August 19, 2013 Meeting of Administrative Council

1.  Introduction of Committee to John Wilkin

John Wilkin, chair; Melody Allison, Jenny Johnson, Mary Laskowski, Beth Sandore Namachchivaya, Chris Quinn, Lisa Romero, Mary Schlembach, Tom Teper, Cherié Weible, Sandy Wolf; Recording-Kim Matherly

Introduction of Committee to John

John asked the committee what had been useful about having the meetings. The members felt the most important part was the communication from the divisions to the committee and from the committee back to the divisions.

John asked what kinds of things were communicated in the committee. The committee recommends policy that effects operations. It is intended to insure that the Library is operated in a smooth and cohesive way.

At one time, before email was so prevalent, it was the best way to communicate with members in the divisions. Now a lot of information is sent out through email and there aren’t as many issues to discuss. Even though the committee doesn’t need to meet as often, there are issues that come up that are best discussed in person.

It’s also a mechanism for others to come and share information and get feedback. For instance, AC is often visited by IT. Cindy Kelly comes periodically to discuss changes in HR policies and procedures that need to be implemented Library wide.

It’s also a place for planning when things affect the whole Library, like union strikes, inclement weather, or things like H1N1 flu virus.

John asked what things the members would like to see discussed in the meetings. Policies need to be looked at overall and updated and then placed on the intranet where they can be found.

The committee would like Bill Maher invited to a meeting to discuss records retention policy and procedures.

The committee would like Jeff Schrader invited to talk about Library security, the recent changes that have been made, and what that means for the Library; and facilities improvements that have been done in main, UGL and other libraries in conjunction with NSM. Are there things that need to be done in units that have not been consolidated to refresh them? AC would also like to talk to Jeff about an advisory group that could take suggestions from libraries regarding what things they need, like signage or aesthetics, and prioritize them. Maybe find a way to make the building spaces more cohesive instead of looking like individual spaces. This group may also be able to report out to the Library the reasons that things are being done the way they are and what the long-term plan is.

The committee would also like to invite Cindy Kelly to a meeting to talk about staffing in general and new rules for hourly hires.