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Director reports on programs, staffing and new grant bids including adult literacy
Summary
Interim director Beatrice reported on expanded programs, winter reading results, hotspots circulation, staffing recruitments and two grant applications (adult literacy and Empowering Access) that could fund a book bike, Charlie Cart and privacy booths.
Interim Library Director Beatrice briefed trustees on programming, staffing and two grant proposals at the Jan. 22 meeting.
Beatrice said adult services hosted a holiday 'Partners in Chime' concert with more than 70 attendees and that ongoing board-game and Zen-meditation programs continue to attract participants. The children’s winter reading program registered 285 children and recorded 153 completions; staff reported more children reached program levels than last year.
The library has increased circulation of Wi‑Fi hotspots and credited the Fullerton Library Foundation for continuing support of the hotspot program. The director said the full-time library technical assistant position has entered first-round interviews and the 30-hour clerical assistant recruitment closed this week; once hired, staff anticipate reopening the passport office and extending its hours.
Beatrice said the library submitted an application for an adult literacy program to be delivered by trained volunteers (one-on-one or small groups) and another application for the Empowering Access grant, which could provide items such as a book bike, a Charlie Cart for pop-up nutrition programs and privacy booths to support patron services. She said the Empowering Access grant is administered by the Southern California Library Cooperative on behalf of the California State Library.
Trustees and staff discussed bilingual and multilingual collections, cataloging challenges for languages not represented on staff and the ability to promote digital resources such as Overdrive and Libby. Staff noted Overdrive magazines were used in 17 languages last year and suggested partnerships with universities and other county libraries to vet and source non-English content.
The director also announced the state’s "Every Story Counts" one-day snapshot and survey, available in English, Spanish, Korean and simplified Chinese, to collect usage data the state library will compile for statewide reporting and grant support.
Trustees asked staff to research multilingual promotion strategies, potential staff skill needs, and to return with options for expanding bilingual collections. Beatrice said she would provide updates as grant application outcomes are known.
