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Board discusses structure and outreach for new library strategic plan
Summary
The Guthrie Library Advisory Board reviewed a proposed timeline and outreach approach for a new strategic plan, agreed to virtual committee meetings, and discussed using a Google Form to collect community input.
Board members and staff discussed next steps in developing a new strategic plan for the Guthrie Library, following staff remarks that the library’s current plan filed with the state is out of date.
Ken, the library director, said libraries of Guthrie’s size are required to maintain a strategic plan (staff did not cite a specific statute) and that the library followed American Library Association guidance in designing the process. He said the staff has identified about two dozen community stakeholders to invite to a planning committee and proposed conducting the committee’s work virtually to accommodate schedules.
Staff distributed a worksheet recommended by ALA guidance and described two options for gathering input from the invited stakeholders: (1) a structured worksheet filled during a five-hour facilitated session, or (2) an open-ended questionnaire about community needs. Board members suggested using a Google Form to simplify collection and automatic compilation of responses.
Board members asked whether advisory board members would be on the planning committee; staff said the board would primarily receive the committee’s results but that officers and other board members could opt into email updates and receive the committee materials. The board agreed that community representatives should be included and that the committee should reflect varied connections (parents, business leaders, nonprofit representatives) so the plan captures broad community priorities.
No formal action or vote on the strategic plan approach was recorded; the board moved from the director’s report into the strategic plan discussion and concluded that staff should proceed with outreach and use an online form to collect initial input.
