the public to see.

No meetings or workshops were attended by staff this month.

Under correspondence, information was shared on the new hold suspensions in Libby/OverDrive.  A letter from the Nebraska Library Commission was shared that stated the Public Library Survey would open up on Nov. 3rd.  An email requesting the library be used for the Veterans Evaluation Services Mobile Unit on Sept. 26th.  This was forwarded to the City Clerk as it was felt that it might be a scam.  The Clerk had sent them an email and never heard back from them.  Information was shared that Ken Burns will be celebrating America’s 250th anniversary of the American Revolution.  Nebraska Public Media would send a poster on this event to our library and we are asked to do a display with the books we have on the American Revolution, independence, or about American history.  Articles of interest from Library Journal were shared with the board.  

The next meeting was set for Nov. 5th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:48 p.m.

SEPTEMBER 2025

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on September 10, 2025 at the Ainsworth Public Library.  This meeting was advertised and posted at the Library.  President Stacey Gilliland called the meeting to order at 5:02 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  

The board welcomed new member Laurie Goodloe.  Laurie will be completing the Tammy Hancock term on the library board.  Ms. Hancock has relocated out of the area.  Roll call showed four members present.  They included Stacey Gilliland, Laurie Goodloe, Jean Hunt, and Alane Lentz.  Member Luke Hitchcock was absent.  Library director, Gail Irwin, was also present.  There were no visitors and thus no public comment time.

Alane Lentz made the motion to approve the minutes of the last meeting.  Stacey Gilliland seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Alane Lentz moved to approve the claims for payment.  Jean Hunt seconded this motion with all voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library was not completed yet so it will be given at the next meeting. A list of titles purchased was shared.  The Library Director has been facing a medical issue and had surgery on August 18th..  It was noted that the doctor signed a release stating the Director could go back to work on 9-22-25.  It was noted that the nursing home wanted the Library to do a weekly reading at the home.  Since the director has had surgery and is facing more treatments, the board decided not to have the library do this at this time due to shortage of staff.  Jean Hunt volunteered to do this.  The director will contact the nursing home and give them Jean’s information.  

An update was given on the budget for 2025-2026.  The City Clerk stated that there were no amendments to the request that the Library presented.  A public hearing meeting will be held on September 22nd at 6 p.m. to approve the city budget.

The Fall Library Crawl was discussed.  The passport was shown in which stickers go in after people visit the library.  Twenty-four libraries in the Central Plains Library System are participating from Sept. 2nd to Nov. 30th.  The crawl is designed to encourage residents of Nebraska to visit, attend programming and explore the libraries.  To be eligible for the three prizes to be given in a drawing, the passport must have a minimum of five stickers from five different libraries.  Completed passports must be at the System Office by Dec. 5th.  Three winners will be announced on December 15th.  Prize baskets are valued at $250 each.  They include the newest model of Amazon Kindle, fuzzy socks, fleece blanket, mug, hot drink mixes, candles, etc.  Special events at our library during this time will be:  Fall Book Bling Craft on Sept 27th; One Book/One Nebraska title “The Long March Home” at Book Club on Oct. 20th; Trunk Quilt Show on Oct. 25th; and Book Basket Auction in November.

Discussion was held on Christmas events at the Library to go with the Christmas Stroll activities.  Maybe hold a Tour of House or have children make Christmas ornaments to hang on a big Christmas tree in the park.  

The Little Free Library Grant was discussed.  Word has been received that our library was not awarded the mini-grant.  They received 78 applications and just not enough funds to go around.  It was noted that the Long Pine Village received the $250 book grant for existing Little Free Libraries.

Under Meetings/Workshops, several different events were shared.  An update was given on the Library Foundation Board meeting held August 27th.  The foundation would like to hold the Book Basket Auction as a fundraiser with proceeds going towards a new drinking/bottle filler fountain. The Foundation also agreed to pay for the costs to have a program in the summer called Toby Kid’s Adventure:  A Mesozoic Adventure.  It was noted that the Director was not able to attend the Justice and Sccales Training on August 27th.  Training will be held later on this.  The director did attend the Changes to Nebraska Libraries on the Web on August 27th.  Our library can do the free Word Press from the Commission or change to LibChalk at a fee of around $250 per year.

Under correspondence, information was shared that showed the Library Commission was providing the Swank Movie Licensing USA: Public Performance Site License 2025-2026 to our library free of charge.  The Nebraska 2025 Book Award Winners was announced and shared with the Board.  Four of these titles were recently purchased with the Cindy Smith Memorial.  Articles of interest from various library journals and newsletters were shared.  

The next meeting date was set for October 1st at 5 p.m.  Board member, Jean Hunt requested that we put the possibility of hiring a part-time person on the next agenda.

The meeting was adjourned at 5:44 p.m.

AUGUST 2025

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly library board meeting on August 6, 2025 in the meeting room at the Ainsworth Public Library.   This meeting was advertised over the radio, in the newspaper, and posted at the library.  President Stacy Gilliland called the meeting to order at 5:04 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll called showed four members present.  They included Stacy Gilliland, Luke Hitchcock, Jean Hunt, and Alane Lentz.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.  There was no public comment time due to no visitors from the public.  

Alane Lentz made the motion to approve the minutes but with a change on page 2 under the Meetings/Workshop paragraph stating that the Library Director attended the Brown County Commissioner’s meeting on June 3th.  Luke Hitchcock seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Luke Hitchcock moved to approve the claims for payment.  Jean Hunt seconded this motion with all voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report for July was presented as well as the List of Titles Purchased.  The Director also noted at this time that there was no news on the upcoming budget yet.  It was hoped that the City Council would appoint a new member at their July 13th meeting to replace Tammy Hancock who has moved away from our community.  It was noted that a large box of ink jet cartridges had been sent off for recycling. Storytime will restart on Sept. 9th and be held every other week.  Staff has two months planned already for the children.  Two of the city guys came and cleaned out the library rain gutters.  The Library will have a booth at the Back to School Night at the Sandhill’s Care Center on August 8th.   It was noted that the director would be having surgery on August 18th and may be out of the library for a few days.  

Discussion was held on the Color Our World Summer Reading Program.  Six readers received special prizes for meeting their summer reading goal. The very top reader was Sutton Owen with 1320 minutes. A review was given on the Extension Program held three weeks in July using our summer reading theme.  Topics included color/emotions(Heartfelt Hues); color/animals (Colorful Camouflage); and color/food (Food Colors Your World ).  We had a total of 34 attend the sessions.  

The Fall Library Crawl was discussed.  This is designed to encourage residents of central Nebraska to explore the libraries spanning the 31 counties in the middle part of the state.  The program is similar to the Game and Parks Passport program.  The System Library Office will design brochures listing the libraries involved as well as special activities/events.  The brochure would have a place to put a special stamp by the library that was visited.  When the people get five/six stamps from different libraries, the brochure gets mailed to the system office for special prizes.  Libraries will hold special events during September, October and November to entice Crawl visitors.  The Library Foundation will help the library with the events.  Deanna Taylor is planning on holding a Truck Quilt Show; have Spanish music with a book basket auction, and make a book decoration craft time.  The Board discussed the possibility of using the fundraising funds for a new wall mount drinking fountain with a bottle filling station.

The renewal agreement for OverDrive for the year running October 1, 2025 to September 30, 2026 was shared.  The annual participation fee is calculated at $0.10 per population served, based on legal service area populations from the census data used for 2025 state aid payments, with a minimum cost of $500.  Our library agreed to give $200 additional funds to the consortium collection development budget above and beyond their annual participation fee.  The total cost for the OverDrive would be $700.00.

Information was shared on the grant from Little Free Library organization.  It is being offered as part of the initiative to get childhood literacy back on track and to improve access to books in unserved communities with no library and to underserved communities that have a library but would benefit from additional access point areas.  Applications are due by August 22, 2025.  If the applicant already has an existing little free library, grants of up to $250 are available for the purchase of early literacy books to stock the location.  For communities seeking to install a little free library, grants of up to $500 are available for the library box, post, and children’s books.  The Library Director will fill out the application and see if we can get the funds to purchase children’s books for the Little Free Library by the Fire Station.  

New passwords for the NebraskAccess Databases were handed out to the board members.  The three new passwords started on August 1st and will continue to work through August 1, 2026.  The library has business cards available with all the needed information for the public.

The Book Club for 2025-2026 was discussed.  It was noted that the book titles have been chosen and ordered for the season.   The first title will be “The Boys in the Boat” with discussion on September 22nd.  The One Book/One Nebraska title will be the October discussion title (The Long Road Home).

Changes to Nebraska Libraries on the Web were discussed.  The Board was informed that due to software and budgetary issues, the Nebraska Library Commission can no longer offer free WordPress web hosting.  To make the transition easier, the Commission will offer a free basic website hosted by them or a reduced rate web hosting through Libchalk.  Several information sessions will be held on August 5th and 7th and August 27th so libraries could learn more on this issue.  The free basic website will contain library hours, contact information, library staff, and library board members.  Libraries will not have direct login access to the basic website.  Libchalk web hosting will offer a discounted rate of $250/ yr for Nebraska libraries wishing to use their WordPress web hosting.  More will be shared on this subject after attending the information sessions.

The library received four applications for the part-time cleaning position.  The board spent some time reviewing the applications.  Luke Hitchcock made the motion to hire Sharmine Miller for the position.  Stacey Gililland seconded this with all members voting in favor of. The position will start on August 15th.  Jolyn’s last day will be August 10th.

Reviews were given on meetings and workshops attended by staff.  It was noted that Gail and Wanda attended the NCompass:  Printing Scanning & Faxing at your Library on July 11th. The Director attended the Nebraska State Advisory Council Meeting and the Central Plains Library System Annual Meeting in Grand Island on July 25th.  No one attended the United for Libraries Virtual 2025 Conference held July 29th-July 31st.  It was noted that the Library Foundation Board Meeting should be on August 20th.

Under Correspondence, items of interest from the Library Journal and library newsletters were shared.  

The next meeting date was set for September 3rd at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:56 p.m.

JULY 2025

The Ainsworth Library Board held their regular monthly meeting at the Ainsworth Public Library on July 2, 2025.  This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, on the radio, and posted at the library and on library social media.  President Stacey Gilliland called the meeting to order at 5:05 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed all five members present.  They included:  Stacey Gilliland, Tammy Hancock, Luke Hitchcock, Jean Hunt, and Alane Lentz.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting. No one was present to voice a public comment.

Luke Hitchcock made the motion to approve the minutes from the last meeting.  Alane Lentz seconded this motion and all members voted in favor of.  Alane Lentz moved to approve the claims for payment.  Jean Hunt seconded this with all members giving a voice vote in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report for June was presented.  It was noted that three students have used the library for proctoring their college tests.  A Solar Bot.14 has been added to the S.T.E.M. equipment.

The Summer Reading Program “Color Our World” was discussed.  It was noted that we held a total of 16 Fun-Hours during June.  Attendance total was 190.  The K-4th grade readers logged their reading time into the app of Reader Zone.  We had 5 readers meet their goal of 500 minutes.  One reader was at 79% of the goal and five other readers were under the 50%.  Four readers signed up for Reader Zone but did not log any time.  Prizes will be handed out during the week of July 7th to the readers meeting their goal.   The KBR Extension will be doing a Summer Reading Program at the library which follows the Color our World theme.  They will meet at 11 a.m. on Wednesday (July 2nd, 9th, and 16th).  The Library is not open on Wednesday mornings but will be for these special sessions.

There was no news to report on the proposed budget for 2025-2026.

Discussion was held on the Fall Library Crawl.  Plans are moving forward for this program with the Central Plains Library System.

The VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program) was discussed.  The VITA group held a meeting on June 23rd to review the 2024 tax season and make plans for the 2025 tax season.  The group is currently looking for grant funds to help with the cost.  The Brown County Foundation may be a good place for a grant.  The group is also looking at doing some educational classes in the fall/winter to help people with their tax filing and record keeping.

The current person that cleans the library will be going to college soon.  The job description for the part-time custodian was reviewed and approved by the Board.  Discussion was held on paying by the hour or going with the contract labor as in the past.  An ad will be placed in the newspaper and on the radio in the near future for this position.  Applications will be taken until August 2nd.

Information was shared on the pilot project that the Nebraska Judicial Branch will be sharing with public libraries to provide free public access to the general public.  Our library has been asked to take part in this program known as JUSTICE and SCCALES.  Special pass words will be used and training available on how to use the public case management system.  The agreement has been signed and mailed back to the Nebraska Judicial Branch IT Program director, Sherri Dennis.

A letter from the Nebraska Library Commission was received that Wanda Raymond had enough continuing education hours to have her Nebraska Librarian Certification renewed to April 3, 2028.  

Library Board member, Tammy Hancock, will be resigning off the board.   This will be her last meeting.  Tammy will be relocating to a different area.  The Board thanked her for her service to the library.   The  City and Mayor will be contacted so they can find a new board member.

A review of the meetings/workshops attended was presented on the Brown County Commissioner’s meeting on the 3rd of June, the Thursday Director’s zoom meeting on the 5th, and the  VITA meetings on the 23rd and 27th.  The director plans to attend the Nebraska State Advisory Council Meeting and the Central Plains Library System Annual Meeting in Grand Island on July 25th.  Information was shared on the United for Libraries Virtual 2025 Meetings from July 29th to July 31st.  The Nebraska Library Commission has purchased statewide registration for this so library directors/staff, trustees/board members as well as Friends of the Library and Foundation representatives will have free registration.

Under correspondence, information was shared from United for Libraries on the advocacy to keep the Institute of Museum & Library Services going.  IMLS has resumed services and funding.  The employees have returned to work.  BUT the fight is not over.  People were encouraged to keep letting their legislators and the administration know what library funding does for your communities.  Items of interest from library newsletters and journals were shared with the board.  

The next meeting date and time was set for August 6th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:55 p.m.

JUNE 2025

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on June 4, 2025 at the Ainsworth Public Library.  This meeting was advertised on the radio, posted at the library, and in the local newspaper.  The meeting was called to order at 5:07 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed four members present. (Tammy Hancock, Luke Hitchcock, Jean Hunt, and Alane Lentz).  Member Stacey Gilliland was absent due to a last minute family emergency.  Library director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.  No one from the public was present to voice concerns during the Public Comment Time.

Luke Hitchcock made the motion to approve the minutes of the last meeting.  Jean Hunt seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Alane Lentz moved to approve the claims for payment.  Luke Hitchcock seconded this with all voting yes in the voice vote.  It was noted that the City had paid the $201.90 invoice from Travis Electric Inc. in last month’s claims as they had received the bill at their office.  Luke Hitchcock made the motion to approve this bill after the fact.  Jean Hunt seconded this.  All members voted in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report for May was presented as well as the list of titles purchased this last month.

The Summer Reading Program was discussed.  We have 52 children taking part in the “Color Our World” fun.  Four sessions will be held weekly in June for four different age groups.  Our topics will be “color”, dragons, dinosaurs, and butterflies.  Grade school readers will log their reading time in Reader Zone from June 1-June 30th.  Prizes will be awarded to the top readers in each group.

The intern from the Extension Office will be doing three programs free of charge to children in K-6th grade in July.   The dates will be July 2nd, 9th, and 16th.  No registration if required.  This will be held on Wednesday morning from 11 a.m. to 12 noon.  The library is closed on Wednesday mornings so this is a special exception for a program

Discussion was held on the cleaning position.  The current person in this position will be going to college in August.  The Board gave their approval to advertise for this position now so we will have someone in place when August comes.  Applications will be reviewed in July by the Board.

The Central Plains Library System will be holding a Fall Library Crawl in September, October, and November.  Our library plans to take part in this.  Deanna Taylor has agreed to do a Trunk Quilt Show for this.  Other events we might hold were discussed.  We may hold a book basket auction at one of the events.

The proposed budget for the upcoming year of 2025-2026 was worked on.  It was noted that the Brown County Commissioner’s had received our request in the amount of $11,000.  I was invited to attend their meeting on June 3rd to discuss this request.  They will let me know if we are awarded the funds or not when they finish working on their budget.   The City part of the proposed budget was worked on by the Board after doing a review of the current budget and its spending.  Jean Hunt made the motion to present the following budget to the City for their approval.  Luke Hitchcock seconded this with all members giving a voice vote of yes.  

Revenue:

Rent $  100

Inter-Library Loan     200

State Aid 1115

County Funds           11000

Library Cards       0

Sales Tax   160

Copies             1000

Book Sale   150

Fines               100

Miscellaneous   300

Total Revenue         $14,125

Expenses:

Salaries         $80,125

Social Security 6,134

Retirement 3,076

A&M Insurance           30,000

Workmen’s Comp   562

School 1,500

Building Maintenance 6,000

Capital Outlay 1,115

Computer Tech/Repair 1,500

Utilities           10,000

Building Insurance 7,062

Cleaning 2,160

Sales Tax   160

Professional Fee/Loan Fee 1,600

Public Relations   600

Miscellaneous   800

Books & Magazines           12,000

Children’s Program   800

New Equipment 5,000

Supplies 2,500

Capital Improvements       0

Total Expenses       $172,694

Library Total       $172,694

General Total       $158,569

Overall Profit       $158,569

The Board heard reviews of meetings and workshops attended by staff and board members.  It was noted that the Director had attended three Thursday Director’s Meetings on May 8th, 15th, and 29th.  The meeting on the 15th was on Cricut Design and gave us tips and tricks to use.  Luke Hitchcock gave a review on the Ainsworth Library Foundation Board held a meeting on May 21st. Topics discussed included decorations for the fireplace, the Fall Crawl, the Imagination Library, and the purchase of 10 Nebraska related books with Cindy Smith Memorial.

Under correspondence, it was noted that the Center for Rural Affairs had a Spanish Resources Guide available for libraries.  ALA had updates on advocacy efforts plus IMLS lawsuit and library funding plus internet access funding.  The Nebraska Library Commission made a handout titled “How much does your library benefit your community”.  This information on our library was shared with the board members.  Articles of interest from library newsletters and journals were shared.

The next meeting date/time was set for July 2nd at 5 p.m.   The meeting was adjourned at 6:03 p.m.

MAY 2025

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on May 7, 2025 at the Ainsworth Public Library.  This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, over the radio, and posted at the library and on social media (FaceBook and library website).  The meeting was called to order at 5:02 p.m. by President Stacy Gilliland.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed all five members present.  They included Stace Gilliland, Tammy Hancock, Luke Hitchcock, Jean Hunt, and Alane Lentz.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

No one was present with concerns or issues during the Public Comment Time.

Alane Lentz made the motion to approve the minutes of the last meeting.  Tammy Hancock seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Luke Hitchcock moved to approve the claims for payment.  Jean Hunt seconded this with all members voting in favor of.

The Monthly Library Report for April was presented.  It was noted that the State Aid check had arrived and that Rod and Kathy Worrell gave the library a comb machine with supplies to add to our Makerspace.  The list of titles purchased this last month was also shared with the Board.

A review of the April events was given.  It covered the Storytimes; What I Was Wearing Display; the Ainsworth Art Guild Spring Art Show; the Book Club held on April 21st with the title of “Enemy Woman”; plus all the events for National Library Week from April 6-12th.

The Summer Reading Program “Color Our World” was discussed.  Children have until May 10th to register for the program.  As of today, we had a total of 43 children signed up.  Two high school girls have volunteered to help with the Fun-Hours.  The program will start on June 1st and run till June 30th.  The library is in the process of decorating to get the children excited about the program.

The budget for next year was discussed.  Luke Hitchcock made the motion to request $11,000 from Brown County for the upcoming fiscal year.  Jean Hunt seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  This is the same amount that we have received from the County for a number of years.  The Board will work on the city part of the budget at the next meeting.

A review was given on the Thursday Director’s Zoom Meeting attended on April 3rd and April 10th.  It was noted that the zoom meeting on the 15th of May will be on Tips and Tricks Using Cricut Design.  The Library Foundation Board Meeting will be held on May 21st.

Under correspondence, the board shared information on what the IMLS (Institute of Museum and Library Services) cuts would do for library services from the State Library Commission and how it would impact our library.  Atriuum System shared information on the update to our Book System on the 30th.  Marilyn Williams found information on a Rural Library Grant Program and that was shared with the Board.  Articles of interest from library journals and newsletters included information on controlling nuisance birds, information on how much book prices have increased the last couple of years, and an article on “A Day In The Life of Rural Public Librarian” and the misconceptions about what it actually means to be a librarian.

The next meeting date and time was set for June 4th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:30 p.m.

APRIL 2025

The Ainsworth Library Board was to have held a meeting on April 2, 2025.  Due to a lack of quorum the meeting was rescheduled for April 9th at 5 p.m.   The meeting on the 9th  was advertised on the radio, posted at the post office, and at the library, as well as on the library’s website and FaceBook page.  

The meeting was called to order at 5:05 p.m. by President Gilliland.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed four members present and one absent.  Those present included Stacy Gilliland, Tammy Hancock, Alane Lentz, and Jean Hunt.  Luke Hitchcock was absent.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.   No one from the public was present to do a Public Comment.

Jean Hunt made the motion to approve the minutes.  Tammy Hancock seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Alane Lentz moved to approve the claims for payment.  Jean Hunt seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report was presented for March.  It was noted that we would need to hire a new cleaning person when Jolyn P. goes to college, there was an software update for direct deposits by the City Office, 2024 Income and Expenses Sheet from the Library Foundation was shared, Rod Worrell wants to give the library his comb machine, and that the budget process would start in the May/June Meeting.

An update was given on the VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program) held at the Library this past tax season.  104 returns were filed (96-2024 returns, 2-2024 amended returns, 5-2023 returns, and 1-2022 returns).  There was a total of $67,026 in federal refunds and $38,572 in state refunds. We had people from Ainsworth, Long Pine, Bassett, Newport, Brewster, Springview, and South Africa take advantage of the service. We saved people lots of money by offering this free service.   It is estimated that it would cost $200 per return for tax preparation costs  plus mileage to drive out of town to get done.  We had a grant of $1,900 to help with the cost of advertisements in the newspaper and on the air.  Discussion was held on the possibility of holding some classes in the library on how to do farm returns, what records you need to keep, depreciation/land ground depreciation, as well as how to  start up a business in the fall or winter.

A review of events held in March was given on the Dr. Seuss Storytime on March 18th and the Book Club discussion held March 17th with the title of “The Killers of the Flower Moon”.  Upcoming events in April will consist of storytime on April 1st and April 15th; What I was Wearing Display by Bright Horizon from April 4-10th, Ainsworth Art Guild Spring Art Show from April 12-28th, and Book Club on April 21st with the title “Enemy Women”.  

Activities for National Library Week were discussed.  The theme will be “Drawn to the Library” and will run from April 6-12th.  Monday was Color Time to Release Stress; Tuesday was Lego Time; Wednesday was Library Word Search Day; Thursday was Take Action for Libraries Day (encourage people to contact Congress members and ask for support of IMLS and libraries), Friday was Puzzle Day, and Saturday was the start of the Spring Art Show by the Ainsworth Art Guild.

The board was informed that the library is having an issue with BetLocker and the Deep Freeze on the two newer computers.  One we got fixed but the second computer is currently out of commission and can’t be used.  A technology person from the Library Commission will be contacted for suggestions on what to do to correct this issue.

Discussion was held on the Summer Reading Program of “Color Our World”.  Fliers will be going to the school very soon.  Registration will be online on the library’s website and FaceBook page.  Last day to sign up will be May 10th.  The program will run all of June with four different groups.  The younger children will come to the library on Tuesday for Preschool Storytime from 1-2 p.m.  and for Toddler Time from 4:30-5 p.m..  The grade school children will come on Thursday with the K-1st grade group from 1-2 p.m. and the 2nd-4th grade from 3-4 p.m.  We go by the grade the child attended in  the 2024-2025 school year.  Grade school readers will use the online Reader Zone to keep track of time read from June 1-June 30th.  Topics for the session will include color, dragons, dinosaurs, and butterflies.

Information from the Library Commission was shared on the state aid that our library will receive this year.  We will be awarded a total of $1115 this year.  The following formula was used:

Base Amount $565

Per Capita Pay $240

Accreditation Bonus $200

1% Incentive Pay $110

Total $1115

The check will be arriving soon.

A review was given on the workshops/meetings attended by staff.  They included the Thursday Director Zoom Meeting on March 13th and the Zoom meeting on April 3rd on the topic of the  “Open Meeting Act”.

Under correspondence, a thank you note from Brenda Davis was shared on her delight of winning the Blind Date with a Book gift basket.  Information was shared with the Board on the President’s Executive Order on IMLS and the importance of letters to the Senate to ask for support in this matter.  Information on setting up the push notification in the Libby App was shared.  Articles of interest from library journals and newsletters were shared with the Board.

The next meeting was set for May 7th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:49 p.m.

MARCH 2025

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on March 5, 2025 at the Ainsworth Public Library.  This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, on the radio, posted at the library and on the library website and Facebook page.  The meeting was called to order at 5 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed four members present (Stacey Gilliland, Tammy Hancock, Luke Hitchcock, and Jean Hunt)  Alane Lentz was absent due to illness.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

There were no public comments made.

Luke H. made the motion to approve the minutes of the last meeting.  Jean H. seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Luke H. moved to approve the claims for payment.  Tammy H. seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report/List of Titles Purchased was shared with the board.  It was noted at this time that the NPPD installed a new street light post on the northeast corner on 3-7-25.  

An update was given on the VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program through the IRS).

It was noted that a total of 31 tax returns were filed in February.  The Library is making the appointments for Thursday evenings and Saturday mornings (when the library is closed).  This will run through the first week in April.

A review of February events was given.  Storytime was held on Feb. 4th with a Valentine theme and on Feb. 18 with a penguin theme.  Book Club was held on Feb. 18th with the discussion on the title “The Postmistress”.  It was extremely cold out so only 4 readers showed up.  The Blind Date with a Book was held the whole month of February.  We had a total of 29 readers.  Winner of the basket was Brenda Davis.

Upcoming events were discussed.  It was noted that the Dr. Seuss Storytime on the 4th was moved to March 18th due to a blizzard.  Book Club will meet on March 17th to discuss the title “Killers of the Flower Moon”.  

The Central Plains Library System is wanting to do a Fall Crawl this year.  The Crawl is designed to encourage residents of central Nebraska to explore the libraries spanning the 31 counties in the middle part of the state.  The Program would be similar to the Game and Parks Passport program.  Each participating library would have a stamp or sticker to mark their passport.  When someone gets 5 marks, then he or she is eligible to win a drawing for a grand prize.  The CPLS would provide the grand prizes.  Plans are in the works and would run 2 or 3 months in the fall. A brochure would be done on all the libraries in the program with hours open and upcoming programs.  More would be shared on this program when it gets closer to the time.

Reviews were given on workshops/meetings attended by library staff.  It was noted that the director attended the Thursday Director’s Zoom meeting on Feb. 6th and 20th.  The Fall Crawl was the main topic of discussion.  Director also attended the VITA Committee Meeting on Feb. 25th and March 7th with supervisors in Omaha on making sure we were meeting guidelines in the VITA  program.  An update was given on the Feb. 25th Ainsworth Library Foundation Board meeting.  Director shared a ride with the Rock County Library gals to attend the Color our World Summer Reading Program Workshop in Kearney on Feb. 26th.  The library was closed on Feb. 28th so that staff could attend the all-day conference of Big Talk From Small Libraries.  The Nebraska State Library Advisory Council Meeting will be held on March 17th in Lincoln.

Under correspondence, we had a thank you card from a library patron that was moving back to Mexico.  The Library Commission had sent out an email pertaining to Little Free Libraries in our communities and if there was a need for a workshop on this matter.  Various articles of interest from library journals and newsletters were shared.

The next meeting date/time was set for April 2nd at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:38 p.m.

FEBRUARY 2025

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on February 5, 2025 at the Ainsworth Public Library.  This meeting was advertised over the radio, at the Library, on the Library website and Facebook page.  The meeting was called to order at 5:03 p.m.  by President Stacy Gilliland.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed four members were present (Stacy Gilliland, Luke Hitchcock, Jean Hunt, and Alane Lentz).  Member Tammy Hancock was absent.   Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present.  There were no public comments.

Luke Hitchcock made the motion to approve the minutes of the last meeting with the correction of the spelling of Alana to Alane on the roll call.  Jean Hunt seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Luke Hitchcock moved to approve the claims for payment.  Alane Lentz seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report for January was presented as well as a list of titles purchased.

Discussion was held on the VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) Program.  An Open House was held on Jan. 31st from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. so that people could meet the volunteer workers, learn about the tax program, share some food, and schedule tax appointments. The volunteers include Kay Anderson, Brenda Davis, and Lydia Moody.  Linda Moody from the IRS will also be present to help on certain days. The appointments will be made when the library is closed on Thursdays from 5-7 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9-11 a.m.  The library will be making the appointments for the public.  The program will run from Feb. 6 to April 3rd.  There is no cost to have the income tax forms done.

Review was given on the events held at the Library in January.  Storytime was held on Jan. 8th with a snow theme and on Jan. 21st with animals in the winter.  Book Club was held on Jan. 21st with the One Book One Nebraska 2024 title of “Dancing with the Octopus”.  We placed a wooden puzzle out for the public to work on.  It took a whole month to complete it.

Upcoming events were discussed.  Storytime will be held on Feb. 4th with a Valentine’s theme and on Feb. 18th with a penguin theme.  Book Club will be held on Feb. 18th with the title of “The Postmistress” by Sarah Blake.  The Blind Date with a Book started on Feb. 1st and will run to Feb. 28th.  Each person checking out a book will have their name placed in a drawing for a prize.  Read Across America-Dr. Seuss Day will be celebrated on March 4th.

Information from workshops/meetings attended was shared.  Director attended the Thursday Director’s Zoom meeting on the 2nd and 30th and the IRS 2024 EITC 50 zoom meeting on the 23rd. It was noted that the Ainsworth Library Foundation Board meeting would be held on Feb. 19th.  Upcoming workshops include the Color Our World Summer Reading Program in Kearney on Feb. 26th and the all day conference of Big Talk for Small Libraries on Feb. 28th.

Under correspondence, information was shared on the VR Truck out of Norfolk  that libraries in Nebraska are trying to schedule for summer events.  Articles were also shared on South Dakota attempting to defund their state library and on the federal government freeze on all federal grants (LSTA funding included).   This could have a large impact on all types of libraries.  The Board also shared articles of interest from library journals and newsletters.

The next meeting was set for March 5th at 5pm.  Since there was no further business to come before the board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:35 p.m.   

JANUARY 2025

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on January 8, 2025 at the Ainsworth Public Library.  This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, over the radio, at the Library, and on the library’s website and FaceBook page.  President Stacey Gilliland called the meeting to order at 5 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed all five members present.  They included Stacey Gilliland, Tammy Hancock, Luke Hitchcock, Jean Hunt, and Alana Lentz.  Library director, Gail Irwin, was also present.  New board member Jean Hunt was welcomed on the board.

There was no one from the public at the meeting so no public comment was made.

Alane Lentz made the motion to approve the minutes from the last meeting.  Luke Hitchcock seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Alane Lentz moved to approve the claims for payment.  Luke Hitchcock seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report for November and December was presented as well as a list of titles purchased.  It was noted at this time that the City would be open on Jan. 9th and not closed for the National Day of Mourning for President Carter.  Full time employees may take a day off later in exchange for this holiday.

The Public Library survey for 2024 has been submitted and the completed form was shared with the board.  The Public Library Data Survey Supplement was also submitted and shared with the board.  A copy of these two reports will be given to the City for their records.  

Information on the Dolly Parton Imagination Library was shared.  It was noted that the Giving Tuesday on Facebook in December raised a total of $620.  We had a match donor so the final total was $1,120.  It was noted that Ainsworth currently has 82 active children in the program and 62 children that have aged out of the program.  That is a total of 144 kids in Brown County that have received free books in this program.  Each child now costs $2.25 a month so the 2025 expenses will roughly be at $2,250.  Donations may be made year round through the Imagination Library’s website and then selecting NE-Brown County.  The Library Foundation will also be doing a book basket for auction at the Chamber Gala on Jan. 25th with proceeds going to the Imagination Library.  Traci Booth is working with the Sandhills Care Center to raise additional funds in March with a reading with residents pledge.  Dolly will be having a 30th year celebration June 16-20th.  Traci is working on holding a special event at this time.  

It was noted that the Nebraska Library Commission now has Tech Kits with coding options and lesson plans for loan. 15 copies of each kit are available.  The loan period is for 30-days.  The library will have to pay for the return shipping.  Some of the library systems are offer assistance with return mailing costs.

The library director shared information on the Volunteer Tax Assistance Program that will run in the library this tax season. Linda Moody from the IRS has been helping to organize this. Three local residents have been attending training and getting certified to help with this. The Library will schedule appointments and send them to the helpers prior to the day of the event.  Taxpayers will be asked to sign-up two days prior to their appointment. An Open House will be held at the library on Jan.31st so the public may meet the helpers.

A review of events for November/December was presented on Storytimes and Book Club.  Upcoming events include Storytime on Jan. 7th and 21st, Book Club with the 2024 One Book One Nebraska title on Jan. 21st; and the Blind Date with a Book during the month of February.

Various workshops/meetings attended by staff and library board members were shared.  The Director attended the Director’s Thursday Zoom Meeting on Nov.  7th & 14th and Dec. 5th and 12th.  The Director attended the Nebraska State Advisory Council on Libraries Meeting on Nov. 15th where information on the new rule on Accessibility of Web Content and Mobile Apps for state and local governments in its regulations for Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act for people with disabilities. Two staff members (Wanda Raymond and Gail Irwin) and two library board members (Stacey Gilliland and Alana Lentz) attended the Nebraska Open Meeting Act on Nov. 14th.  Wanda Raymond attended the Cyber Ready Community Game of Dec. 10th at the ESU 17.  The Ainsworth Library Foundation held their board meeting on No. 20th.  Coming up will be the Summer Reading Program Workshop in Kearney on Feb. 26th and the Big Talk From Small Libraries Conference on Feb. 28th.  Luke Hitchcock made the motion to close the library on Feb. 28th so staff could attend this all day conference.  Tammy Hancock seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  

Under correspondence, some Christmas Cards were shared with the Board as well as articles of interest from library journals and newsletters.  

The next meeting date/time was set for Feb. 5th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:42 p.m.

2024

JANUARY 2024

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on January 3, 2024, at the Ainsworth Public Library.   This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, on the radio, listed on the library’s website and Facebook page, plus posted at the library.  President Leach called the meeting to order at 5:02 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed four members present:  Todd Flynn, Stacy Gilliland, Phyllis Leach, and Alane Lentz.  Member Luke Hitchcock was absent.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Stacy Gilliland made the motion to approve the November minutes.  Alane Lentz seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Alane Lentz moved to approve the claims for payment.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members voting in favor.  The Monthly Library Reports for November and December was present as well as a list of titles purchased.  It was noted that the County had paid for their part of the budget the first part of December.

A review was given on the November and December Book Club plus the Storytime for Thanksgiving and Christmas.  Events coming up include the Winter Storytime and the Valentine’s Storytime.  A Blind Date with a Book is being planned for all of February as in the past.

It was noted that the Dolly Parton Imagination Library Giving Tuesday Fundraiser with the Chamber and the Library Foundation raised a total of $1,224.   This should cover the expenses for one year in this program.  We have over 80 children signed up for this program now.

Reviews were given on the workshop/meetings attended by library staff.  Director attended the Thursday Zoom Meeting on Nov. 2^nd, Nov. 16^th, Dec. 14^th, and Dec. 21^st.  One meeting introduced us to Sherman Anderson from the Nebraska Library Commission.  He does lots of technology issues for the public library.  Topics discussed included DNS Filter, Word Press with a mobile app, panic buttons, security cameras; illegal file downloads by public, firewalls, printer issues with people using their cell phones, and Wi-Fi networks.  Other meetings featured music with Storytime for small children and how to get teens into your library.  Director gave an update on attending the Nebraska Library State Advisory Council board meeting on Nov. 17^th. Phyllis Leach gave a review on the Library Foundation Board meeting held on Nov. 15^th.  It was noted that staff would be attending the 2024 Summer Reading Workshop “Adventure Begins at Your Library” in Lexington on Jan. 23^rd.

Under correspondence, information on poison education materials was shared.   The library will do a Poison Education Program with the coloring books, magnets, and stickers for children preschool age to second grade.  Material comes in both English and Spanish.  Capital Business Systems from Grand Island had visited the library and shared information on printers and copy machines.  No action was taken on this matter.  Materials on the Nebraska Digital Opportunities Plan were shared.   The Draft is now available and public comment sessions have been scheduled.  Articles of interest from various library newsletters and journals were shared with the Board to keep them updates on libraries issues around the state and nation.

The next meeting was set for Feb. 7^th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:34 p.m.

FEBRUARY 2024

The Ainsworth Public Library held its regular monthly board meeting on February 7, 2024, at the Ainsworth Library.  This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, on the radio, on the library’s website and Facebook page, plus posted at the library.  President Phyllis Leach called the meeting to order at 5:15 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed three members present (Phyllis Leach, Todd Flynn, and Luke Hitchcock).  Members Stacy Gilliland and Alane Lentz were absent.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Todd Flynn made the motion to approve the minutes of the last meeting.  Phyllis Leach seconded this with all members in favor of.  Luke Hitchcock made the motion to approve the claims for payment.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members present voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report and list of titles purchased was shared with the Board.  The Statistical Report for 2023 and the Nebraska Library Commission Supplement Report was shared with the board. This was submitted to the Nebraska Library Commission on January 22^nd.  A copy of this report has been given to the City Clerk for her records and to share with the Mayor/City Council.

A review was given on recent activities at the library.  Discussion was held on upcoming events such as Book Club, Story Time, the Primary Poison Education/Prevention Class on March 12^th, and the Blind Date with a Book program.   It was noted at this time that the American Heart Association and Heart Corp will be delivering a Blood Pressure Monitor for the public to use at the library.  A Heart Program will be presented in March to go along with this monitor.  Smokey the Bear is turning 80 years-old this year.  The Forest Department will be working with the public libraries on doing a Smokey Bear Reading Challenge through November 2024.  Information was shared on this program.  Our library will be doing the challenge later in July and August.

Reviews were given on workshops/meetings that staff has attended.  It was noted that staff attended the Director’s Zoom Meetings on Jan. 4^th, and 11^th; plus, the Word Press meeting on Jan. 18^th, the NCompass Auditing Library Website on Jan. 26^th and Word Press Website Refresher on Jan. 31^st.  Wanda and Gail attended the Summer Reading Program Workshop in Lexington on the 23^rd.  Upcoming meetings include the Library Foundation Board on Feb. 21^st and the All-Day Conference of Big Talk from Small Libraries on Feb. 23^rd.  Luke Hitchcock made the motion to close the library that day so that staff could attend the sessions.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Board members were encouraged to attend. The Board needs 6 more continuing education hours for their certification in September.

Under correspondence, a letter from a nine-year-old from Bowling Green, Ohio was shared.  The library is in the process of replying back with information from our local area.  Information from the Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation’s Wander Nebraska Program was shared.  Articles of interests from library journals and newsletters were shared with the Board.

The next meeting date/time was set for March 6^th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:50 p.m.

MARCH 2024

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on March 6, 2024, at the Public Library.  This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, over the radio, and posted at the library and on the Library’s Facebook page/Website.  The meeting was called to order at 5 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed three members present (Todd Flynn, Stacy Gilliland, and Luke Hitchcock).   Members Phyllis Leach and Alane Lentz were absent.   Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Luke H. made the motion to approve the minutes which Todd F. seconded.  Vote showed all members voting in favor of.  Luke H. moved to approve the claims for payment after a correction was made to show Literary Guild with $59.88 instead of $249.12.  Stacy seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The list of titles purchased was also share with the Monthly Library Report for February.  The Board discussed the need to train someone to work at the library occasional when other library staff cannot.  Our one helper passed away and Laurie Goodloe is not able to do this anymore.  Director will contact a person that staff feels would be a good worker and see if she has an interest.  The Board discussed the cost of having an ad in the Ainsworth Senior Center monthly newsletter.  It was decided that we could not use tax money for this.  The road construction has started on North Main Street.  They will move one block at a time.  It is not known when they will be working in front of the library, but it will be soon.  The City said it would be ok to have people park in front of the library until the crew is on the 5^th-6^th street block.  At that time, people will need to park along 5^th street just north of the library.  The library will have the back door open in case people want to enter that way.  The front door will also be open.  There will be some temporary interruptions to sewer and water services while they disconnect/reconnect the service lines-but those will be short lived and the City will let us know before that happens.

Blind Date with a Book was held all of February.  We had 23 books selected for this program and all 23 were checked out by 12 different readers.  Winner of the “Cozy Up & Read” Basket was Jean Pinney.  This basket was donated by Wanda Raymond.

Book Club was discussed.  A review was given on the February selection of “Here’s to Us” by Hilderbrand.  The March selection will be “Educated” by Tara Westover.  The April selection will be “Lessons in Chemistry” by Garmus.  The Book club will be taking a summer break and will not meet from May-August.  The group will restart in September.

Read Across America Week will be honored from March 4-9^th.  A Dr. Seuss Hour was held on March 4^th.  We had several girls attend.  They had fun reading Seuss books, making a Cat in the Hat craft, and playing Seuss Bingo.  They loved the Bingo prizes.

A Poison Prevention Education Class will be held on March 12^th for the preschool to 2^nd grade children.  The Nebraska Regional Poison Center supplied the material for this class.  Pinky the Elephant will help us teach what is poison, where is poison, and medicine safety.  We have a Pinky Coloring Book to hand out in Spanish and English as well as material for the parents, and stickers/magnets with the Poison Control phone number.

It was noted that the Community Blood Pressure Monitor has arrived at the library and being used.  We have two sizes of blood pressure cuffs to use with the machine.  This inventory was given to the library by the North Central District Health Department and American Heart Association Heart Corps.

National Library Week will be celebrated April 7-13^th.   The library plans to hold a special Storytime, hand out solar sunglasses for the total Solar Eclipse on April 8^th and hold training on the telescope.  D.E.A.R. Day (Drop Everything and Read Day) will be observed on April 12^th.

It was noted the Art Guild will hold its Spring Art Show at the Library from April 12-29^th.  Judging on artwork will be done on April 13^th with winners moving on to the State Art Show.

An update was given on the workshops/meetings attended by library staff.  It was noted that our director had attended three Thursday Morning Zoom meetings on Feb. 1^st, 8^th, and 15^th.  Topics covered included performers for summer reading programs, author talks, and Word Press.  The Ainsworth Library Foundation Board held a meeting on Feb. 21^st.  Several memorial funds were discussed, and spending approved of.  The library was closed on the 23^rd so staff could attend the all-day conference Big Talk from Small Libraries.  It was noted that the session titled “Accepting Credit Cards with Pay port” was interesting and that board members should watch the recording of this.  The Board needs to get 6 more CEU’s to be recertified by 9-30-24.  Director will be in Lincoln on March 20^th for the Nebraska State Library Advisory Board meeting and the Nebraska Legislature Day.

Under correspondence, the board was shared information on Nebraska’s new Voter ID law.  Fliers have been posted on the bulletin board in both English/Spanish on voter ID.  Articles of interest from various library newsletters/journal were shared with the Board.  A discussion was held on the world of AI (artificial intelligence) and how librarians reflect on uses, ethics, and implications.

The next meeting date was set for April 3^rd at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:43 p.m.

APRIL 2024

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting at the Ainsworth Public Library on April 3, 2024.  This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, on the radio, posted at the library, and on the library’s Facebook page and website.  The meeting was called to order at 5:03 p.m. by President Phyllis Leach.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed four members present.  They included Todd Flynn, Stacey Gilliland, Phyllis Leach, and Alane Lentz.  Member Luke Hitchcock arrived at 5:15 p.m.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Stacey Gilliland made the motion to approve the minutes.  Todd Flynn seconded this. All members voted in favor of.  Stacey Gilliland moved to approve the claims for payment.  Phyllis Leach seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report for March was presented as well as a list of titles purchased.  An update was given on the electrical problem the library had on March 23^rd.  A new line from the pole by the street was installed on March 27^th.  The street construction has closed the road off in front of the library.  The library will have both the front and back doors open for visitors to enter.  Construction on Highway 7 started on April 2^nd and the intersection is now closed one block up from the library to the south. It was noted that the board would start the process of budget planning for 2024-2025 at the next meeting.

Plans for National Library Week (April 7-13^th) were reviewed.  Library will be handing out Solar Glasses on Monday for the eclipse.  On Tuesday, training will be held on the telescope from 4-5 p.m.  Thursday will be Lego Day from 4-5 p.m.  Friday will feature D.E.A.R. Day (Drop Everything and Read Day).  People will be encouraged to stop whatever they are doing and read for fun for a few minutes.  The Art Guild will also be setting up their Spring Art Show.  Judging for the show will happen on Saturday.  The show will remain at the library until April 29^th.

Information on the Summer Reading Program was shared with the Board.  A flier will be going home with students very soon.  Activities for the month of June was shared for the different groups of Toddler Time, Preschool Time, K-1^st Grade group, and the 2^nd-4^th Grade group.  The theme will be Adventure Begins at Your Library.

Discussion was held on the Sprinkler System. The Board decided to continue to use Morrison Underground Sprinklers as the service provider.  Alana Lentz made the motion to pay the service charge of $110 in this month’s bills.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members voting in favor of.

It was noted that the Ainsworth Library Foundation had purchased a bronze statue of a boy reading a book while sitting on a bench.  This was installed in front of the library in memory of former librarian, Freda Hinrichs.  Freda had worked at the library from 8-1-1979 to 4-29-2006.

The Foundation is also in the process of ordering a painting by David Dorsey to be hung by the fireplace in memory of another former librarian-Carolyn Sorenson Schipporiet.

An update was given on the Poison Prevention Class held on March 12^th, Book Club on the 18^th, and Storytime on the 19^th.   The Book Club discussion for in April will be the last one until the fall.   The group will be taking the summer off.  There will be a Storytime in April and May before we break for the summer reading program.

Reviews were given on meetings and workshops attended by staff and board members.  Director attended the Thursday Director’s Zoom on the 14^th, the NCompass:  No More Summertime Blues on the 22^nd, and the Nebraska State Advisory Council of Libraries Board Meeting in Lincoln on the 20^th.  Library Legislative Day was held on the 20^th.  Informational sheets given to the Senators were shared with the Board.  It was noted that Alane Lentz had watched the Big Talk From Small Libraries Memory Cafes and Towering Book Stacks and that Stacey Gilliland had watched the Memory Cafes.  These continuing education hours will be submitted to the Board Certification Program.  The Board members were also encouraged to watch the upcoming “Evaluating Your Library Director” on April 9^th.

Under correspondence, we had a thank you card from Jean Pinney on winning the Blind Date with a Book Cozy Up and Read Basket.  A fax from a local health provider was received on the 12^th stating that an employee was not able to attend work until further notice due to illness.  Director worked most of the week by herself.   Information on LB441 was shared and it was noted that the Legislature did not move that bill on.  If passed, this bill would increase censorship in public and school libraries by criminalizing librarians and making them vulnerable to prosecution for upholding the rights of citizens to access information.  Our Director did write to legislators encouraging them to vote no on LB 441.  Nebraska Overdrive had sent out information announcing a change will affect patrons using older devices running Android operating system (OS) 7.1.0 or earlier.  Beginning April 15^th, patrons will be required to either update their operating system or switch to another supported device if they want to continue using Overdrive Services.  Articles of interest from library newsletters and journals were shared.

The next meeting date was set for May 1^st at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:35 p.m.

MAY 2024

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on May 1, 2024, at the Ainsworth Public Library.  The meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, on the radio, posted at the library and on the library’s website and Facebook page.  The meeting was called to order by President Phyllis Leach at 5 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meet Act.  Roll call showed four members present.  They included Stacy Gilliland, Luke Hitchcock, Phyllis Leach, and Alane Lentz.  Member Todd Flynn was absent.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Luke Hitchcock made the motion to approve in the minutes from the last meeting with the correction on the misspelling of Carolyn Schipporeit name.  Stacy Gilliland seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Alane Lentz moved to approve the claims for payment.  Luke Hitchcock seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report for April was presented as well as a list of titles purchased.  It was also noted at this time that a young gentleman had stopped in asking about a job.  No action was taken at this time.  Katherine Kerrigan was a COE student at the library this year.  An evaluation form on our student has been completed and sent on to the school.

An update was given on the activities for National Library Week held April 8-13^th.  We handed out lots of solar glasses for the eclipse.  No one attended the training to use the Library Telescope on Tuesday.  We will offer training at another time.  Lego Day was held on Thursday.  We had several students attend.  D.E.A.R. Day (Drop Everything and Read Day) was held on Friday and everyone was encouraged to spend a few minutes reading for the fun of it.  Judging was done on the art show on Saturday morning.   A beautiful flower arrangement arrived from the Library Foundation Board for this special week.

The Ainsworth Art Guild held their Spring Art Show at the Library from April 12-27^th.  Winners of the show will go on to the State Show.  Two prizes were given away to people signing the guest book.  This was their 60^th year of being a club so they had a special show in the meeting room with art from the past and the club’s year books.

Bright Horizon exhibited their “What I Was Wearing” display from April 15-20^th.

Book Club held their last meeting in April until the fall when they will start another season.  Director has a list of books and has started to order book kits for the next year.

A Spring Storytime was held on April 16^th with 12 people attending.  Our topic was frogs.  We have one more Storytime before Summer Reading featuring May flowers.  It will be held on May 21^st.

An update was given on the Summer Reading Program “Adventure begins @ your library”.  A flier was sent to school for the students to take home with all the information on it.  We will have four groups:   Toddler Time and Preschool Storytime will be on Tuesday and the K-2st grade group and 2^nd-4^th group will come on Thursday.  The grade school children will keep track of time read from June 1^st to June 30^th by way of Reader Zone.   Prizes will be given to the top readers.  Registration may be done online on the library’s website, library’s Facebook page, or in person at the Library from May 1^st to May 15^th.  Staff has been busy getting ready with decorations and crafts for the kids.

The Board spent time working on the budget for the next year.  We have a few line items that the City Clerk will help us with.  We will finish it up at the next meeting.  The Board requested that the Director send the budget request of $11,000 to Brown County now as they are starting to work on upcoming county budget.

Reviews were presented on workshops/meeting that staff attended.  Director attended three Thursday Director’s Meeting on April 4^th; The Poetry Out Loud on April 18^th; and the Reader Zone on the 25^th.  Director also attended the United for Libraries: A Practical Guide to Evaluating Your Library Director on April 9^th.  It was noted that the Board needs 3 more CEU’s before 9-30-2024.   A list of webinars scheduled for May was shared with the Board in case any of them would want to attend a webinar.  Upcoming meetings include the Planning Region Team 17 on May 3^rd; the Kanopy Informational Meeting on May 6^th, and the Library Foundation Board Meeting on May 15^th.

Under correspondence, an email from the Nebraska Library Commission said that the FY2023 Public Library Survey Data was now available.  There will be some changes in next year’s survey on the deletion of website visits; elimination of eBook, audiobook, and downloadable video holdings numbers; the addition of 12 yes/no questions about e-materials; replacement of e-materials circulation with 4 more detailed circulation questions; and 6 new yes/no questions about research databases and online learning platforms.  The text of new questions will be available later.  Our library is up for re-accreditation this year.  We will be using the public library survey data for our peer library data in this process.  Articles of interest from various library newsletters and journals were shared with the board.

The next meeting was set for June 5^th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:55 p.m.

JUNE 2024

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on June 5, 2024 at the Ainsworth Public Library.  This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, on the radio, posted at the library and on the library’s website and Face Book page.  The meeting was called to order at 5:03 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed four members present.  They included Todd Flynn, Stacy Gilliland, Luke Hitchcock, and Alane Lentz.  Member Phyllis Leach was absent.

Stacy Gilliland made the motion to approve the minutes of the last meeting.  Alane Lentz seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Alane Lentz moved to approve the claims for payment.  Luke Hitchcock seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report for May 2024 was presented as well as a list of titles purchased.  Discussion was also held on the sprinkler system and issues at the curb by the construction.  There was no water pressure.  City employee came and adjusted the flow of water which corrected the problem.

The Summer Reading Program “Adventure Begins @ Your Library” started on June 1^st.   We had a total of 53 children sign up.  Toddler Time had 8 children.  An adult must stay with them during the program.  Preschool has 17 children registered.  K-1^st Grade group had a total of 12 students and the 2^nd-4^th grade group had a total of 16 children.  K-4^th grade will keep track of time read by way of Reader Zone from June 1-June 30.  We have the readers divided into four sessions.  We will have preschool and toddlers come on Tuesday and the K-4^th grade will come on Thursday. We will use a travel adventure theme.  Week 1 will be travel adventures; Week 2 will be sky adventures, Week 3 will be sea adventures, and Week 4 will be land adventures.

It was noted that the Brown County Commissioners had acknowledged our request of $11,000 and we will have to wait and see if they will allow it in their budget.  The City Clerk had not gotten back with the numbers for increase on utilities, insurance, etc.  We will finish up our request at the next meeting.

Our public library accreditation expires at the end of the year.  In order to make our Community Needs Response Plan, we will need to do a community survey and/or hold a community meeting.  It would be nice to have a community member to be on our committee for this plan.  Director has been putting the word out there on this.  Information on our Peer Libraries was shared and compared with our library.  The Broad reviewed some of the questions for a survey and approved of them being put on Face Book, website, and handed out to the public. The Accreditation Form will open on July 1^st and we can start to complete it and see how many points we have and if we will be a bronze, silver, or gold star library this round.  Accreditation is now good for five years instead of the previous three years.

The library received their State Aid for 2024 award letter.   Our library will be receiving a total of $1,317 this year.  The award was determined using the following formula:

Base amount                                     $ 565

Per Capita Pay                                   $ 242

Accreditation Bonus                       $ 400

1% Incentive Pay                              $ 110

Yearly Employee Performance Review was completed on Wanda Raymond and Ellen Voss. Alane Lentz made the motion to approve the review.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members in favor of.   The Library’s Director Review will be completed by library president and then approved by the board at the next meeting.

The Chamber had requested the library to extend hours on June 27^th when a lot of bikers are in town.  Chamber thought that it would be nice to be open so bikers could come in to use the internet, catch up on the newspapers, or just to cold down.  Library Board approved of being open till 6:30 p.m. on the 27^th.  Director will work the extra time on that date.

ESU 7 will be doing a Migrant Education Program on Tuesday in June and July from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.  Ana Garcia and Nicole Flynn will be the instructors for this program of 24-25 students.  They have asked if they could meet at the library during that time.  Since we have our Summer Reading Program running on Tuesdays, it was not possible to have them here in June.  I told them that they could meet here in July.

Under workshops and meetings, we had reviews on the Thursday Director Zoom meetings on May 2^nd and 9^th; the Kanopy for Nebraska OverDrive Libraries on May 6^th; the NCompass Live: 2024 Public Library Accreditation Process on May 14^th; and Preventing Burnout & Fatigue Meeting on May 23^rd.  The Library Foundation Board held a meeting on May 22^nd and items discussed at that meeting was shared with the library board.  It was noted that a Public Library Accreditation Workshop would be held on June 12^th.  Board members were encouraged to attend this three hour class or to watch the recording.

Under correspondence, an email from Sam Shaw at the Library Commission was shared.  They have been comparing date from the FY2019 public library survey (the last year before COVID related closures and restrictions) and the recent public library survey.  Some troubling trends have emerged. They had a survey for libraries to complete to better understand the changes in the statewide numbers and reasons for declines in many library service measures.  Our library completed this survey on 5-29-24.  Our library had a photo of one of our small library patrons at a story time making a craft in the Central Plains Library System newsletter. Articles from various library newsletters and journals were shared with the board.

The next meeting date was discussed.  Due to the meeting falling on July 3^rd and the 4^th of July holiday the next day, the meeting was moved to July 10^th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:51 p.m.

JULY 2024

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on July 10, 2024 at the Ainsworth Public Library.   This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, over the radio, posted at the Library as well as the Library’s website and Facebook page.  The meeting was called to order at 5:04 p.m.   Notice was given on the posting of Nebraska Open Meeting Act.

Roll call showed all members present.   They included Todd Flynn, Stacey Gilliland, Luke Hitchcock, Phyllis Leach and Alane Lentz.  Stacey Gilliland made the motion to approve the minutes of the last meeting.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Alane Lentz moved to approve the claims for payment.  Luke Hitchcock seconded this with all members voting in favor of.

The monthly library report for June was shared as well as a list of titles purchased. The street opened up on July 8^th which made everyone happy.   It was noted that the art print by local artist, David Dorsey was purchased with Carolyn Schipporpeit Memorial and it now hanging above the fireplace.   Evan Evans made the frame for it.

A review of the Summer Reading Program held in June was presented.  It was noted that 53 children registered for the 4 different age groups.  We held 16 fun-hours for the Toddler Time; Preschool Time; K-1^st Grade; and 2^nd-4^th Grade.  Total attendance was 213.  We had 14 K-4^th grade readers record time read in Reader Zone.   Their total time was 6,527 minutes.  7 readers met the reading goal of 500 minutes.  Top two readers were Leon Carpenter with 1,232 minutes and Kimberlyn Doke with 1,102 minutes.   All the readers in Reader Zone received a book bag full of prizes.  Pizza Hut provided a certificate for a personal pan pizza.

The Board did the Performance Review Report for the library director.  Luke Hitchcock made the motion to approve the report.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members voting in favor.

The Public Library Accreditation form was shared with the Board.  Discussion was held on some of the guidelines we are not meeting.  The Library and Community Survey questions were reviewed and approved.   The survey is open to all ages.  It will be posted on the library’s website and Facebook page as well as print copies in the library.    The survey will be open till August 31^st.  We will make goals for the five library plan from the needs listed on the survey.

The Board spent time reviewing the By-Laws of the Library.  Some changes were discussed but no action taken at this time.  Board will approve changes at the next meeting.

The upcoming Smokey Bear Reading Challenge was discussed.  This will run from July 21^st to August 31^st.   The challenge is in honor of Smokey’s 80^th birthday.   The program will be open to all ages.  Readers will record their time in Reader Zone.  An ending program will be held in September with the readers.

Windows 10 will expire in October. The two staff computers are so old that they will not take the upgrade to move to Windows 11.  Several of the public access computers also need to be updated.  After a discussion on several different types of computers and cost, the board approved the purchase of four computers (two for staff at front desk and two for public access).

After received some information and increased percentages from the City Clerk, the proposed budget for fiscal year 2024-2025 was discussed.  Luke Hitchcock made the motion to approve the proposed budget.  Alane Lentz seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The budget will now go to the City Council for their approval.

An update was given on workshops/meeting attended by staff and board members.  Director attended the Unattended Kids on June 10^th and the 3 hour Public Library Accreditation Workshop held on June 12^th.  Director will be attending the State Advisory Council on Libraries Board Meeting on July 19^th by way of online connection.

Under correspondence, a new newsletter “Horizons” by Nebraska Broadband was shared.  Other articles of interest from various newsletters and library journals were shared.

The next meeting date was set for August 7^th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 6:18 p.m.

AUGUST 2024

The Ainsworth Library Board held its monthly meeting on August 7, 2024 at the Ainsworth Public Library. This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, over the radio, and posted on the library’s website and Facebook page.  The meeting was called to order at 5:03 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed all five members present.  They included Todd Flynn; Stacey Gilliland; Luke Hitchcock; Phyllis Leach; and Alane Lentz.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Stacey Gilliland made the motion to approve the minutes of the last meeting.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Luke Hitchcock moved to approve the claims for payment.  Alane Lentz seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report for July was shared as well as the list of titles purchased.  It was noted that the four new computers are up and running.  The budget spending sheet was shared with the Board.

Public library accreditation was worked on by the Board.  We have had 28 surveys submitted so far.  The responses were reviewed.  The survey will run until the end of August.  Items needed for the Community Needs Response Plan were shared.  The community profile summary has been started and the board looked that over.   We will need to do the strengths/weaknesses of the library as well as threats/opportunities from outside the library before we start on our goals.  It was noted that the Board still needs two more hours of continuing education hours before the end of September for Board certification.  Phyllis Leach completed 1 hour of continuing education on July 26, 2024.

The Board reviewed the changes to the By-Laws as discussed at the last meeting.  Luke Hitchcock made the motion to approve the By-Law changes with the date of the meeting and adding more description to the Conflict of Interest section.  Alane Lentz seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  

It was noted that the City will hold a budget workshop on August 27th at noon to work on the budget of 2024-2025.  The City Clerk stated that our budget request looked good and really did not think that there would be many changes to it.

An update was given on the Smokey Bear Reading Challenge.   We have a total of 17 readers and they have a total of 5,718 minutes so far.   The challenge will end on August 31st.   A story time/party is being planned for in September.

An update was given on the Book Club for 2024-2025.   The first title will arrive next week and the discussion on it will be held on September 16th.

The information from the North Central District Health Department on the Emergency Pantry Project was shared with the Board.  The Board was not interested in this project.  The library director will inform the NCDHD on this decision.  

Board member, Phyllis Leach, turned in her resignation letter from the Library Board.  Stacey Gilliland motioned to approve the resignation and Luke Hitchcock seconded this. All members voted in favor with Phyllis Leach abstaining from the voting.   The Board thanked Phyllis for her many years of work on the Board.  Board members suggested names of people that they thought might make a good board member.  The list of names will be forwarded to the Mayor for his selection.  Phyllis will also be resigning from the Library Foundation Board.  We need one member from the library board to be on the Foundation Board.   Luke Hitchcock stated that he would be willing to be on that Board.

Election of officers were held.  Alane Lentz nominated Stacey Gilliland as President and Luke Hitchcock as Vice-President for a two year term.  Phyllis Leach seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  

Reviews were given on workshops/meetings attended by library staff and board members.  It was noted that the Director had attended the July 11th Thursday Director’s zoom meeting; the Nebraska State Advisory Council on Libraries Board meeting on July 19th; and the community conversation with Northeast Community College on August 1st.  Phyllis Leach watched one hour of CE for board certification with the NCompass Live: Helping students be google aware on July 26th.  It was noted that the Library Foundation Board meeting would be held on August 14th.

Under correspondence, a thank you note was shared from a girl that had attended our Summer Reading Program.  The new NebraskAccess passwords were shared with the Board.  An update from Overdrive on the new Libby app release was shared.  Several articles of interest from various library newsletters/journals were shared.

The next meeting date will be on September 11, 2024 at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 6:25 p.m.

SEPTEMBER 2024

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on September 11, 2024 at the Ainsworth Public Library.   This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, over the radio, posted at the library, and on the library’s website and Facebook page.  The meeting was called to order at 5:02 p.m.  Notice of the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act was given.  Roll call showed four members present (Stacey Gilliland, Tammy Hancock, Luke Hitchcock, and Alane Lentz).  The board welcomed Tammy Hancock to the board.  We are still short one board member.  The Mayor/Council is currenting working on appointing a person.

Stacey G. moved to approve the minutes from the last meeting.  Alane L. seconded this motion with all members voting in favor of.  Alane L. made the motion to approve claims for payment.  Luke H. seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The monthly library report for August was presented as well as a budget spending sheet and list of titles purchased.  It was at this time that the board discussed what to do with the old computers and tv set.  A person is interested in taking them.  There really is no place to recycle them here.  Places out of town will take used technology items for a recycle fee. They are currently sitting around taking up space.  The board said to let the interested person take them after they are cleaned off.  We would then be done with them and not have to pay a recycling fee.

We had an update on the budget for the new year from the City Clerk.  She stated that she had incorporated the budget we had proposed and that is what is slated for the budget adoption on September 11th.

A change in the NebraskAccess Authentication was received from the Nebraska Library Commission.  IP authentication and Nebraska driver’s license/state ID authentication are no longer available.  Users are now required to enter the password assigned to our library.  The library has business cards available with all the needed information.

A review was given on the Smokey Bear Reading Challenge held from July 21st to August 31st.  We had a total of 17 readers in the program.  Each reader was challenged to read 720 minutes during this time.  The group read a total of 19,732 minutes.  Each reader was invited to the birthday party on the 10th of September and received a Pizza Hut certification.  Smokey the Bear was present at the party with several other firemen with tools they use to fight fires.  They had the water fire truck at the library and kids were able to climb inside. We had a total of 27 people attend.  They listened to several stories on Smokey, played a bear game, handed out reading certificates, did a drawing for several prizes, and enjoyed some birthday cake.  Each person was able to take home a party bag filled with Smokey items.

Upcoming events were discussed.  Book Club will be held on September 16th with the title of  “Destiny of a Republic: A tale of madness, medicine, and the murder of a president” by Candice Millard.  Storytime will restart for the school year with a fall theme on September 17th from 4-5 p.m.   We will try to hold a story two times each month. It was noted that September is National Library Card Sign-Up Month.  The library will promote this in hopes of getting some new library card holders.  Banned Books Week will be held from Sept. 22nd-28th.  Wanda is making a special display to highlight this issue.

It was noted that Andrew Sherman from the Nebraska Library Commission was at our library on August 13th.  He completed a Technology Review of our library.  He reported that we have a good network in place.  He had stated that the three white all-in-one public pc’s are not Windows 11 compatible and will need to be replaced by October 20225 due to the end of life of Windows 10.  He cleaned up and reconfigured the public pc’s with identical staff and patron logins.  He also installed DeepFreeze (a reboot/restore system) on the five public pc’s.   The Commission had received a grant to place these in public libraries to help with fraud issues and the public downloading information on our computers.  Mr. Sherman also installed Office 2021 on the Director’s pc and the two new public pc’s in the addition.  He will install the UPS on the network equipment next time he is in the area.  He recommended installing a DNS Filter for cybersecurity protection.  He will need some information from the library’s provider before doing this.  

Linda Moody, a Tax Consultant with IRS was at the Library and was wanting to start doing a tax assistance program for our local people.  She has three volunteers to use as instructors.  They need a place to meet and internet/computers/printers to do this.  She was wondering if the library would be interested in this program.  They would also need a greeter, maybe a Spanish translator, and someone to watch children if they can’t find a sitter.  Tax service would be free. No income restrictions or requirements to use this program. The proposed program would run from February to March (maybe into April if there is a need).  Ms Moody will also be visiting with the school and NCDC on this program.  The board felt that it would be ok for the library to host this program if needed and to offer help with it.  

The board did a review on the collection development policy, duplicates and replacements, weeding, book sale, and the reconsideration policy on challenged materials.  The board did not make any changes at this time.  

Library accreditation was discussed by the board.  It was noted that two members completed the last two continuing education hours needed for the Board Certification.  Library director also has completed her Librarian Certification.  We now meet all ten of the basic requirements for accreditation and can now complete the Accreditation Form online.  It looks like we will be at a silver level.  The form is due by October 1, 2024.  The Community/Library Survey was reviewed. We had a total of 42 surveys completed.   Copies will be shared with the City Office, Chamber of Commerce, and the North Central Development Center.  A review of the survey and the strengths/weaknesses of the library was done.  The board worked on the community needs and how the library could help with them.  Goals for the five year library plan were developed.  They include the following goals:

Goal 1:  Economic growth of our community

1. Work with Northeast Community College and/or Nebraska Extension to hold workshops on how to start a business and how to do a business plan
2. The Library will purchase five new titles to promote starting a business, hiring practices, resumes, and bookkeeping/record keeping.
3. Workers need childcare in order to go to work and there is a shortage for this.  The Library will provide information on requirements to start a licensed in-home childcare and how to start the process.  If there is enough interest shown, the library would be willing to hold a class from Northeast Community College or Nebraska Extension at the library for this process 
4. Work with various groups to help provide a Tax assistance program for the public in our community.  

Goal 2:  Extending library services beyond current users to those who can not get to the library

1. Take box of reading material to the nursing home and assisted living each month
2. Do special programming with these older citizens once a year such as a craft project or humanities program
3. Since it is hard to travel the library with their charges due to safety in traveling, the library will provide boxes/activity bags to be delivered to the preschool schools/Headstart and/or daycare centers.
4. Traveling Reading Service (reading a story, singing a song, or action play)  would be provided to the young children at the time of box delivery to promote literacy.

Goal 3: Increase hours of operation 

1. The library will increase morning hours by one-half hour by opening up at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.

Goal 4:  Cultural and entertainment programming for adults in the community

1. Provide two programs per year such as author visits or humanities programs.
2. Start a multi-generational game night during the winter
3. Hold events such as adult coloring or a puzzle night several times during the year
4. Provide Makerspace classes as needed to meet the needs of adult population

Reviews were given on workshops/meetings attended this last month.  Director attended three Thursday zoom meetings on 8-1-24, 8-8-24, & 9-5-24 plus NCompass purchasing computers for libraries on 8-21-24 and Handling library complaints on 8-22-24.  A Library Foundation Board meeting was held on 8-14-24.  Upcoming events include PRT17 Meeting in Valentine on Sept. 13th and the 2025 Nebraska Makerspace Conference in Lincoln in November 2025.  Three board members reported on the continuing education hours they recently viewed.

Articles of interest from library newsletter/journals were shared with board members.  No other correspondence was shared.  The next meeting date was set for Oct 2nd at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the board, the meeting was adjourned at 6:25 p.m.

OCTOBER 2024

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on October 2, 2024 at the Ainsworth Public Library.  This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, on the radio, and posted at the library plus on the libraries website and Facebook page.  The meeting was called to order at 5:10 p.m. Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.   Roll call showed three members present.  They included Tammy Hancock, Luke Hitchcock, and Alane Lentz.  Member Stacey Gilliland was excused due to medical reasons.  Our fifth member has not been named yet by the City Council.

Alane Lentz moved to approve the minutes of the last meeting.  Tammy Hancock seconded this with all members present voting in favor of.  Luke Hitchcock made the motion to approve the claims for payment.  Tammy Hancock seconded this.  All members voted in favor of.

The Monthly Library Report for September was presented as well as a list of titles purchased.  It was noted that a statement had been mailed to the County Commissioners for library service for the fiscal year of 2024-2025.  The summary for fiscal year 2023-2024 was presented to the Board.  A copy of this report has been sent to the City for their records.

Upcoming events for the month of October was shared:

1. Silent Witness Display from Sept. 30-Oct. 7
2. Owl Storytime  Oct. 8th  4-5 p.m.
3. Book Club  Oct. 21st  “The Women” by Kristin Hannah  2 p.m.
4. Monster Storytime  Oct. 22nd  4-5 p.m.
5. Trick or Treat Main Street  Oct. 31st  4-6 p.m.
6. Cemeterrarium Craft for first 12 to sign up for  age12+

Library accreditation was discussed.  It was noted that the Accreditation Online form was submitted on Sept. 18th.  We should receive a silver level.  The Community Needs Response plan (Five-Year Plan) was mailed off on Sept. 23rd.  The Public Library Board Certification arrived and will be good till 9-2027.  The Board will need to get 20 hours of continuing education hours in the next three years to keep the certification.

Holiday closings were discussed.  The library will be closed on Oct. 14th for Columbus Day; Nov. 11th for Veterans Day; Nov. 28th for Thanksgiving Day; Dec. 24-25th for Christmas, and Dec. 31st and Jan. 1st for the New Year’s holiday.

Reviews were given on workshops/meetings attended by library staff.  Director had attended the Thursday Director’s Zoom meeting on Sept. 12th.  Two staff members attended the Teen Halloween Craft Workshop on Sept. 26th.

Correspondence was shared with the Board.  The Nebraska Library Commission sent us a two page flier titled “How Much Does Your Library Benefit Your Community?”  It shows what it would cost if the library did not exist and what residents would pay for some of the materials and services provided by the library.  The total amount that residents would spend without a library in Ainsworth was $208,719.  Ken Burns will have a documentary on Leonardo da Vinci on Nov. 18 and 19.  Nebraska Public Media will send a special poster on this event to the library.  We are to create a book display around it with books on da Vinci life and art. Articles of interest from various library journals and newsletters were shared.  

The next meeting date and time will be on Nov. 6th at 5 pm.  Since there was no further business to come before the board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:33 p.m.

NOVEMBER 2024

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on November 6, 2024 at the Ainsworth Public Library.  This meeting was advertised on the local radio station, in the local newspaper, at the Library, and on the library’s website and Facebook page.  The meeting was called to order at 5:03 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed three members present.  They included Stacey Gilliland, Luke Hitchcock, and Alane Lentz.  Member Tammy Hancock was absent.  We are still waiting for the Mayor to appoint a new board member for our fifth member.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Alane Lentz made the motion to approve the minutes of the last meeting.  Luke Hitchcock seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Luke Hitchcock moved to approve the claims for payment.  Alane Lentz seconded this motion.  All members voted in favor of.   The Monthly Library Report for October was shared.  It was noted that Brown County paid the funds to provide countywide library service.  The list of titles purchased was also shared with the Board.

The Nebraska Library Commission sent the library a Public Library Accreditation Program Certification.  We had 232 points so we meet the requirements to be accredited at the Silver level through December 2029.  

The Public Library Survey for 2024 portal is now open for submission.  We have till Feb. 15th to submit the needed information.  The library director will start to work on the report soon.

A review of events held in October was shared.  Two story times were held (Oct. 8th and 22nd) with an owl theme and monster theme.  A display was created to highlight books on Leonardo da Vinci in October to bring attention to the upcoming show on his life on PBS in November.  We had 12 ladies attend Book Club on the 21st.  They shared thoughts on the book “The Women” by Kristin Hannah.  We had five people create a cemeterrarium craft on the 15th. The glass containers were purchased at the Thrift Store and the halloween miniatures were given to us by the Central Plains Library System.  The library had a booth for the Trick or Treat Main Street on Halloween from 4-6 p.m.  We handed out a total of 345 items.

A discussion was held on upcoming events for November and December.  It was noted that storytime would be held on Nov. 5th with a Harvest theme and on Nov. 19th with a turkey/thanksgiving theme.  The two storytimes in December will feature a Christmas theme.  Book Club will be held on Nov. 18th with the title “The Clearwater House” by Tammy Marshall and on Dec. 16th with Dorothy Dodge Robbins “Christmas on the Great Plains”.  It was noted that the Library Foundation/Chamber of Commerce  will be holding a Giving Tuesday online on Dec. 3rd.  Funds will go towards Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.  

Reviews were given on the Thursday Zoom meetings on Oct. 24th and 31st, Teen Halloween Programs on the 3rd, the Dragons at the Library Reading Program on 18th, and Word Press on the 30th.  Coming up will be the Nebraska State Advisory Council on Libraries Board meeting on the 15th and the Ainsworth Library Foundation Board meeting on the 20th.

Correspondence items included:  OverDrive discontinuing the MP3 format and OverDrive legacy Desktop app; the Library Commission purchasing the Public Performance Site Licenses for public libraries in Nebraska; the online manual for the Summer Reading Program of “Color Our World”; and the announcement of the 2025 One Book One Nebraska title of “The Long March Home”.  Items of interest was shown from library journals and newsletters.

The next meeting date was set for January 8th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:27 p.m.

2023

JANUARY 2023

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on January 4, 2023, at the Public Library.  This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, on the radio, posted at the library and on the library’s website/Facebook page.  President Phyllis Leach called the meeting to order at 5 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed all members present.  They included Todd Flynn, Stacey Gilliland, Luke Hitchcock, Phyllis Leach, and Alane Lentz.  Library director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Luke Hitchcock made the motion to approve the November minutes.  Phyllis Leach seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Since the Board did not meet in December, we had no minutes to approve for that month.  Alane moved to approve the claims for payment.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Reports for November and December was shared as well as the list of titles purchased.  The Summary Report for 2021-2022 was also presented.

Fundraising by the Library Foundation was discussed.   It was noted that the Book Basket Auction held on Nov. 19^th raised a total of $1,605 for the outside lighting project.  A box of 62 ink cartridges has been sent off to Empties4Cash.  The funds for the recyclable cartridges will go to the Library Foundation.

The voting results on the Overdrive Collection Development Policy were shared with the Board.  The policy now reads that the policy will be reviewed by Nebraska Overdrive Library staff every five years or sooner if needed.   Also added to the policy was the following:  A patron may have up to five active reconsideration requests at one time.

The Christmas Cheer Tuesdays in December was discussed.  We had Christmas crafts, Christmas stories, Christmas movies, Christmas Lego’s ornaments to make, and a Christmas puzzle for families to work with when they visited the library on Tuesday.  Attendance was not good due to snowstorms and cold weather.  The few that did attend had a lot of fun.  The library also had a Holiday Bag for the kids to color and takes home to use.

It was noted that the Public Library Survey is currently being worked on.  It will be submitted by the Feb. 17^th deadline.

The Summer Reading Program “All Together Now” was discussed.  The manual and products to use with the kindness/friendship/unity theme was shared.  Wanda and Gail will be attending a workshop in Grand Island on the 20^th to help get ideas to do with the program.

The Library Telescope Program was discussed.  The equipment was shown to the Board. It was noted that library staff attended training on December 8^th.  The proposed policy on the Library Telescope was shared.  Board member Todd Flynn suggested we use the age of 19 to be able to check out instead of 18 due to legal age requirement on prosecution if they failed to return item.  After changing some of the wording and rules, the board will review the policy at the next meeting and approve it.

Reports were given on the Nebraska State Advisory Council on Libraries meeting that the Director attended by computer on Nov. 18^th and the Library Telescope Training staff attended on the 8^th of December.  Staff will be attending the Summer Reading Program Workshop on the 20^th of January.

A number of items were shared under correspondence.  It was noted that Director was submitting application forms for several grants.  They included the Penguin Random House Grant for Small and Rural Libraries and the Science Kits for Public Libraries Grant.  The resolution on Banned Books Week, attacks on books in U.S., and the 1^st Amendment of Freedom of Speech and Freedom to read and write by the U.S. House of Representatives was shared.  The information on the NEA Big Read was shared.  It was noted that our Library will take part in this Book Club title of “Sitting Pretty: The View from My Ordinary Resilient Disabled Body” by Rebekah Taussig in April 2023.  The Swank Movie Licensing USA Public Performance Site License has been paid for by the Nebraska Library Commission.  It will run from 10/01/22 to 09/30/23.  This license is posted in the meeting room.  Articles of interest from various library newsletters and journals were shared.

The next library board meeting was set for February 1, 2023, at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to perform, the meeting was adjourned at 5:55 p.m.

FEBRUARY 2023

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on February 8, 2023, at the Ainsworth Public Library.  This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, over the radio, at the library, on the library’s website and Facebook page.  The meeting was called to order at 5:02 p.m.  Notice was given on the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed all members present.  They included Todd Flynn, Stacey Gilliland, Luke Hitchcock, Phyllis Leach, and Alane Lentz.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present.  Alane Lentz made the motion to approve the minutes.  Stacey Gilliland seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Stacey Gilliland moved to approve the claims for payment.  Alane Lentz seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report for January was presented as well as a list of titles purchased.  The Public Library Survey was submitted on Jan. 31^st.  The report was shared with the board as well as the Supplement Survey at the Nebraska Library Commission.

The library telescope policy was reviewed with changes made at the last meeting.  Todd Flynn made the motion to adopt this policy.  Stacey Gilliland seconded this with all members voting in favor of.

The Summer Reading Program was discussed.  It was noted that Rock County Public Library and our library was working on getting a Humanities Nebraska program (Dave Marsh- Music around the World) here for the kids.  Our System Office will pay the fee to have him come.

Atrium Book Systems will be doing a big update on the OPAC that we use in the next five months.  They did add to the card catalog a spot that shows the Total Patron Savings.  Information has been sent so we can see how the Gallery option will work in the 14.2 version upgrade.

It was noted that the library is currently doing the Blind Date with a Book.   It was started on Jan. 24^th and will run to Feb. 28^th.   Reader’s name will be placed in a drawing for a special prize at the end of this program.

Dr. Seuss Hour will be held on Feb. 28^th from 4-5 p.m.  We chose this date due to March 1^st being on Wednesday which is a church youth time, and the library will be short of staff on the 2^nd.

The AARP Community Challenge Grant was discussed.  It was felt that maybe we could work it in with the American Heart Association Midwest Region Grant and improve the community health by getting a chair/blood pressure monitor for the public to use at the library.

Under meetings/workshops, it was noted that staff members attended the Thursday Directors Zoom meeting on Jan. 26^th and the Summer Reading Program Workshop in Grand Island on Feb. 1^st.  Information was shared on the Youth Mental Health First Aid session which would be held on Feb. 10^th at the Community Center.   It was noted that the Library Foundation would be meeting next week.  Information was shared on the Big Talk from Small Libraries Conference on Feb. 24^th.  This is held online and runs all day long.  The Board gave approval for the library to be closed that day so staff could attend this training.  It was noted that the Director would be attending the Nebraska State Advisory Council on Libraries on March 3^rd.  It was noted that Library Advocacy Day would be held that same day.  There are six bills that have been introduced that have implications for school, public, and academic libraries. These bills were shown to the Board so they could keep up with the hearings on them.

Under correspondence, a $33 check from the recycling of the ink jet cartridges was received for the Library Foundation.  Information was shared from Central Nebraska Economic Development District on the affordable connectivity program and the American Library Association report on how new federal funding can power progress to leverage libraries to achieve digital equity for all.  Articles of interest from library newsletters and journals were shared with the Board.

The next meeting date/time was set for March 1^st at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:48 p.m.

MARCH 2023

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on March 1, 2023, at the Ainsworth Public Library.   This meeting was advertised at the library, in the local newspaper and radio plus the library website and Facebook page.  The meeting was called to order at 5:01 p.m.  Notice of the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act was shared.  Roll call showed four members present.  They included Todd Flynn, Stacey Gilliland, Phyllis Leach, and Alane Lentz.  Member Luke Hitchcock was absent.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Stacey Gilliland made the motion to approve the minutes which Alane Lentz seconded.  All members voted in favor of.  Alane Lentz moved to approve the claims for payment.  Todd Flynn seconded this motion with all members voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report for February was presented as well as the list of titles purchased.

Discussion was held on the upcoming Summer Reading Program.  Plans are being made for the “All Together Now” theme.  It was noted that the Central Plains Library System would pay the cost of have David Marsh from the Humanities Nebraska do his program “Music from Around the World”.  We have this program set for June 15^th at 2 p.m.

An update was given on the Blind Date with a Book program held during February.  We had 14 check outs by 8 different readers.  Luanne Reed was the winner of the drawing.

Read Across America Day was celebrated with a Dr. Seuss Hour on Feb. 28^th.  We read lots of Seuss books and played Dr. Seuss Bingo.  Due to the after-school program, attendance was low.

Reports were given on library meetings staff had attended.  All staff attended the Big Talk for Small Libraries Conference on the 24^th as well as library board member Stacey Gilliland.  Phyllis Leach gave an update on the Library Foundation Board meeting held on Feb. 28^th.  It was noted that the Library Director would be attending the Nebraska State Advisory Council on Libraries meeting on March 3^rd in Lincoln.

Items of correspondence were shared.  Information was shared on the National Endowment for the Arts Big Read with Northeast Community College.  It was noted that the library would be involved with this in March/April with the title of “Sitting Pretty”.   Articles of interest from various library journals and newsletters were shared.

The next meeting date/time was set for April 5^th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:34 p.m.

APRIL 2023

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on April 5, 2023.  This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, over the radio, on the library’s website, and posted at the library. The meeting was called to order by President Phyllis Leach at 5:01 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.

Roll call showed all members present.   Members included Todd Fling, Stacey Gilliland, Luke Hitchcock, Phyllis Leach, and Alane Lentz.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.  Alane Lentz moved that the minutes be approved.  Stacey Gilliland seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Alane Lentz made the motion to approve the claims for payment.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members voting in favor.  The Monthly Library Report for March was presented as well as a list of titles purchased.

The Summer Reading Program was discussed.  This year the theme will be “All Together Now”.  We will run the program all of June.  Children may sign up till May 15^th in person at the library, on Facebook, or from the library’s website.  We will have the younger children come on Tuesdays (Toddler Time from 4:30-5 p.m. and Preschool from 1-2 p.m.)  The students in K-4^th grade will come on Thursdays from 2-3 p.m.  We will have all grades together this year.  We plan to do a Sidewalk Chalk Festival, Pet a Truck, Music from Around the World program, and a Kindness Fun.  K-4^th grade will read, and log time read on Reader Zone from June 1-30^th.  Prizes will be handed out after the 4^th of July.  Fliers have been developed to hand out of school and to the preschools.

Our library joined the Northeast Community College with their NEA (National Endowment for the Arts) Big Read.  We received 10 copies of the Big Read title of “Sitting Pretty:  The View from My Ordinary Resilient Disabled Body” by Rebekah Taussig.  The readers may keep the book after they have read it or pass it on to another reader.   A discussion time will be held on April 17^th at 3:30 p.m. to share thoughts on the title.   A report will be sent back to NCC on how many readers we had and total of attendance at the discussion.

Information on the Library Board Certification Program was share.   It was noted that the Board currently has 10 continuing education hours.  The Board will need to get 10 more units before 9-20-2024.

A student from the Ainsworth High School has contacted the library about being a COE Student at the Library next school year.  Discussion was held on this topic and the Board had no problem with having a COE Student next year.  The Director will contact the student to let her know.

Having met the standards of service described in the Public Library Accreditation Guidelines, our Library was awarded state aid for fiscal year 2023 in the amount of $1,320.  The award was determined using the following formula:

• Base Amount     $565
• Per Capital Pay $245
• Accreditation Bonus    $400
• 1% Incentive Pay              $110

The state Aid payment is not intended to replace local funds for the library but is granted to provide for enhanced services over and above those provided through local funding.

Plans were discussed for National Library Week which will run from April 24-29^th with the theme of “There’s More to the Story”.  We will hold a Storytime on Tuesday featuring the Bernstein’s Bears.  We will hold a drawing for the stuff Bernstein’s Bear Family.  Financial Literacy Story Books (Money Monsters) will be featured on Thursday of that week.

It was noted that the Ainsworth Area Art Guild will hold its Annual Spring Art Show at the Library this month.   They will hang the artwork on the 14^th.  Judging will be held on the 15^th. The show will remain on display till the 27^th.  They plan to do an Art Basket give away.  It was noted at this time that Bright Horizon currently has a display up at the library this week titled “What I was Wearing” to highlight domestic abuse month.

Several grants were discussed by the Board.  It was noted that the library did not apply for the Midwest Region American Heart Association Grant.  The Board had discussed applying for funds to purchase a Blood Pressure Monitor for the public to use at an early meeting.  Due to the high cost of purchasing a monitor with stool & stand, it was felt that we could not afford this.   The library did apply for the American Library Association Game On! Grant.  This was a $500 grant to purchase board games for the public to use and for library programing.  Grant recipients will be announced at ALA Annual Conference in June 2023.

The Board will start to work on the upcoming budget for 2023-2024 at the May meeting and finalize it at the June meeting.

Various workshops and meeting attended by the Board and Staff was shared.  It was noted that the Director has attended several of the Thursday Director’s Zoom Meeting from the Library System and the State Advisory Council on Libraries Board Meeting in Lincoln on March 3^rd. Gail Irwin was re-appointed to the council till 12-31-205.   Staff will attend the Reader Zone Zoom Meeting on April 10^th.  The 2023 Early Childhood Meeting of Planning Region Team 17 will be held on the 5^th of May and Gail plans to attend this.

Several items were shared under correspondence.  It was noted that the Nebraska Library Commission was challenging the FCC’s Broadband map on behalf of Nebraska Public Libraries.  The aim of the challenge is get the FCC to update their map ensuring that all of Nebraska’s public libraries are designated as Community Anchor Institutions with the correct address and geographic location.  An accurate map will help identify the unserved and underserved communities most in need of funding for high-speed internet infrastructure investments and will be used to allocate funds for this.  Information on the upcoming Atriuum Library System update for the OPAC was shared.  Our options are the Canvas or Gallery upgrade.  The Public Librarian Certification Program sent a new certificate to Gail Irwin stating that she has been approved at Level II through 2-1-2026.  Legislation update was shared with the Board on bills that will affect all school libraries, public librarians, and educators in Nebraska.  A hearing was set for March 24^th for LB441.  Items of interest from library journals and newsletters were shared.  It was noted that it was three years ago when COVID-19 brought the country to a standstill.  Many of the articles highlighted this.  The newsletter from the system office had the Week of Weeding Contest information in it.  Our library will participate in hopes of winning the $100 Amazon Gift Card.

The next meeting date/time was set for May 3^rd at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:54 p.m.

MAY 2023

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on May 3, 2023, at the Ainsworth

Public Library.   This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, over the radio, posted at the library, and online at the library’s website and Facebook page.  The meeting was called to order at 5 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed three members present.   They included Phyllis Leach, Stacie Gilliland, and Alane Lentz.  Members Luke Hitchcock and Todd Flynn were absent.  Library director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Alane Lentz moved to approve the minutes of the last meeting.  Stacie Gilliland seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Stacie Gilliland made the motion to approve the claims for payment. Alane Lentz seconded this with all members in favor of.  The Board spent a few minutes reviewing the budget spending for this year.  The monthly library report for April and the list of titles purchased were shared with the Board.  It was at this time that the Director reported that the City would be hiring a different company to do the entire City’s underground sprinkler systems this year than the one we had in the past. It is not known at this time when the sprinklers would be turned on or how much it would cost the library.  The president of the board stated that she would contact the city office and speak to them on this matter.  Our plants in the landscaping are needing water now.

The Summer Reading Program was discussed.  It was noted that the fliers have been delivered to the school and preschools.  We have a total of 43 signed up so far.  A letter was sent to the businesses for the “Meet and Greet Community Vehicles”.  A number of responses have been received with what type of equipment they would bring.  The program will run all of June.  We will have a Toddler Time; Preschool Time; and k-4^th Grade group.  Staff continues to get ready for the big month.

An update was given on the NEA Big Read Book Club from the Northeast Community College.  We had a total of nine people check out the book.  Six attended the Book Discussion on the 17^th.  A report was sent to the college so they could report totals on their grant form.

Our local Book Club finished with their last title on the 17^th of April.   We will take the summer off and re-start in August with the One Book One Nebraska.

A view was given on the National Library Week activities.  A Berenstain Bear’s Storytime was held on the 25^th.  We handed out financial literacy story books featuring the Money Monsters for children in grades k-5.  The materials have activities to help build habits that children will need as they grow up and start to manage their own money.  People could sign up all week long for the plush Berenstain Bear Family.   Anna Taylor was the winner of the bears.  The Art Guild’s Spring Art Show was on display during this week.

Information was shared on the Rob-See-Co Rural Library Grant.  Grant will be awarded to rural libraries for projects such as expanding your book collection, core educational programs for adults or children, or computer or software upgrades. Form is due by June 30^th.

The Board spent time working on the proposed budget for 2023-2024.  The budge will be finalized at the next meeting.   Board told director to contact the County on their part of the budget.

Updates were given on the Thursday Director’s Zoom Meetings, Reader’s Zone Zoom Meeting on the 10^th, and the Broadband Access Digital Opportunities Meeting on the 2^nd which was attended by Gail Irwin.   Ellen Voss attended the Cricut Workshop in Atkinson on April 26^th and will be attending the 2023 Annual Early Childhood Meeting of Planning Region Team 1 on May 5^th.  The Library Foundation Board meeting will be held on May 10^th.

Information from the Nebraska Public Service Commission with their Order seeking comment on implementing a program to incentivize new fiber construction for E-Rate eligible entities.  Libraries are to comment by May 26^th.  It was noted that our library participated in the Central Plains Library System’s Week of Weeding.  We will be entered into a drawing for a $100 Amazon Gift Card.  Winning library will be selected in random drawing on May 12^th.   Items of interest from various library newsletter and journals were shared with the Board.

The next meeting date and time was set for June 7^th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:58 p.m.

JUNE 2023

The Ainsworth Library Board held their regular monthly meeting on June 7, 2023, at the Ainsworth Public Library.   This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, on the radio, posted at the library as well as the library’s website and Facebook page.  The meeting was called to order at 5 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed four members present:  Todd Flynn, Luke Hitchcock, Phyllis Leach, and Alane Lentz.  Member Stacie Gillilland was absent.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Alane Lentz made the motion to approve the minutes.  Phyllis Leach seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Luke Hitchcock moved to approve the claims for payment.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report was presented as well as a list of titles purchased.  It was noted at this time that President Leach had spoken with the City Clerk on the sprinkler system and that the library would be using the same provider as last year.  The Board asked the Director if the library roof had been inspected after the hail damage.  Director was told to contact the City and check on this matter.

Performance Review was completed on the library staff.  After view of each employee, Todd Flynn moved to approve the Performance Reviews and move the employees to the next wage scale.

It was noted that the Library Director had replied to the Order to the Nebraska Public Service Commission on considering implementing a program to incentivize new fiber construction for E-Rate eligible entities.  The letter was sent on the 18^th of May.

The All Together Now Summer Reading Program was discussed.  It was noted that we had a total of 64 children sign up.  The Preschool group and the Toddler Time will be held on Tuesdays in June.  The K-4^th Grade group will have their fun hour on Thursdays in June.  Week One will feature Kindness.  The K-4^th Grade group will be making butterflies for the SandHill Care Center and Cotton Wood Villa residents as well as the home delivery of meals from the Ainsworth Senior Center.  Week Two will feature music with the Humanities Nebraska Program of Music from Around the World by David Marsh.  Week Three will feature chalk drawing and messages to make people feel happy.  Week Four will feature Community Helpers.   We plan to hold a Meet and Greet Community Helper’s Vehicle/Equipment event.  If the City Council approves of our request to close down the street from Highway 20 to 5^th street, we will park the large, oversized equipment out front of library.  We have a total of 14 pieces coming.  Children can get inside and around the equipment with their operators explaining how they work and what they do.  The kid will also see some of the equipment they wear/use to do their job.  If the main street construction starts up, we will move the event to the conference center parking lot.       K-4^th Grade group will keep track of their time spent reading by way of Reader Zone from June 1-June 30^th.  Prizes will be handed out to top readers after the 4^th of July.

The Stanley Door Opener at the Library has not been working.  Travis Electric came and looked at it.  He reported that the mother board was gone.   He felt that it would be cheaper to purchase a new unit than replace that expensive piece of equipment.  Glass Edge of Norfolk was contacted, and they will come and look at it and give an estimate to repair or replace with new.  They stated that they would install but they cannot do the electrical part so would need an electrician for that.  The Board also looked at other door openers from places online like Amazon. No action was taken at this time.

The Library Foundation Board will be holding an Author visit with Rob Soles on July 17^th at 5 p.m.  Mr. Soles used to live in Ainsworth and wrote the book “A Winding Path to Flat Water”.  Refreshments will also be served at this event.

The Board worked on the proposed budget for 2023-2024.  The budget total comes to $162,845.  Todd Flynn made the motion to approve the proposed budget.  Luke Hitchcock seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The Director will give the City Clerk this budget and see what she/council says about it.  It was noted that the County had acknowledged our request at their June 6^th meeting, but no action will be taken until the County Board approves their overall 2023-24 fiscal year budget in September.

Reports were given on workshops/meetings attended by library staff such as the Thursday Director’s zoom meeting on May 18^th & 25th, and the Broadband Access Digital Opportunities on May 2^nd.  Ellen Voss attended the 2023 Annual Early Childhood Meeting of Planning Region Team 17 on May 5^th.  Board member Leach gave an update on the Library Foundation Board meeting on the 10^th of May.  The Foundation plans to do an Author Visit in July and a Star Party in August to promote the telescope.

Under correspondence we had information to share from the Central Plains Library System on the Week of Weeding plus information on identifying and preventing burnout in library workers.  Since May was Mental Health Awareness Month, the System sent our library some library coloring pages and set of new color pencils to help with our library staff stress.  We have received an estimate to replace outside soffit lights with LED recessed from Travis Electric Inc.  This will be passed on to the Library Foundation Board as they had done fundraising for this project.  Articles of interest from library journals and newsletters were shared with the board.

The next meeting date and time was set for July 12^th at 5 p.m.

Since there was no further business to come before the board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:49 p.m.

JULY 2023

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on July 12, 2023, at the Ainsworth Public Library. This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, over the radio, at the library and on the libraries Facebook page and website.  The meeting was called to order at 5:01 p.m.  Notice of the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act was given.  Roll called showed three members present.  They included Todd Flynn, Phyllis Leach, and Alane Lentz.  Members Stacie Gilliland and Luke Hitchcock were absent.   Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Alane Lentz made the motion to approve the claims for payment.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Alane Lentz moved to approve the minutes of the last meeting which Todd Flynn seconded.   All members voted in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report was presented as well as a list of titles purchased.  It was noted that the library’s roof did have hail damage.  The City will put out one bid for all of the city buildings needing roof work.

A review was given on the Summer Reading Program.  We had a total of 64 children register (13 in the Toddler Time, 15 in the Preschool group, and 36 in the K-4^th grade).  Total attendance to the month-long activities came to 282 (Toddle Time 61, Preschool 56, K-4^th grade 165). The Humanities Nebraska David Marsh program of Music from around the World had a total of 50 in attendance.  The Meet and Greet Community Vehicles attendance was 80.  The K-4^th grade group kept track of time read with ReaderZone from June 1-June 30^th.  Total time read by the whole group came to 6,253 minutes.  The reading goal was to read a total of 500 minutes.  We had 7 readers reach the goal.   Most time read over all was Kaydence Myers with 1,071 minutes and 2^nd place was Kimberlyn Doke with 735 minutes.  Prizes were given to the top two readers in each grade.

There was no new information to share on the Stanley Door Opener, so no action was taken on this.

It was noted that an Author Visit by Rob Soles is planned for the 17^th at 5 p.m.  Rob is an AHS graduate and has family roots here.   He will be talking about his novel “A Winding Path to Flat Water” which is a historical fiction on his great-grandfather’s life.   Refreshments will be served by the foundation board.

A Star Party is being planned by the Foundation Board the first part of August.  They are doing this to promote the use of the new telescope.

No news on the proposed budget for 2023-2024.   It has been submitted to the City Clerk.  Budget Workshop and Hearing are usually held in August.

Reports were given on the meetings and workshops attended by the library staff.  It was noted that the director had attended the Thursday Director’s Zoom Meeting on June 1, 22, and 29^th as well as the NCompass: Nebraska Public Library Laws: Chapter 51 and beyond.  Board members were encouraged to watch the video of this for their continuing education hours.  It was noted that the director would be attending the Nebraska State Library Advisory Council meeting on July 21^st.   This will be held online so no travel involved.  The Nebraska Library Commission has purchased a statewide registration for the interactive three-day virtual event for the 2023 United for Libraries Virtual: Trustees, Friends, and Foundation.  All library directors/staff, board members, and Friends of the Library and Foundation representatives can use this free registration for the three-day event.  Information was shared with the board on this, and the link will be sent to them to read at home.

Under correspondence we had information on the new passwords for NebraskAccess ; information from the Star Library on the Solar Eclipses of 2023 & 2024 Guide; and the Library Early Childhood Resource Internet Form from the Nebraska Public Media.  Various articles of interest from library journals and newsletters were shared.

The next meeting date/time was set for August 2^nd at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:27 p.m.

AUGUST 2023

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on August 2, 2023, at the Ainsworth Public Library.  This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, over the radio, posted at the library as well as on the library’s website and Facebook page.   The meeting was called to order at 5:03 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed four members present.  They included Todd Flynn, Stacey Gilliland, Luke Hitchcock, and Alane Lentz.  Member Phyllis Leach was absent.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Alane Lentz made the motion to approve the minutes of the last meeting.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Alane Lentz moved to approve the claims for payment.  Luke Hitchcock seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report for July was presented as well as a list of titles purchased.  A usage report from Google and our library Facebook page was shared.  It was reported at this time that our COE Student from the school would start work at the Library on August 16^th.

Updates were given on the repairs at the library.   It was noted that the company has not been to the library yet on the door opener.  Library Director will contact them again on Friday.  The estimate on the damages at the library from the hail in May was shared with the Board.  The city will be including the library roof in the bid advertisement with other damages to the city facilities.  It was noted that Travis Electric Inc. will be replacing the outside soffit lights with LED recessed lights.  The Library Foundation will be paying for this out of funds that they had raised for this project.

A review was given on the July 17^th Author Visit by Rob Soles on his book “A Winding Path to Flat Water”.  We had a total of 34 in attendance.  He had a number of books to give away but asked people that were taking the book to give a little donation to the library foundation.  We raised a total of $330.  Rob graduated from Ainsworth.

It was noted that the date for the Star Party being planned by the Foundation has not been set.  We are waiting on an expert to come from Omaha with a large telescope.

No news on the proposed budget.   The City and County usually do Budget Hearings in August.

The Book Club will be restarting soon.  The first book will be the One Nebraska/One Book title of “The Mystery of Hunting’s End” by Mignon Eberhart.  The discussion will be held on Sept. 18^th.

Under meetings/workshops, a review was given by the library director on the Nebraska State Library Advisory Council Board meeting held on July 21^st and the NCompass Internet filtering for CIPA and cybersecurity on the 26^th.  It was noted that the United for Libraries Virtual training for Trustees, Friends and Foundations was currently being held from August 1-3^rd.  The Library Foundation will also have a meeting coming up in August.

Under correspondence, information from the Nebraska Public Commission Order was shared on the hearing to be held on 8-21-23 on implementing a program to incentivize new fiber construction for E-Rate eligible entities.  Articles of interest were shared from the Central Plains Library System Newsletter and the Library Journal for August.

The next meeting date/time was discussed.   Library Director will be on vacation the first part of September and asked to move the meeting to September 13^th at 5 p.m.  The Board members approved the meeting date change.

Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:30 p.m.

SEPTEMBER 2023

The Ainsworth Library Board held its monthly meeting on Sept. 20, 2023, after a lack of quorum for the meeting set for Sept. 13^th.  This meeting was advertised on the radio station, in the newspaper, posted at the library, and on the library’s website and Facebook page.  The meeting was called to order at 5:05 p.m. by President Phyllis Leach.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll called showed three members present:  Todd Flynn, Stacey Gilliland, and Phyllis Leach.  Members absent from the meeting included Luke Hitchcock and Alane Lentz.  Library director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Todd Flynn made the motion to approve the minutes of the previous meeting.  Stacey Gilliland seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Stacey Gilliland moved to approve the claims for payment.  Phyllis Leach seconded this with all in favor.   A list of titles purchased this last month was shared with the Board.  The Monthly Library Report for August was presented.  It was also noted at this time that the hail damage on the roof had been repaired on Sept. 11 to Sept.13.  The insurance company had to make an adjustment on the number of shingle bundles as the roofers did not have enough to complete.  The last section was finished on the 15^th.  The rain gutters need to be replaced yet and that should happen this week.  City Clerk had stated that the road construction on Main Street north of highway 20 should be starting the first of November.  Our library was helping the Library Commission with deleting some patrons from Overdrive after they had asked for help. We also deleted some patrons from our system at the same time.  The total number was 329 deleted as noted on the monthly report.

The COE Student seems to be working out.  An update was given on duties that she has been preforming.

The first Book Club discussion was held on Sept. 18^th with the One Book One Nebraska title of “The Mystery of Hunting’s End” by M.G. Eberhart.  A member of the community had called the library to complain on the titles that were selected for the Book Club.   The list of titles selected was shared with the Board so they would know what books were planned to be read by the group.

It was noted that the Stanley Door Opener had been finally repaired.   It is working well, and people are enjoying it.   The Board was made aware of the LED Lights that were installed around the outside of the library building by the Library Foundation Board.   Everyone has been enjoying the extra lighting at night.

September is Library Card Sign-Up Month.  The library has been promoting this all month in the library, on the radio, and on our Facebook page and website.

It was noted that Banned Book Week will be celebrated from October 1-7^th.   Wanda is in the process of making a display with books that have been banned through the years.

The library will be handing out Eclipse Glasses for the October 14^th annular eclipse of the sun.  Our area will see about 65% of the sun covered by the moon.  Promotional work will be done at the library, on our website and Facebook page.  If we have glasses left over, we will save them and use on April 8^th when the total eclipse happens.

The City had approved our budget for 2023–2024 as presented except for a change on the insurance lines.  The Clerk will be getting a budget sheet to me as soon as she has her paperwork done.

It was noted that staff had attended the Nebraska Public Media Early Childhood Resources Information Session on August 11^th and The Planning Region Team 17: Early Intervention Act on Sept. 8^th.  The Library Foundation Board Meeting was held on Sept. 6^th.  Phyllis Leach gave a review from that meeting.

Under Correspondence, we had a letter from the Nebraska Library Commission stating that they had purchased the Swank Movie Licensing USA Public Performance Site License for the libraries in Nebraska.  This license will be good for one year.  A thank you note from Kimberlyn Doke on our Summer Reading Program was shared with the Board.  Articles of interest from various library journals/newsletters were share with the Board.

The next meeting was set for October 4^th at 5 p.m.   Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:36 p.m.

OCTOBER 2023

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on October 4, 2023 at the Ainsworth Public Library.   This meeting was advertised on the radio, in the newspaper, and posted at the Library/library website and Facebook page.  President Leach called the meeting to order at 5 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed all five members present for the meeting.   This included Todd Flynn, Stacy Gilliland, Luke Hitchcock, Phyllis Leach, and Alana Lentz.  Library director, Gail Irwin, was also present.

Todd Flynn made the motion to approve the minutes of the last meeting.  Phyllis Leach seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Luke Hitchcock moved to approve the claims for payment.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members in favor of.  The list of titles purchased was also shared.  The Monthly Library Report for September 2023 and the Summary for Fiscal Year 2022/2023 was presented.  The Director will start to fill out the State Statistical Report which will open in November.

Discussion was held on the insurance adjustment work from the hail damage in the spring.  It was noted that the shingle work was completed the week of Sept. 11-15^th.  The rain gutter was installed on September 26^th.  The Board walked around the building and thinks that we need to add a downspout on the north side of library by the back sidewalk and add gutters on the V on the south/west side of the building.  The rain running off the building has been digging a deep hole in the ground.  Director will talk to Lenny Fernau on this matter and see if he can help us.

Banned Book Week will be celebrated October 1-7^th.  The library has a display up titled “Shine A Light on Banned Books-Censorship Leaves Us in the Dark”.  Several banned books will be on display as well as information sheets on banned books.

October events were discussed.  Eclipse glasses are being handed out for the October 14^th eclipse.  Bright Horizon will have their Silent Witness display up starting October 10^th.  The Ainsworth Area Art Guild will have their monthly art meeting at the library on the 14^th and put up their “Fall” display.  A Halloween Storytime is set for Oct. 24^th from 4-5 p.m.  The Library will be on Main Street for the Trick Treat Main Street on Oct. 31^st from 4-6 p.m.   The Library plans to have a haunted house made with the canopy tent and hand out special non-eatable treats.

Due to staff shortage that day, the board approved of the library closing at 3:30 p.m. in order to get downtown and set up before the children start to arrive at 4 p.m.

The Board discussed upcoming holiday closings.  It was noted that the library would be closed on Oct. 9^th for Columbus Day; Nov. 10^th for Veteran’s Day; and Nov. 23^rd for Thanksgiving Day.

The library will follow the City closing for Christmas and New Year’s Day.

Upcoming workshops and meetings include the Nebraska State Advisory Council on Libraries Board meeting in Lincoln on Nov. 17^th; and the Central Plains Library System’s Conference “Tools of the Trade” in Kearney on Oct. 19^th. Various items of interest from library journals and newsletters were shared under correspondence.  The next meeting date was set for Nov. 1^st at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting adjourned at 5:36 p.m.

NOVEMBER 2023

The Ainsworth Library Board held its regular monthly meeting on November 1, 2023, at the Ainsworth Public Library as advertised in the local newspaper, on the radio, posted at the library and on the library’s website and Facebook page.  President Phyllis Leach called the meeting to order at 5 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed three members present.  They include Stacy Gilliland, Phyllis Leach, and Alane Lentz. Members Todd Flynn and Luke Hitchcock were absent.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.

Stacy Gilliland made the motion to approve the minutes.  Alane Lentz seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Alane Lentz moved to approve the claims for payment. Stacy Gilliland seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  The Board reviewed the Budget Sheets from last year and this current month from the City Clerk’s Office.  The monthly Library Report for October was shared with the Board as well as a list of titles purchased.

It was noted that the State Statistical Report is due by Feb. 2024.  The Director has started to work on the form.  Discussion was held on the Public Library Accreditation.   It was noted that our library’s accreditation expires in 2024 and we will need to apply for re-accreditation and do a new five-year plan for the library with goals on how the library can meet the needs of our community.

A review was given on the October events at the Library.  We had the Silent Witness Display, the Ainsworth Art Guild Barn Exhibit, a Halloween Storytime; plus attended the Trick or Treat on Main Street handing out goodies to 350 + children.

Upcoming activities for November/December were discussed.   We will hold Book Club both of these months, and hold a Thanksgiving Storytime as well as a Christmas Storytime

Under workshops and meetings, topics discussed at the Thursday Director’s Meeting on Zoom was shared as well as sessions that Wanda Raymond attended at the Central Plains Library System Tools of the Trade Conference in Kearney on Oct. 19th.  Lots of the give away from the Conference was shown to the Board.  It was noted that Director will be attending the Nebraska State Advisory Council on Libraries Board Meeting on Nov. 17^th and that the Ainsworth Library Foundation Board would be meeting in November.

Under Correspondence we shared items of items from various library newsletters and journals.  It was noted that our library entered the Prairie STEM Raffle sponsored by the Nebraska Library Commission.  Each library pack are for 5^th-8^th grade level and will have 12 kits with step-by-step instructions with career exploration options and all the materials you need in one bag.  Our library said that we were interest in the Pendulum Painting; Toothpaste Challenge; Design a Glider Innovation; or the Quick Escape Challenge.  Winners will be drawn on November 29^th.   It was also noted that the online 2024 Summer Reading Program “Adventure Begins at your Library” has arrived, and staff will start to plan for the summer activities.  Information from the Nebraska Overdrive on hold limits for Overdrive was shared.  Some requests have been received to increase the limit of the number of holds that a patron may have a one time. The Technology & Access Director of the Nebraska group will put this up for a vote if the group wishes.

Discussion was held on the next meeting date/time.   The Board usually does not meet in December unless an important issue comes up.  The Board decided it will skip the December meeting and hold its next meeting on January 3^rd at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:30 p.m.

DECEMBER 2023

There was not meeting held in December 2023.