The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About2021-04-28; Library Board of Trustees; ; Library Reports for March 2021ITEM #5 Meeting Date: April 28, 2021 To: Library Board of Trustees From: Sheila Crosby, Deputy Library Director Katie Nye, Deputy Library Director Staff Contact: Sheila Crosby, sheila.crosby@carlsbadca.gov Katie Nye, katie.nye@carlsbadca.gov Subject: Library Reports for March 2021 District: All Recommended Action Receive reports. No action needed. Executive Summary/Discussion The board will review the monthly library narrative and statistical reports for March 2021. These reports provide a summary of work completed across all Carlsbad City Library divisions and locations as well as services and programs presented for the community. Next Steps None. Fiscal Analysis None. Public Notification Public notice of this item was posted in keeping with the Ralph M. Brown Act and was available for public viewing and review at least 72 hours before the scheduled meeting date. Exhibits • Narrative report for March 2021 • Statistical report for March 2021 Page 5 of 11 LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES ITEM #5 Monthly Library Report March 2021 Programs: • A Seed Distribution Program was launched in partnership with Carlsbad Community Gardens in November 2020. In March, Lead Librarian Darin Williamson, Community Outreach Supervisor Mayra Turchiano and Library Assistants Christina Lorenzo and Sheri Hanlon completed a second session of seed distribution, delivering sunflower and butternut squash seed packets to a total of 1,047 community members via curbside delivery, local elementary schools and mail. Staff plan to continue partnering with the Carlsbad Community Gardens on future seed distributions and gardening events. • Virtual Tween Scene, a weekly cultural literacy and games program for grades 4-6, offered virtual programs with a STEAM focus through the month of March. Most notably, on March 8, Library Assistant Brandon Tiongison introduced 21 tweens to surrealist art. He challenged attendees to find three random objects at home to put together. • The DNA Interest Group, a long-standing Genealogy program, met virtually on March 20 with featured speaker Jan-Evert Blom, the developer of several revolutionary tools to automatically organize DNA matches. Genetic genealogy remains popular with 92 community members attending the DNA Interest Group event. Projects: • The website user acceptance testing team took on a very different role in March by providing web design support to meet city deadlines for the new website project. Initially formed to test the website, the team built and/or edited 77 library and arts webpages as part of the first phase of the new city website. • The March 31 due date for community members to return library items came and went. A lot of behind-the-scenes labor went into notifying patrons about the upcoming date and yielded great results; in the week leading up to March 31 returns almost tripled. Page 6 of 11 Accomplishments: • Before the pandemic hit in March of 2020, librarians Maile McKeon, Madelyn Horton, Ashleigh Hvinden and Lead Librarian Andrea Hilliard, started participating in a California State Library project called Embedding Evaluation in Public Libraries. Staff received training on embedding evaluation into program planning and met other members of the cohort for their nine-month mentoring program. In March 2021, they co-presented a webinar on their year-long project. The 60-minute webinar, entitled “Evaluation: The Key to Maximizing the Success of Library Programs,” drew an audience of 200 librarians and information professionals from around the country. • Community Outreach Supervisor Mayra Turchiano and Library Assistant Angelica Mejia served on the planning committee for the Seguimos Creando Enlaces conference, securing over $40,000 in California State Library grant funding for language accessibility needs, website development and the transition to a virtual event space. Seventeen Carlsbad City Library staff members attended the free virtual conference on March 25 and 26. This bilingual conference brings together librarians from the US, Mexico and across the world to further their professional knowledge and exchange ideas. Over 750 library professionals participated in the conference, resulting in a 172% participation growth from the last time the conference was held. This year's theme "Civic Engagement in Action" highlighted the essential roles public libraries play in strengthening civic connections and advancing civic engagement in the communities they serve, and as go-to resources for building a culture of informed, engaged and empowered residents. Highlights: • We reached 200,000 items checked out systemwide via curbside on March 30! Staff continue to receive praise from community members with comments such as: Although at this moment, I don’t know your names, I send these brief, heartfelt words of gratitude and admiration for your gratitude [sic] for your quiet, behind the scenes devotion during this challenging season of our lives, books - and the people who make them available to me - are points of respite and engagement. Thank you for the brilliant process you and staff devised and so successfully execute for “curbside” book pick up. It’s a true delight and so very uplifting to be able to continue the joy of reading. Your parking lot staff is so courteous and faithful to their mission, and I know that your “inside” people are similarly mindful of their purpose. Please extend my thanks to everyone. Page 7 of 11 Other: • Theodor Seuss Geisel’s publisher announced that six of his Dr. Seuss titles will cease to be published because, “These books portray people in ways that are hurtful and wrong,” Dr. Seuss Enterprises said in the statement. The library will retain the titles in the children’s collection as there is still interest from the community. Our collection development policy upholds the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights and Freedom to Read statements. • Construction of temporary Fire Station #2 in the north parking lot is near completion and includes two trailers, a temporary fire apparatus garage and upgrades to the library’s parking lot. It is anticipated that the firefighter staff will move in mid-May and operate from this location until Fall 2022 when the new Fire Station #2 construction is complete. • As of March 22, quarantine of returned items was reduced from seven to four days, based on guidance from Online Computer Library Center’s (OCLC) REALM project (REopening Archives, Libraries, and Museums). The study reports research but does not make recommendations. As more information about the COVID-19 virus and transmission becomes available, libraries nationwide are reducing quarantine time to make items available sooner while also preserving patron’s safety. Page 8 of 11 New Online Library Accounts eBooks/eAudiobooks •233 New Users • 16,781 Downloads •299 Added titles & extra copies • 65 Project Gutenberg titles downloaded CARLSBAD CITY LIBRARY 461 in March ‘21 5,577 April ’20 to Mar ‘21 Curbside Service – Launched June 1, 2020 Service March ‘21 June ’20 to Mar ‘21 Holds Placed 25,512 240,849 Items Checked Out 23,115 201,569*1 Items Returned 30,146 225,242 12,688*1 22,065*120,583 21,892 21,546 18,576 19,964 21,300 19,840 23,11519,402 23,830 19,381 23,708 21,932 21,770 25,082 20,674 19,317 30,146 0 5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000 25,000 30,000 35,000 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20 Jan-21 Feb-21 Mar-21 Items Checked Out vs. Items Returned Items Checked Out Items Returned March 2021 Library Website Library@Home 393 Visits in March Biblioteca en Casa Digital services Adult eBookrecommendations Children’s eBookrecommendations Youth resources 42,378 Webpage Views In March Virtual Programs •Storytimes •Author Talks •Book Clubs •School Outreach •Workshops 30 Programs Presented in March Homebound Service 28 Items delivered to 6 Patrons in March In-Person Services Limited to 25% Occupancy 340 Computer Sessions 187 Account Services Transactions in March ITEM #5 *1 = June, July Items checked out # adjusted/report correction Page 9 of 11 •