East Central Reporter

Robinson Public Library District Board of Trustees met March 18.

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

Board members present: Craig Beals, Todd Liston, Rhonda Moade, Debbie Scott and Debbie Walls

Board members absent: Guy Rumler and Michael Garrard

Total board members present: 5

Library staff present: Doug Roberts, Director; Janice Shick, Bookkeeper; Mindi Williamson, Children’s Librarian

Library staff absent: None Guests present: None Public Present: None

Meeting called to order at 5:23 p.m.

Action Items:

Approved to accept the February 18, 2025 board meeting minutes as written, with no changes. A roll call of five approved.

Approved the February Check Register results as presented by bookkeeper, Janice Shick. A roll call of five approved. Board was also provided with a brief review of the month/year- to-date balance sheet results and the aged payables report.

Reviewed the submitted lawn care bids for the summer of 2025 and approved JOAT Services as the company to provide mowing, trimming, fertilizer and weed control services. A roll call of five approved.

Approved the quotation provided by Innovative Office Solutions for new furniture to be installed in the administration office of the Robinson Public Library.  A roll call of five approved.

Approved the estimate from Droste Concrete to do power washing and sealing work at the beginning of FY26 on all the aggregate and brick surfaces of the Robinson building.  A roll call of five approved.

Approved Doug Roberts and Mindi Williamson as election officers for the April 1, 2025 Consolidated election.  A roll call of five approved.

Approved Doug Roberts and Mindi Williamson as Freedom of Information (FOIA) Officers for FY26.  A roll call of five approved.

Reviewed closed session minutes in accordance with 5 ILCS 120/2.06(d).  Roll call of five approved the motion to keep the minutes closed.

Discussion Items:

President’s report highlighted the following:

No report but did mention a recently had conversation regarding a possible STEM partnership between the library and the newly founded Boys and Girls Club of Robinson.  Director Roberts will follow up.

Board reviewed Director’s report which highlighted the following:

The district held its first community STEM event, entitled A Passport To Build, on Saturday, March 15 at the Robinson facility.  The workshop, in partnership with the University of Illinois Extension office, is the first in a series of four workshops that will be held across the district over the months of March and April.  We only had six attendees (out of 24 signed up) but believe that inclement weather may have been a factor.  The next event is scheduled for Saturday, March 29 at the Oblong Community Center.

RFID gates were installed on Tuesday, February 25.  Limited staff training conducted by the EnvisionWare tech on Wednesday, February 26.  The remainder of the training will be on-the-job, staff-to-staff training.

Janice, Mindi and Doug took part in CPR/AED training on Friday, February 28.  The training was conducted by a representative from Cintas, which is the company that we lease our AED from.

We are having the carpet installed in Janice and Mindi’s office on Thursday, March 20.  Patching and painting of walls will occur the week of March 24.  This is in anticipation of a proposed mid-April installation date of new desks and cabinets.

The Director also mentioned a preliminary quote to re-concrete the parking spaces east of the sidewalk.  A follow-up discussion and potential vote may occur at a future meeting.

Registered Miranda Waddell and Christine Cornwell to attend this year’s Reaching Forward South Conference in Effingham on Friday, April 4.

Jordon has made some nice headway in the clean-up, reorganization and research efforts in the basement.  There are definitely some magazines and older books that we would like to somehow display on the main floor.  We are currently entertaining a variety of options with a focus on having something in place ahead of the building’s targeted 50th anniversary celebration in the summer of 2026.  Additionally, we are looking at how best display the printed DVD summary cards and checkout cards now that we have our entire collection tagged with RFID reader chips.   Those cards are currently situated in a waist-high table at the beginning of the adult reading section.

Shared a document received just before the meeting related to the recent Presidential Executive Order that addresses the potential downsizing of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), which is the organization responsible for administering crucial grants to state and local libraries.

Board heard the Children’s Librarian report:

The Robinson Library had a Secret Agent Spy night on Tuesday, February 25th.  There were 39 kids and 25 adults that attended.  Participants were able to complete their training by learning about disguises (costumes), target practice (corn hole), and code breaking.  Each spy also received a special code name.

Summer reading kickoff events plus Washington Grade School Fun Day is just around the corner with this year’s summer reading beginning the first week in June.

Debbie  Scott summarized  upcoming events – including the date for the next board meeting on April 15 and the community shred event on March 21.  She then made a motion to adjourn. All were in favor. Meeting adjourned at 6:31 p.m.

https://robinsonpubliclibrary.com/about-us/board-of-trustees/minutes/