Executive Board Meeting Summary - September 2006 By Gregory Pronevitz

NMRLS Executive Board took the following actions at its September 21st meeting:

Appointed Executive Board Member to Replace Outgoing Member - Anne Spraker (Masconomet High School) was appointed to fill a school library position vacated by Debbie Froggatt (formerly of Danvers Elementary Schools). This appointment will conclude at the Annual Meeting, at which time Anne will be elected to her own two-year term.

FY 2007 Budget Revision, #1 - The Board approved a revision to the budget for FY 2007 (current year). The total budget increased by $88,979 (5.74 percent) from $1,550,802 to $1,639,782 with the FY 2007 state budget upon recommendation of the Budget Committee.

• Delivery contract costs are budgeted to allow for growth. While the budgeted level is not likely to be reached immediately and this entire budget amount may not be called for this year, we cannot be sure because delivery volume is not in NMRLS' control.
• Database licensing is budgeted to allow for level services.
• The mediated ILL budget has been increased to eliminate the need for members to cover shipping costs to return ILL items outside Massachusetts that was implemented after the 2003 budget cuts.
• Continuing Education training costs are increased to address needs in the strategic area of marketing.
• MassCat funding has been increased to meet increased contract costs.

FY2008 Budget The Board approved a budget for fiscal year 2008 that is based on the total for the current fiscal year upon recommendation of the Budget Committee.

• Delivery contract costs are budgeted to allow for growth. As in FY2007, the budgeted level is not likely to be reached at the beginning of the year and this entire budget amount may not be called for, we cannot be sure, however, because delivery volume is not in NMRLS' control.
• Database licensing has been reduced to cover anticipated delivery costs. If delivery costs do rise as budgeted and online collections remain as is, the most likely cut will be to eLibrary. However, a new state procurement is in progress and the results may require revisiting this decision.
• The budget for the Regional Reference Center at Memorial Hall Library has been reduced to the minimum funding required by regulations.
• Funding for additional hours at the Lawrence Law Library was not restored.

Slate of Candidates for Election at the Annual Meeting - The Board approved the following slate for 2007:

BOLDED rows are for Election at the Annual Meeting

Affiliation Type	Member	Library	City	Position	Term
Special	Donna Beales	Lowell General Hospital	Lowell	VP/President-elect	11/20091 2nd term
Lay Representative	Phil Conte	n/a	Carlisle	Board Member	11/2008 1st  term
Academic	Nancy George	Salem State College	Salem	President/Past President	11/20082
Public	Diane Giarrusso	Boxford Town Libraries	Boxford	Secretary	11/2007 1st term
School	Maureen Hardin	Amesbury Middle School	Amesbury	Board Member	11/20083 1st term
Public	Becky Herrmann	Chelmsford Public Library	Chelmsford	Board Member	11/2007
Public	Sue Ellen Holmes	Stevens Memorial Library	North Andover	Treasurer	11/2007
Academic	Linda Hummel-Shea	Northern Essex Community College	Haverhill	Board Member	11/2008 1st  term
Public	Jeffrey Klapes	Lucius Beebe Memorial Library	Wakefield	Board Member	11/2008
Public	Mary Rose Quinn	Saugus Public Library	Saugus	Board Member	11/2007 1st term
School	Anne Spraker	Masconomet Regional High School	Topsfield	Board Member	11/20084 1st term
Special	Ann Tomes	Beverly Hospital	Beverly	Board Member	11/2007 3rd term

1) Donna Beales - 3 year term; VP/President-elect until May 2007; President, June 2007 - November 2008; Past President until Nov. 2009. (This is a change in the usual rotation as a result of Debbie Froggatt's resignation from the Board.)
2) Nancy George - President until May 2007; Past President from June 2007 - November 2008. (This is a change in the usual rotation as a result of Debbie Froggatt's resignation from the Board. One year as Past President added)
3) Maureen Hardin, 2-year term, Nov. 2006 - Nov. 2008 (first term of her own, filled in one year for Giselle Stevens.)
4) Anne Spraker, 2-year term, Nov. 2006 - Nov. 2008, (first term of her own, filled in two months for Debbie Froggatt.)

Personnel Committee Recommendations - The Board reviewed and approved new policies on a new merit salary adjustment policy, salary ranges, a revised evaluation form, a new organization chart, and position descriptions for NMRLS staff.

Digital Commonwealth Membership - The Board approved NMRLS Group Sponsoring Membership in the statewide digital library, the Digital Commonwealth. (See http://www.nmrls.org/news/oct06/dc.shtml)

Discussion Items:

Program and Services Recommendations

The Regional Administrator reviewed recommendations for restructuring and prioritizing services based on the 2006 Member Survey. At the June Executive Board meeting we discussed budgeting contingencies in the event that delivery costs increased significantly. This document is, in part, a follow up to that discussion. It also includes more, general recommendations based on the survey.

• Printed Newsletter -- Eliminate immediately in favor of downloadable, printable version. The Board was in favor of this recommendation and it will be implemented.
• eLibrary -- Eliminate in favor of other essential services to support delivery if necessary
• Supplementary Deposit Collection -- Continue supplementary deposit collection services; eliminate grants to small libraries if costs for essential services necessitate cost savings
• Regional Reference Center Services - A subcommittee of the Reference Committee has begun to discuss this in terms of cost, usefulness, and importance. The Board would like to form a Committee to continue to review this funding. This will be on the October Board Agenda.
• Scan Lab Facilities -- Sell the Minolta large format scanner and retain the desk-top scanner for small jobs and training purposes
• Custom Database Pages -- Streamline and simplify
• MassCat Shared Catalog -- Participate in state-wide analysis and planning with other regions
• Informe - Continue license and investigate options to improve services to diverse communities
• NMRLS Professional Collection - Continue professional collection and increase promotion
• Northeast Mass. Digital Library and Digital Library Consulting- Continue digital library and consulting and investigate cost sharing models

Upcoming Meeting:

Thursday, October 19, 2006 -- Stevens Memorial Library, North Andover -- 2:30 - 4:30 PM