Approved Minutes
New York Library Association Council Meeting
Joint Council Meeting
Wednesday, October 17, 2001
Crowne Plaza, Albany, NY
Present: John Hammond, NYLA President; Carolyn Giambra, NYLA President-Elect 2001; Diane Courtney, NYLA President-Elect 2002; Anne Hofmann, NYLA Past-President; Mary A. Brown, NYLA Treasurer; Maribeth Krupczak, ALA Councilor 2001; Mary Lou Caskey, ALA Councilor 2002; Richard Panz, Councilor-at-Large; David Harralson, ASLS President 2001; Carol Anne Germaine, ASLS President 2002; Pauline Kehoe, PLS President 2001; Stephanie Sarnoff, PLS President 2002; Suzanne Irving, RASS President 2001; Kimberly Iraci, RASS President 2002; Erin Dinneen, SLMS President 2001; Catherine Marriott, SLMS President 2001; Barbara Nichols Randall, SMART President 2001; Elizabeth Duncan, SMART President 2002; Starr LaTronica, YSS President 2001; Ann Brouse, YSS President 2002; Davis Crippen, NYSALB Representative; Kim Wobick, NMRT Representative 2002; Elizabeth Ridler, RLSP Representative 2001/2002; Mena Sieber, GIRT Representative 2001; Christie Frost-Wendlowsky, Membership Committee Chair; Mary Rinato Berman, Legislative Committee Chair; Jeff Cannell, NYLA Conference Chair; Susan Keitel, NYLA Executive Director; NYLA Staff
Absent: Jim Mancuso, Councilor-at-Large; Mary Jo Ketchum, Councilor-at-Large; Sara Dallas, Councilor-at-Large
President John Hammond called the meeting to order at 2:40 pm.
- Approval of the Agenda
Motion: David Harralson moved to accept the agenda. Mary Lou Caskey seconded the motion.
All in favor, none opposed, no abstentions. Motion carried.
- Fiscal Reports
- Draft 2002 NYLA Budget
Mary A. Brown noted that the impact of the 2001 Conference would have to be evaluated and its impact on the 2002 finances was yet to be seen. In addition, Mary noted that the Capital Campaign progress was great. She offered to answer any questions for Council members and indicated that the 2002 Council would be asked to approve the budget at the October 20th Council Meeting.
- NMRT Recommendation
Kim Wobick, NMRT Representative 2002, reviewed the New Members Roundtable Funding Proposal, which included the NMRT mission, accomplishments and goals. The proposal would transfer $5 from the $25 basic dues of a first time member to the NMRT starting January 2002. Mary A. Brown reported that although the NYLA budget is closely monitored, NMRT is an important part of membership recruitment / retention and they need financial flexibility to meet members' needs.
Motion: Anne Hofmann moved that $5 from the $25 basic dues of each first time NYLA membership will be allocated to NMRT on an annual basis. (The approximate annual impact of this motion is $1,500, which would not find its way into the NYLA general fund.) Mary A. Brown seconded the motion. All in favor, none opposed, no abstentions. Motion carried.
- Motion for Automatic Increases in Conference Registration Rates
Carolyn Giambra indicated that the proposed conference registration rate increase is based on a suggestion from David Harralson earlier in 2001, where conference attendees would see small increases in registration rates every year rather than one large increase every 5 - 10 years.
Motion: David Harralson moved that the NYLA staff may increase conference registration rates annually up to, but not exceeding, 5%, if in the judgment of the Executive Director the increase is necessary to offset increases in the cost of presenting the conference. Increases in registration rates that exceed 5% must be approved by Council. Anne Hofmann seconded the motion.
Richard Panz opposed motion, all others approved, no abstentions. Motion carried.
- Committee Reports
- Membership Committee
Survey Results
Christie Frost-Wendlowsky, NYLA Membership Committee Chair, reported that the membership survey results have been compiled and need to be evaluated by the committee. Christie noted that the surveys were compiled with the assistance of Mary A. Brown and Penny Cowan. One preliminary finding from the survey was that many lapsed members mentioned cost as a factor for not re-joining.
Motion: Richard Panz moved for the NYLA Council to recognize the work of Penny Cowan in compiling the NYLA Membership Survey results and the NYLA Council gives Penny a $25 gift certificate to the NYLA Gift Shop. Maribeth Krupczak seconded the motion.
All in favor, none opposed, no abstentions. Motion carried. Section Membership Reports
ASLS - David Harralson reported that ASLS is making modest membership efforts at this time, but they are making an effort to visit each NYS library school. They are finding that although the student response is good, it is often based on their professors' feelings. NYLA needs to respond to this observation by cultivating the professors.
PLS - Pauline Kehoe reported that PLS worked with the NYLA office to create a breakdown of members to find out what level of employees belong to PLS. They are basing their conference planning on these findings. PLS is also mailing their newsletter to not only PLS members, but all public libraries in New York States and the PLS Board Members are speaking at local Library System Director Associations.
RASS - Suzanne Irving reported that Kim Taney is serving as RASS' membership chair and that they did a membership mailing in March to try to increase the RASS membership by attracting new members.
SLMS - Erin Dinneen reported that membership issues are a current focus of SLMS as their membership numbers are at a low point. SLMS is targeting library school leaders for the SLMS Conference and they are using the library systems to disseminate SLMS information. SLMS is currently between membership chairs.
SMART - Barbara Nichols Randall reported that SMART membership numbers were up and that they are working with a new membership chair. In addition, they generating new members via SMART Board outreach in their respective organizations.
YSS - Starr LaTronica reported that YSS restructured their conference dues to meet the needs of their members and to attract new members.
Institutional Membership Initiatives Update
Christie Frost-Wendlowsky reported that it would be best if Betsy Swyetz reported on the Institutional Membership Initiative.
Motion for Sharing NYLA Mailings with Units
The following policy was created at the request of the NYLA Council at the June Council Meeting.
Motion: Richard Panz moved to accept the following policy for Section and Roundtable use of the NYLA Membership Renewal Mailings. Pauline Kehoe seconded the motion. All in favor, none opposed, no abstentions. Motion carried.
NYLA Policy for Section and Roundtable Use of Membership Renewal Mailings
Membership renewal mailings are valuable opportunities for communicating with NYLA membership. There are two renewal mailings per year: notices are mailed in June for members who renew July 1, and notices are mailed in December for members who renew January 1. Sections and roundtables may use this mailing for their own promotional purposes, as outlined below.
- The NYLA Office reserves the right to use the first ounce of materials for NYLA renewal materials, promotion of NYLA events, notification of policy changes, and other NYLA business.
- Sections and roundtables may include their own promotional materials, as follows:
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Unit costs per mailing. The section or roundtable must cover any postage costs incurred above the USPS one-ounce first class rate per piece. The charge would be calculated as follows:
Additional postage per piece x one-half the number of NYLA members as of January 1 of current year.
Example:
First class postage for one ounce or less is $.34 per piece.
First class postage for up to two ounces is $.57 per piece.
Additional postage per piece is $.23 ($.57 minus $.34).
Number of NYLA members as of January 1 is 2794, divided by 2 is 1397.
Unit would be charged $.23 x 1397 = $321.31 for either the June or December mailing.
If more than one unit chooses to include material in a particular mailing, the expense would be divided evenly between them. No mailing may exceed 2 ounces per piece (a maximum of 5 additional sheets, depending upon weight of paper).
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Unit Responsibilities. The section or roundtable must notify the NYLA office in writing that it wishes to be included in the next mailing, and deliver an example of the material to the NYLA office at least one month before the projected mailing date. Sufficient quantities of the material must arrive at the NYLA office at least two weeks before projected mailing date. All copying, folding and cutting must be done before the material reaches the NYLA office.
- Legislative Committee
Mary Berman, NYLA Legislative Committee Chair, reported that the future is uncertain for library aid because the financial impact of 9-11-01 is unknown. What is known, is that libraries are key in their communities and librarians and library supporters need to make legislative leaders know how important libraries are. Mary also reported that in response to NYLA member needs, the Legislative Committee restructured their two conference programs to focus on the library's role in a crisis and how to lobby in a different environment. The committee is refocusing their effort and the efforts of librarians in New York State to receive scarce aid for libraries.
John Hammond presented a resolution for the NYLA Business Meeting for Council to approve.
Resolution:
The New York Library Association is outraged over the September 11th terrorist attacks on our country. Our sympathy and support go out to all New York libraries and library users affected by the attack. Despite these attacks, libraries continue to be vital community resources: places for accurate, reliable information and safe havens for all New Yorkers.
In the aftermath of September 11th, librarians and library staff have worked hard to help individuals and organizations find up to date information through books, websites, and other library resources; library meeting rooms have been places for community memorials and grief counseling sessions; library programs have provided opportunities for children, teens and adults to get on with their lives; and library computers have allowed users to connect with loved ones via the Internet. Libraries provide daily opportunities for New Yorkers to be normal, while also meeting community needs in the wake of the attack.
The New York Library Association expresses its particular thanks to New York City's library community who work every day to do their jobs, to make a positive difference in the lives of all New Yorkers. NYLA in turn, is thankful for the support our libraries have received from across the country and throughout the world.
Motion: Carolyn Giambra moved to accept the NYLA Membership Meeting Resolution. All in favor, none opposed, no abstentions. Motion carried.
- Conference Update
- Review of Albany Conference - Itineraries and Logistics
Council was informed of the increased security measures in place at the Empire State Plaza Convention Center. All individuals entering the Plaza must be prepared to show identification and all materials and vehicles are subject to a search by the State Police. These new security measures greatly affect vendor move in. In addition, Council was notified that Verizon, the company providing phone service in the Plaza, was unable to provide phone lines and/or dial tone in a timely manner to both NYLA and its vendors. This year, it is crucial that Council act as good ambassadors to the vendors.
Attendance, lower than expected at 900 pre-registered attendees, is fair. However, as Albany is an expensive venue to host a conference, it is hoped that another 100 + people will register for the conference on-site. Vendor registration met and slightly exceeded this year's budgeted goal due to the Exhibit Committee's hard work.
Lastly, Council was informed that many NYLA supporters volunteered to help pack for the conference. However, the Local Arrangements Committee had difficulty attracting enough volunteers to staff Registration, the Gift Shop and the Local Arrangements Booth.
- Revised Conference Refund Policy for 2002
NYLA annually spends several thousand dollars refunding money to attendees of the Association's conference and its Institutes who change their minds and do not attend what they had registered for. At the suggestion of President-Elect Carolyn Giambra, the Association's refund policy is being revised to mirror ALA's policy, and in doing so, to better serve NYLA.
Motion: Pauline Kehoe moved that NYLA would honor requests for refunds that are received by the stated deadline for each event, and will retain only an administrative fee from them. After the deadline has passed, no refunds will be issued. Instead, the total registration amount will be credited toward the conference or the Institutes in the next calendar year only. No credit or refund will be issued for unused funds. If the recipient fails to attend the subsequent event, no refund will be made and no further credit given.
Erin Dinneen seconded the motion.
Council discussion ensued regarding the details and legalities of the policy.
Motion: Pauline Kehoe withdrew the previous refund policy motion and referred it to the Conference Advisory Committee to research with ALA and work out the details.
Erin Dinneen seconded the withdrawal.
- Approval of Minutes - June 5, 2001 and E-mail Votes
Motion: Mary A. Brown moved to accept the June 5, 2001 Council Meeting Minutes with corrections on pages 1, 2 and 7. Richard Panz seconded the motion.
All in favor, none opposed, no abstentions. Motion carried.
Motion: Carolyn Giambra moved to accept the Council Electronic Votes held between June 5th and the present. Erin Dinneen seconded the motion.
All in favor, none opposed, no abstentions. Motion carried.
- Other
- Committee Nominations
Continuing Education
Meg Van Patten, Chair 2004
Leslie Riley 2004
Jean Biggins 2004
Marribeth Advocate 2004
Mary Ann Kean 2004
Rachel Brew 2004
Human Resources / Personnel Administration
Erin O'Grady 2004
Mary Jane Schmidt 2004
Kristin Weltzheimer 2004
Intellectual Freedom
Diane Berry, Chair 2003
Rachel Baum 2004
Therese Feicht 2004
Technical Support Committee
Ellen Rappaport, Chair 2002
Rebekah Tanner 2004
Gail Golderman 2004
Vitality
Betsy Sywetz 2004
Mary Jo Ketchum 2004
Vitality Fund Event
Pat Griffin 2002
Brian Martin 2002
Sandra Eichelberger 2002
Web Site
Diane Bednarski 2004
Jennifer Stelling 2004
David Titus 2004
Motion: Pauline Kehoe moved to accept the above NYLA Committee nominations. Erin Dinneen seconded the motion.
All in favor, none opposed, no abstentions. Motion carried.
- Year End
John Hammond thanked the 2001 NYLA Council for their commitment and work throughout the year.
Motion: Anne Hofmann moved to thank John Hammond for his outstanding service to NYLA this year. Richard Panz seconded the motion.
All in favor, none opposed, no abstentions. Motion carried.
Meeting was adjourned at 3:55 pm.
Approved Agenda
NYLA Joint Council Meeting
Albany, NY
Wednesday, October 17, 2001
2:30 PM - 4:00 PM
Crowne Plaza, Ballroom D
- Approval of the Agenda
- Fiscal Reports
- Draft 2002 NYLA Budget (attachment)
- NMRT Recommendation (attachment)
- Motion for Automatic Increases in Conference Registration Rates (attachment)
- Committee Reports
- Membership Committee
- Survey Results
- Section Membership Reports
- Institutional Membership Initiatives Update
- Motion for Sharing NYLA Mailings with Units (attachment)
- Legislative Committee
- Conference Update
- Review of Albany Conference - Itineraries and Logistics (attachment)
- Revised Conference Refund Policy for 2002 (proposed) (attachment)
- Approval of Minutes - June 5, 2001 and E-Mail Votes (attachment)
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