January 2023 NPL Board Packet

Board of Trustees Meeting January 17, 2023

Nashville Public Library Board of Trustees Agenda

January 17, 2023

Main Library 615 Church Street Nashville, TN 37221 12:00 noon

I. Call to Order / Roll Call

II. Metro Ordinance required to be announced at all Board Meetings – Chair, Joyce Searcy

a. “Pursuant to the provisions of § 2.68.030 of the Metropolitan Code of Laws, please take notice that decisions of the Nashville Public Library Board may be appealed to the Chancery Court of Davidson County for review under a common law writ of certiorari. Any appeal must be filed within sixty days after entry of a final decision by the Board. Any person or other entity considering an appeal should consult with an attorney to ensure that time and procedural requirements are met.”

III. Board Chair Comments, Joyce Searcy, Chair

IV. Approval of Minutes: December 13, 2022, and January 3, 2023

V. Interim Library Director Report, Terri Luke

VI. Foundation Report, Shawn Bakker

VII. Staff Report

a. Library of Things, Noel Rutherford

VIII. Old Business

a. Review Library Director Job Description, Joyce Searcy and Sherry Adams

IX. Adjournment

Next Scheduled Board of Trustees Meeting February 21, 2023

Green Hills Branch Library 3701 Benham Ave Nashville, TN 37215

Meeting Minutes – January 17th, 2022

Nashville Public Library Board of Trustees Agenda December 13, 2022 Main Library 615 Church Street, Nashville, TN 37219 12:00pm

I. Call to Order / Roll Call

a. Ms. Searcy called the meeting to order at 12:02pm

II. Metro Ordinance required to be announced at all Board Meetings – Chair, Joyce Searcy

a. “Pursuant to the provisions of § 2.68.030 of the Metropolitan Code of Laws, please take notice that decisions of the Nashville Public Library Board may be appealed to the Chancery Court of Davidson County for review under a common law writ of certiorari. Any appeal must be filed within sixty days after entry of a final decision by the Board. Any person or other entity considering an appeal should consult with an attorney to ensure that time and procedural requirements are met.”

III. Board Chair Comments, Joyce Searcy, Chair

a. Ms. Searcy thanked those who compile the board packets. She knows it takes a tremendous amount of work to make them happen each month and is appreciative of the reports and data that go into them.

b. Ms. Searcy chose three people to serve on the panel to select the search firm for the new director of NPL. Andrea Blackman, Chief Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer for the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Don Holmes, Chair of the Foundation Board, and Ms. Searcy. They have had two meetings thus far. The first meeting was to review the rules. The second meeting went over proposals that were eligible for review. Each person gave scores and comments for each proposal. The process is not complete, and another meeting is scheduled this Thursday. Katy Varney asked how many proposals were sent in and Susan Drye answered three firms were qualified to send in proposals. Ms. Varney asked if there was a timeline for a decision. Ms. Searcy responded that she hoped before Christmas and Ms. Drye stated hopefully by the first of the year, but that may not be guaranteed. Charvis Rand reiterated that he would rather time be taken to get a quality search firm. Mr. Simmons asked what role the Board has in deciding the next director. Ms. Drye

stated that she is unsure. Due to a confidentiality agreement, there is not much that Ms. Drye and Ms. Searcy can say at this time.

c. Derrick Smith stated that the Board chooses the “Chief Librarian” and sets the salary. Ms. Searcy asked if it would be beneficial for someone in HR to attend a meeting to answer questions. Robert Oermann and Ms. Varney both stated that they understand the rules, but Ms. Varney would like to know at what point the Board will be brought forth to make any decisions or input into the process. Mr. Smith recommended the Board read the solicitation which is a public document. Ms. Drye will send the solicitation to the Board.

d. In trying to stay confidential, Ms. Searcy stated that because methodology is part of the proposals from the firms, this might influence the score of the individual firms.

e. Per Ms. Drye, once the search firm has been chosen by the evaluation committee, that committee will be dissolved.

f. Sherry Adams recommended reviewing the job description again for the Library Director position to make sure everything is included that the Board would like, or to make any adjustments before needing to bring it to Civil Service in the second week of January. A special Board meeting would need to happen.

IV. Approval of Minutes

a. Charvis Rand moved to approve the October 20, 2022, minutes. Robert Oermann seconded. Board approved the minutes unanimously.

V. Interim Library Director Report, Terri Luke

a. The NPL Admin team set aside two meetings this month dedicated to next year’s operating budget. Each member of the team discussed their budget requests and why they thought it was important. At the end of the second meeting, the team will vote as a group. Currently, the new Donelson project is ahead of schedule. In anticipation of that, NPL will need to increase the number of full-time employees from six to 17, so this will be a priority in the next budget. Some positions will be upgraded, but many will be new. The estimated opening date for the new Donelson is Spring 2024, which is why it is part of next fiscal year’s budget.

b. An email about the Metro budget equity tool was received last week. Time will be set aside for Admin to review and discuss. Questions have been refined, including departmental programs and practices, DEI efforts with staff, and outreach and

accessibility. Metro is asking that answers include data and have given NPL tools to use.

c. On December 15, Terri Luke will meet with Andrea Blackman and Razel Jones to discuss next steps for DEI and NPL.

d. This is Megan Phouthavong Evans’ last day at Main, and to take Board Meeting Minutes. She has taken a new position at the Bellevue Branch Library, and the new Office Support Specialists will be working to allocate tasks until the position is refilled. Lana Boleyjack has graciously offered to take future board minutes.

e. Ms. Luke stated that as 2022 ends, she would like to thank each board member for their dedication and service. Mr. Rand also expressed his appreciation to the admin team for how well they have led the library since the departure of Mr. Oliver.

f. Ms. Searcy asked, “How do the staff vacancies weigh on the development on a new budget?” Sherry Adams stated that in the past it has not weighed on the request for new budgets, however there may be indications that it will weigh on next fiscal year’s requests. Ms. Luke clarified that at last year’s Council meeting, discussion around vacancies did come up, so it could again. Metro across the board has had a large number of vacancies, and each department has to wait for approval from Central HR to open positions for hiring. Some of the delay in hiring is simply waiting on that approval.

VI. Foundation Report, Shawn Bakker

a. Ms. Bakker stated that the Gala was a huge success. The Foundation also met their net goal of $500,000. These are unrestricted dollars which will help support the library in less limiting ways. The Gala was much more diverse in terms of race and age. It is not where they want to be, but moving in a positive, inclusive direction. 2023 Gala is already being planned and the author has already been selected, as well as the cochairs.

b. The Carnegie Society is another opportunity for raising unrestricted dollars. It costs $1,500 a year to become a member. There will be a Book Club in the Spring as a benefit for Carnegie Society members. This is an opportunity for the Board to circulate to peers, friends, and family about supporting the library. The book will be Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell. It will be at the Main Library on April 23rd. NPLF will partner with Nashville Shakespeare Festival and Eddie George.

i. Ms. Searcy asked if Carnegie members could allow others to attend events such as Book Club in their place if they cannot make it. Ms. Bakker stated that although there isn’t a rule stating yes or no, she would be happy to entertain it, in hopes that they would have a great experience and want to join themselves.

VII. Staff Report

a. Marketer of the Year Award, Andrea Fanta

i. Ms. Fanta introduced the Marketing and Communication Team - Ed Brown, Allison Price, Kathryn Gillen, and Eddie Patton. She praised their skills and thanked them for their hard work. They put the library first and it shows in what they do.

ii. Ms. Searcy thanked the team for how fabulous the website is, the reach MarCom has, and Ms. Varney extended the thank you to Ms. Fanta as well.

iii. Ms. Luke mentioned that this award from Library Journal has only been given seven times, so it is a huge honor. She also mentioned that along with the award, $2,000 was given and is now part of the Foundation Budget for diversity and inclusion work.

b. Foundation Budget Process for FY23, Shawn Bakker

i. NPLF is adjusting the budget process in the coming years. Up until this point, NPLF has had a similar budget every year. The landscape is changing faster now, so they are trying to find the best ways to accommodate. The Special Collections department is working on a cohesive strategic plan for their work. This will allow that team to work in a unified way instead of separate entities. With this change, NPLF did lose some funding from traditional funders such as Nissan.

ii. Because programs are evolving and changing, the way we fund them needs to change.

c. Library Courtyard Repair, Susan Drye

i. At the end of Fiscal year ‘21, there was reported to be a water leak into the garage from the courtyard. Then, in fiscal year ‘22, the Main Library received almost 5 million dollars in funding and set aside 1.7 million to fix the courtyard. In February 2022, Main contracted with Logan Peachtree

Engineering to figure out next steps. In March 2022, Ms. Drye and Dan Padilla met with Mr. Peachtree and walked the courtyard and the garage. Mr. Peachtree wanted to consult with other professionals, so in August 2022, Nashville Roof Consultants came to do another walkthrough of the same areas. Ms. Drye received a report in September 2022 stating that there was a need to expose some of the waterproofing to see how it was made. They came back, inspected, and it was suggested to dig up all the trees and remove them. It was also suggested not to fix the fountain because whatever work is done on the courtyard could disrupt the fountain. Mr. Peachtree is supposed to get NPL a report for a scope of work so that NPL can move forward. NPL has been waiting on this report since October 2022. It is likely that 1.7 million dollars will not cover everything the courtyard needs, so the Main Library is holding the full 5 million dollars that was given to cover the project, while unfortunately, putting other projects on hold.

ii. It is anticipated to be an arduous, time-consuming process. It could be six months, but it also could be a year. A crane will be used to come over the top of the building. Ms. Drye is hoping to work with Metro Arts commission to create some public art to provide shade and keep the feel of the current landscape without actual trees.

VIII. New Business

a. Recognition for Brian Hull, Katy Varney

i. As a 15-year-old, Tom Tichenor gave his first puppet show at NPL. This career spanned over 40 years. He was so prolific that in 1949 Walt Disney came on Tom’s show. Tichenor was on Broadway, authored 6 books, and had a remarkable career. When he retired, his puppets went to Donelson and sat in the basement for almost a decade. When Donna Nicely was chosen as NPL’s director, she discovered the puppets, and brought the puppets back to life through Wishing Chair Productions. She hired Brian Hull in 1997 and he worked for NPL until he retired this year. Now, NPL has over 1,000 puppets, 6 full time puppeteers, 40 original productions, and as many as 70,000 kids and parents per year come to the Main Library to see the puppet shows. The Puppet Truck also has 50,000 viewers all over the city.

ii. Katy Varney would like to honor the career of Brian Hull. First, she would like to dedicate a portion of the case outside the theater in the Children’s Department at the Main Library to both Tichenor and Hull as a permanent exhibit. Second, she would like to recognize Brian Hull on the Wishing Chair page of the NPL website.

iii. Mr. Simmons motioned to approve Ms. Varney’s recognitions to Brian Hull. Mr. Oermann seconded. Board approved the motion unanimously.

IX. Adjournment

a. The meeting was adjourned at 1:31pm Next Scheduled Board of Trustees Meeting 12:00 noon – January 17, 2022 Main Library 615 Church Street Nashville TN

Nashville Public Library Board of Trustees Agenda

Special Meeting January 3, 2023 Main Library 615 Church Street, Nashville, TN 37219 2:00pm

I. Call to Order / Roll Call

II. Metro Ordinance required to be announced at all Board Meetings – Chair, Joyce Searcy

a. “Pursuant to the provisions of § 2.68.030 of the Metropolitan Code of Laws, please take notice that decisions of the Nashville Public Library Board may be appealed to the Chancery Court of Davidson County for review under a common law writ of certiorari. Any appeal must be filed within sixty days after entry of a final decision by the Board. Any person or other entity considering an appeal should consult with an attorney to ensure that time and procedural requirements are met.”

III. Library Director Job Description; Review and Approval, Joyce Searcy and Sherry Adams

IV. Adjournment

Next Scheduled Board of Trustees Meeting 12:00 noon – January 17, 2023 Main Library 615 Church Street Nashville TN 37209

Nashville Public Library Board of Trustees Minutes Special Meeting January 3, 2023 Main Library 615 Church Street, Nashville, TN 37219 2:00pm

Members Present: Joyce Searcy, Robert Oermann, Charvis Rand, Keith Simmons, Kate Ezell, and Katy Varney

Library Staff: Terri Luke, Sherry Adams, Lee Boulie, Jenna Schmid, Libby Cain, Andrea Fanta, Susan Drye, Lana Boleyjack

Others: Derrick Smith, Assistant Metropolitan Attorney at Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County

I. Call to Order / Roll Call

a. Ms. Joyce Searcy called the meeting to order at 2:03 PM

II. Metro Ordinance required to be announced at all Board Meetings – Chair, Joyce Searcy

a. “Pursuant to the provisions of § 2.68.030 of the Metropolitan Code of Laws, please take notice that decisions of the Nashville Public Library Board may be appealed to the Chancery Court of Davidson County for review under a common law writ of certiorari. Any appeal must be filed within sixty days after entry of a final decision by the Board. Any person or other entity considering an appeal should consult with an attorney to ensure that time and procedural requirements are met.”

III. Library Director Job Description; Review and Approval, Joyce Searcy and Sherry Adams

a. Ms. Sherry Adams explained that job descriptions are generalizations of the key job summary, key aspects of the job duties, and the education and experience requirements. Ms. Adams recommended breaking the discussion into sections, pertaining to the Job Objective, Employment Standards, and Education and Experience.

b. Ms. Kate Ezell asked when The Library Board would have an opportunity to communicate with the search firm to discuss enhancing the baseline job description. In response, Ms. Adams explained that once the selection of the search firm is confirmed, the description of what the ideal candidate will look like would be established and presented to said firm, to ensure attracting the desired candidate.

c. Ms. Katy Varney wondered, once the search firm was retained, would The Library Board have the right to change larger aspects of the job description. Ms. Adams stated that The Library Board would not change the larger aspects of the job description, but rather, would describe what they would want to see in a candidate and the search firm would make sure those desires were implicated.

d. Ms. Searcy asked for explanation regarding the timeline and the necessity to approve the job description. Ms. Searcy previously assumed that The Foundation would also be involved in the discussion of approving the current job description but expressed concern that this would prevent The Library Board from meeting the deadline. Ms. Adams stated that Civil Service Commission meets ever 2nd Tuesday of the month. The purpose of the special meeting was to meet the January deadline for approving the job description. Ms. Adams goes on to say that if Ms. Searcy and The Library Board would like to include others in this process, the deadline for January will not be met, and the job posting would be delayed because the job description would have to be approved and submitted to the search firm before the job could be posted.

e. Ms. Susan Drye clarified the difference between the job posting and the job description. The job posting would be more detailed, and the job description which was being discussed at the special meeting would be a minimum description following basic Metro Charter Guidelines. Ms. Adams added that the job description is broad in nature, as a reminder to the parties present.

f. Mr. Keith Simmons stated the Job Objective was written as if the candidate were performing administrative and managerial duties, but the Library Director would be leading those who are performing those duties, and this clarification does not come through in the objective portion of the job description. Mr. Simmons went on to say that the Major Job Responsibilities and the Library Director Evaluation Document do not align, and The Library Board could not evaluate a candidate based on those criteria when the job description being discussed has entirely different criteria. Mr. Simmons requested the job description be completely redrafted and modernized. Mr. Derrick Smith mentioned that the Metro Charter required certain objectives, specifically that all Metro Directors are required to submit reports to the Mayor’s Office. Mr. Smith wanted to clarify that amendments made to the job description must be governed by the Metro Charter. Mr. Simmons reiterated that the job description and evaluation

form did not match each other and suggested rewriting the job description to be consistent with the Director evaluation document.

g. Ms. Adams stated the job description was more consistent with the general descriptions for director positions across Metro Nashville, rather than the Director evaluation document; However, recommendations for changes were welcome, and would need to be sent to Ms. Adams for implementation.

h. Ms. Adams added that the Library Leadership Team has investigated revising the Education and Experience portion of the job description, considering many higher learning institutions no longer categorize the School of Library Science independently (many schools now label their Library Science degree under Information Studies or Information Science (MLIS, MSIS, etc.). Central Human Resources recommended revising the job description to encompass all Master of Library Science programs.

i. Multiple board members discussed what language should be used when clarifying the education requirement for the job description. Ms. Adams was asked to read the current suggested draft of the job description, which stated all candidates must have “a Master’s Degree in Library Science, or an equivalent Master’s Degree in a Library Science field from an accredited college or university, and ten years of professional library experience, including six years of experience managing and directing the work of a major library function. The Library Science program must be accredited by the American Library Association.” Mr. Robert Oermann stated that this description was acceptable in his opinion.

j. Mr. Simmons asked why “library service” language was left out of the description, and Ms. Adams clarified that she changed the language to “library field” to suggest the consideration of all equivalent Library Science programs accredited by the ALA. Mr. Oermann added that there was no such thing as a library service program.

k. Ms. Adams continued that the Library Board could not accept other degrees other than what was listed on the job description, and the degree requirement would have to be directly related to the job duties of the Library Director position.

l. Ms. Varney mentioned there had been research done collecting information from fifteen libraries that the Library Board deemed comparable examples to aspire towards, and fourteen of the fifteen required a Master’s in Library Science. Ms. Varney then asked if this example is still being taken into account when deciding what the education requirement should be. Ms. Adams reiterated that if the Library Board

would like to accept degrees outside of an MLS, the language would need to explicitly state MLS or degrees equivalent to an MLS (see III, i). Mr. Oermann added that the minimum requirement should be a degree accredited by the ALA, whether the degree accepted were an MLS or some equivalent.

m. Mr. Simmons asked what the Metro Charter said about the minimum experience of a Chief Library (Library Director). Mr. Smith read, “he or she shall be a person with experience in an executive or major administrative position in public library operations.” Mr. Smith continued; the Metro Charter does not specify a number of years required for the position of Chief Librarian, but it does specify executive or major administrative experience in public library operations (excludes private library operations).

n. Mr. Charvis Rand recommended that the Library Board include some minimum years’ experience. Ms. Adams added that the current ten-year minimum requirement is consistent with the Director of Metro Planning and the Director of Transportation. Mr. Oermann rebutted, suggesting the Library Board adopt the exact Metro Charter language, excluding a minimum number of years required. Mr. Smith added that Mr. Oermann’s suggestion would be acceptable according to Metro Charter, as long as the candidate(s) has some type of executive or major administrative experience in a public library operation.

o. Ms. Varney asked if Senior Administration members (Assistant Directors) have a minimum six years’ experience required. Ms. Adams confirmed that there is a minimum year requirement for all Senior Administration positions. Ms. Adams asked Ms. Libby Cain to check the exact minimum requirement.

p. Mr. Smith went on the clarify that the job description will be utilized by the search firm to help set parameters for their search, and if the desired information is not specified in the description, the search firm will have to accept all candidates that fall within the wording in the job description. Mr. Smith continued, if there are no minimal requirements and someone is eliminated somehow, this would broaden the field of potential litigants.

q. Mr. Rand asked what Ms. Terri Luke’s opinion is on the year minimum. Ms. Luke suggested a minimum of five to ten years’ experience. Ms. Varney responded with a minimum of six years. Ms. Adams asked Ms. Cain if she found the current minimum

required years for Assistant Director positions, and Ms. Cain confirmed the minimum years required for an Assistant Director position is currently eight years, not six.

r. Ms. Luke continued that the preferred candidate(s) should be one with knowledge of a library system like Nashville’s (twenty-one facilities, four-hundred-plus staff, etc.).

Mr. Rand stated that he agreed with Terri’s observation and suggested a minimum of eight years’ experience in an executive or major administrative public library position. The remaining Library Board members concurred. Ms. Adams reiterated (for clarification) that for the Education and Experience portion of the job description, they would require a Master’s Degree in Library Science, or an equivalent Master’s Degree in a Library Science field that is accredited by the ALA, and recommend the minimum years required be changed from ten years to eight years.

s. Ms. Adams suggested reexamining the minimum six years’ required experience in a library function. Ms. Drye stated the need to distinguish between having experience in a library function (having worked in a library) and having experience in executive or administrative roles in a public library (managing a library). After minor discussion, Mr. Oermann clarified stating “eight years of professional public library experience, including six years’ experience managing and directing the work of a major library function […]”

t. Mr. Simmons asked whether a search firm has been selected or not. Ms. Drye answered that a search firm had been selected, and they are waiting for information from Ms. Searcy and Ms. Andrea Blackmon before they can provide an intent to award. Ms. Drye stated that the search firm identity must remain confidential until there is an intent to award. Ms. Drye anticipated the intent to award would be approved within the week and could still approved without the finalized job description.

u. Ms. Ezell recollected that the job description would need to be approved by the Civil Service Commission by or before January 10th (the second Tuesday) to make this month’s deadline.

v. Ms. Drye reminded the Library Board of the previous commitment: the search firm would consider input from the Library Board, the Foundation, library employees, and SEIU, but these parties would not be providing input regarding the revision of the Chief Librarian job description.

w. Mr. Oermann made a motion to rewrite the job description document to reflect concerns on matching performance evaluation criteria with required education and experience, and to adopt language that matches the Metro Charter. Ms. Varney seconded.

x. Ms. Adams agreed to receive all revisions and confine them to one new document addressing the concerns brought up by the Library Board and stated said amendments should be finished before the next Board Meeting.

y. With one abstention and none opposed, the motion passed.

z. Ms. Searcy stated that it was very important for the Library Board to view this job description as the foundation for finding a new Chief Librarian, and she felt comfortable going on to the next month to make sure the document is revised properly.

IV. Adjournment

a. The meeting was adjourned at 3:17 PM.

The meeting minutes were recorded by Lana Boleyjack.

Next Scheduled Board of Trustees Meeting 12:00 PM – January 17, 2023 Main Library 615 Church Street Nashville TN 37219

LIBRARY SERVICES DIRECTOR

CLASS NUMBER: 01070

GRADE: DP02

FLSA: Top- Level Mgt.

EEO CATEGORY: Officials/Administrators

JOB OBJECTIVE

Performs administrative and managerial duties involved in planning, organizing, and directing programs and services provided by the Metropolitan Public Library. Performs related duties as required.

JOB DESCRIPTION

MAJOR JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

Oversees programs and services provided by the Metropolitan Public Library system. Studies present and future needs of the community.

Establishes and measures goals and objectives.

Works with administrative staff to design programs and services to meet those goals and objectives.

Meets with division heads to plan and organize programs and design implementation plans.

Allocates existing resources for programs and services.

Determines future personnel, facility, and other resource needs for the library system. Reads reports and performs statistical analyses.

Writes reports, letters, and memos.

Directs financial activities of the library system.

Develops and presents a budget to local officials. Directs all fund-raising and development activities for the library system.

Monitors expenditures.

Promotes programs and services of the Public Library system. Confers with the Mayor's staff and other Metro Department Heads as needed. Serves on community boards, appears on various panels, and accepts public speaking requests.

Supervises professional staff members.

Makes recommendations for ways to solve problems or improve service as needed. Evaluates employee performance.

Reviews performance evaluations given by employees under his/her supervision. Approves leave requests.

Counsels with and disciplines employees as needed.

Directs planning and setup of new library facilities and remodeling of existing facilities.

Meets with architects, developers, and vendors.

Assists with lay-out and installation of shelving, books, and supplies.

SUPERVISION EXERCISED/SUPERVISION RECEIVED

Directly supervises division heads for the Library and has indirect supervisory responsibility over all employees in the Library.

This classification receives general direction from the Mayor, who informs the Library Services Director of his/her overall goals for the Metropolitan Government and the role of the Public Library in meeting those goals. This class exercises discretion and judgment and has a high level of personal accountability.

WORKING ENVIRONMENT/PHYSICAL DEMANDS

Work involves everyday risks or discomforts that require normal safety precautions typical of such places as offices, meeting and training rooms, etc. The work area is adequately lighted, heated, and ventilated.

Employee works primarily in an office setting under generally favorable working conditions. Work is sedentary, however, there may be some walking, standing, bending, carrying light items, etc. No special physical demands are required to perform the work.

EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

Master's Degree in Library Science from an accredited college or university and ten (10) years of professional library experience, including six (6) years experience managing and directing the work of a major library function.

More specific degree, certification, and experience requirements will be included in the position announcement as vacancies occur.

PERFORMANCE STANDARDS

Knowledge of library administration, methods, and procedures.

Knowledge of budget and fund-raising principles and practices.

Knowledge of Civil Service and departmental rules, policies, and procedures.

Knowledge of the theories and practices of supervision.

Knowledge of library resources and materials.

Skill in planning and implementing program objectives.

Skill in dealing with the public.

Ability to represent the library in presenting programs and services to the community.

Ability to plan, organize, and implement programs to meet the needs of the public.

Ability to allocate resources and project future resource needs.

Ability to monitor and analyze activities.

Ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing.

Ability to supervise and train employees.

Ability to keep accurate records.

Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships.

LICENSES REQUIRED

None

Date Approved: 06/24/80

Date Effective: 07/01/22

Date Revised: 03/03/22

Statistical Summary – January 17, 2022 Nashville Public Library

Cardholders as % of PopulationServed

Cardholders as % of PopulationServed

41.6%

November 2022

New Cards: 3,367

Active Cardholders: 295,874

Cardholders Nov-22

Nov-22

Year-to-Date

December 2022

New Cards: 2,981

Active Cardholders: 293,004

Active Patron Cards

New Registrations 3,367 19,821 295,874

Volunteer Services Nov-22 Nov-21 Dec-22

% Change 2022-2021

Number of Volunteers 46 143 -68.18% Volunteer Hours 14.00 969.00 -98.56%

Cardholders Dec-22

Year-to-Date

Active Patron Cards

New Registrations 2,981 22,802 293,004

Volunteer Services Dec-22 Dec-21

% Change 2022-2021

Number of Volunteers 0 150 -100.00% Volunteer Hours 0.00 916.00 -100.00%

Statistical Summary – January 17, 2022

Nashville Public Library

Database

Public

% Change

Nov-22 Nov-21 2022-2021

Total Computer Use 17,128 13,158 30.17% Total Wireless Use 26,880 52,563 -48.86%

Website Visits

% Change Nov-22 Nov-21 2022-2021 Webserver 347,115 325,144 6.76%

Database

% Change Nov-22 Nov-21 2022-2021 Sessions 10,372 12,633 -17.90%

% Change Dec-22 Dec-21 2022-2021

Total On SiteComputer Use 17,095 13,616 25.55% Total Wireless Use 26,755 56,221 -52.41%

% Change Dec-22 Dec-21 2022-2021 Webserver 311,335 305,577 1.88%

% Change Dec-22 Dec-21 2022-2021 Sessions 9,905 9,776 1.32%

Visits

Nashville Public Library

VISITS TREND

FY2223 FY2122 FY2021 FY1920

JUL

Nov-22 Nov-21 % Change Nov-22 Nov-21 % Change Visits Visits 2022-2021 Circ / Visit Circ / Visit 2022-2021

Bellevue 14,811 7,824 89.30% 2.05 3.57 -42.72%

Bordeaux 5,860 4,613 27.03% 1.03 1.17 -12.25%

Donelson 4,567 4,195 8.87% 1.56 1.26 24.08%

East 7,303 4,477 63.12% 0.82 0.99 -17.06%

Edgehill 2,306 925 149.30% 1.33 2.58 -48.40%

Edmondson Pike 12,668 6,816 85.86% 2.21 3.64 -39.33%

Goodlettsville 4,024 4,574 -12.02% 3.16 2.46 28.14%

Green Hills 17,383 11,539 50.65% 2.06 2.92 -29.41%

Hadley Park 1,494 957 56.11% 1.34 1.94 -31.07%

Hermitage 13,690 7,077 93.44% 1.81 3.19 -43.39%

Inglewood 10,520 9,657 8.94% 0.94 0.85 9.88%

Looby 2,866 1,372 108.89% 0.89 1.40 -36.45%

Madison 18,411 9,136 101.52% 0.60 1.01 -40.02%

Main 28,240 21,813 29.46% 1.42 1.78 -20.31%

North 3,271 1,405 132.81% 8.24 17.53 -53.02%

Old Hickory 2,402 1,727 39.09% 6.14 6.58 -6.69%

Pruitt 3,861 1,699 127.25% 0.99 1.76 -43.60%

Richland Park 6,412 4,269 50.20% 1.97 2.35 -15.87%

Southeast 7,543 4,358 73.08% 1.92 3.08 -37.46% Thompson Lane 8,402 5,810 44.61% 0.81 1.09 -25.44% Watkins Park 3,961 1,829 116.57% 0.30 0.33 -8.42% NPL Total 179,995 116,072 55.07% 1.46 2.02 -27.68%

-32.25% Madison 10,694 8,940 19.62% N/A 0.21 N/A Main 28,893 21,786 32.62% 0.33 0.39 -14.40% North 3,470 1,580 119.62% 10.49 23.45 -55.29% Old Hickory 2,454 1,847 32.86% 0.71 0.94 -24.26% Pruitt 4,932 2,433 102.71% 0.85 1.18 -28.17% Richland Park 6,113 4,347 40.63% 1.87 2.18 -14.03% Southeast 6,140 4,026 52.51% 2.12 3.12 -32.17% Thompson Lane 6,976 5,987 16.52% 0.85 0.98 -12.59% Watkins Park 3,542 2,144 65.21% 0.24 0.24 2.59% NPL Total 148,863 114,292 30.25% 1.59 1.95 -18.44%

Statistical Summary – January 17, 2022

Nashville

Public Library

Circulation Data

eMedia Circulation*

November 2022

eAudiobooks eVideos eBooks eMusic eMagazines Total 92067 6223 100964 1607 6625 207486

*eMedia accounts for 44% of total November 2022 circulation.

December 2022

eAudiobooks eVideos eBooks eMusic eMagazines Total 94017 6187 105818 1588 7219 214829

*eMedia accounts for 47% of total December 2022 circulation. 175,000 225,000 275,000 325,000 375,000 425,000 475,000 525,000 575,000 625,000 675,000

CIRCULATION TREND

FY2223 FY2122 FY2021 FY1920

JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN

Statistical Summary – January 17, 2022 Nashville Public Library

Circulation

Nov-22 Nov-22 Nov-21 % Change Nov-22 Nov-21 % Change Circulation % of Total Circulation 2022-2021 Year-to-Date Year-to-Date 2022-2021

Bellevue 30,313 6.44% 27,956 8.43% 169,378 157,397 7.61%

Bordeaux 6,007 1.28% 5,389 11.47% 31,713 27,415 15.68%

Donelson 7,119 1.51% 5,270 35.09% 38,713 22,729 70.32%

East 5,987 1.27% 4,425 35.30% 31,029 21,745 42.69%

Edgehill 3,064 0.65% 2,382 28.63% 15,157 10,549 43.68%

Edmondson Pike 27,973 5.95% 24,806 12.77% 149,607 145,934 2.52%

Goodlettsville 12,699 2.70% 11,265 12.73% 68,907 63,890 7.85%

Green Hills 35,873 7.63% 33,736 6.33% 205,560 198,714 3.45%

Hadley Park 1,996 0.42% 1,855 7.60% 9,591 6,797 41.11%

Equal Access 284 0.06% 209 35.89% 1,433 1,122 27.72%

Hermitage 24,756 5.26% 22,608 9.50% 133,225 128,885 3.37%

Inglewood 9,868 2.10% 8,244 19.70% 50,075 41,077 21.91%

Looby 2,541 0.54% 1,914 32.76% 12,677 7,845 61.59%

Madison 11,115 2.36% 9,195 20.88% 59,322 50,260 18.03%

Main 39,794 8.46% 38,639 2.99% 224,305 221,318 1.35%

North 2,187 0.46% 2,026 7.95% 11,321 10,250 10.45%

Old Hickory 4,872 1.04% 3,114 56.45% 24,214 15,558 55.64%

Pruitt 1,298 0.28% 1,081 20.07% 7,616 6,081 25.24%

Richland Park 12,656 2.69% 10,016 26.36% 64,562 41,760 54.60%

Southeast 14,511 3.08% 13,405 8.25% 80,200 70,824 13.24%

Thompson Lane 6,825 1.45% 6,330 7.82% 35,610 28,681 24.16%

Watkins Park 1,194 0.25% 602 98.34% 4,961 2,842 74.56%

eMedia 207,486 44.11% 149,316 38.96% 1,075,119 745,390 44.24%

Talking Library 3 0.001% 1 N/A 13 6 116.67%

NPL Total 470,421 383,784 22.57% 2,504,308 2,027,069 23.54%

Bellevue 27,168 6.02% 26,544 2.35% 196,546 183,941 6.85%

Bordeaux 5,009 1.11% 4,676 7.12% 36,722 32,091 14.43% Donelson 6,629 1.47% 4,804 37.99% 45,342 27,533 64.68% East 5,171 1.15% 4,117 25.60% 36,200 25,862 39.97% Edgehill 2,705 0.60% 2,132 26.88% 17,862 12,681 40.86%

Edmondson Pike 25,166 5.58% 24,779 1.56% 174,773 170,713 2.38%

Goodlettsville 11,245 2.49% 10,094 11.40% 80,152 73,984 8.34%

Green Hills 33,713 7.47% 33,649 0.19% 239,273 232,363 2.97%

Hadley Park 1,404 0.31% 1,471 -4.55% 10,995 8,268 32.98%

Equal Access 219 0.05% 201 8.96% 1,652 1,323 24.87%

Hermitage 22,372 4.96% 21,301 5.03% 155,597 150,186 3.60%

Inglewood 8,906 1.97% 7,467 19.27% 58,981 48,544 21.50% Looby 2,225 0.49% 1,845 20.60% 14,902 9,690 53.79% Madison 9,623 2.13% 8,477 13.52% 68,945 58,737 17.38% Main 36,383 8.06% 37,052 -1.81% 260,688 258,370 0.90% North 1,741 0.39% 1,730 0.64% 13,062 11,980 9.03%

Statistical Summary – January 17, 2022

Public Library

LIMITLESS LIBRARIES TERMINAL ACTIVITY TREND

FY2223 FY2122 FY2021 FY1920

Nashville Public Library

November Programming Data

In-Person

November 2022 # of Programs

Outreach

Virtual

# of Attendees

TOTAL 807 13802

November 2022 # of Programs # of Attendees

TOTAL 127 1619

November 2022 # of Programs # of Attendees

TOTAL 23 892

November Program Details

December Programming Data

In-Person

December 2022 # of Programs # of Attendees

TOTAL 677 11698

Outreach

December 2022 # of Programs # of Attendees TOTAL 138 457

Virtual December 2022 # of Programs # of Attendees TOTAL 22 340

December Program Details

Statistical Summary – January 17, 2022

Nashville Public Library 0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000

PROGRAM TREND

JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUNE

PROGRAM ATTENDANCE TREND

FY2223 FY2122 FY2021 FY1920

FY2223 FY2122 FY2021 FY1920 0 5000 10000 15000 20000 25000 30000 35000 40000

JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUNE

Financial – January 17, 2022

Nashville Public Library

Personnel Summary– January 17, 2022

Nashville Public Library

November and December 2022 New Hires

Name Classification Hire Date Location

Lana Boleyjack Office Support Specialist 2 11/14/2022 Admin Srvs

Maria West Office Support Specialist 2 11/14/2022 Admin Srvs

Gwen Brady Office Support Specialist 2 11/14/2022 Finance

Cynthia Gadley Librarian 1 11/28/2022 Nashville Rm

Trevor Kassis Library Page 11/28/2022 Bellevue

Katherine Sproul Circulation Assistant 11/28/2022 Southeast

Jay Greer Program Spec 3 12/26/2022 Teen Srvs

Michael Bottei Library Page 12/26/2022 Edmondson Pike

Jon Simpson Security Guard 12/26/2022 Security

November and December 2022 Promotions

Name Classification Hire Date Location

Tina Reid Librarian 2 10/3/2022 Green Hills

Ben Hagans Program Specialist 10/31/2022 Richland Park Amy Bradford Program Specialist 11/28/2022 Goodlettsville Bret Wilson Program Manager 2 12/26/2022 Wishing Chair

November and December 2022 Resignations

Name Classification Resignation Date Location

King, Regina Custodian 11/3/2022 transfer to schools Azer, Eman Office Support Rep 11/11/2022 transfer to health Kinzer, Kourtney Librarian 1 11/17/2022 Green Hills(deceased)

Wagner, Leanna Circulation Supervisor 11/17/2022 Bellevue Jensen, Lindsay Library Mgr 2 12/2/2022 Thompson Lane Herbst, Luke Library Mgr 3 12/27/2022 Bellevue

Hawthorne, Cynthia Library Page 12/29/2022 Hermitage Shafer, Patricia Librarian 2 12/30/2022 Hermitage (retire)

Waters, Andrew Circulation Assistant 12/30/2022 Hermitage

Personnel Summary – January 17, 2022

Nashville Public Library

NPLVacanciesasof12/31/22

Division/ Branch Title Grade Name

FPS FTE Date Vacant Notes

1 DIRECTOR ADMINISTRATIVESPECIALIST ST11 VACANT(PHOUTHAVONGEVANS,M) F 1.00 12/12/22

2 OP&MAIN BLDGMAINTMECH TG13 VACANT-NEW F 1.00 7/1/22

3 OP&MAIN-MN BLDGMAINTMECH TG13 VACANT(ISLAM,M) F 1.00 11/14/22

4 BORDX CIRCULATIONASST ST05 VACANT(POWELL,S) F 1.00 11/28/22

5 EDPIKE CIRCULATIONASST ST05 VACANT(MILLER,K) F 1.00 6/14/21

6 EDGH CIRCULATIONASST ST05 VACANT(ALLEN,A) F 1.00 5/30/22

7 GRNHILLS CIRCULATIONASST ST05 VACANT(HAGANS,J) F 1.00 10/31/22

8 HERM CIRCULATIONASST ST05 VACANT-NEW F 1.00 7/1/21

9 HERM CIRCULATIONASST ST05 VACANT(WATERS,A) F 1.00 12/30/22

10 BELLEVUE CIRCULATIONSUPV ST08 VACANT(WAGNER,L) F 1.00 11/17/22

11 OP&MAIN-BR CUSTODIAN-Branch TG07 VACANT(ALBADER,R) F 1.00 5/15/22

12 OP&MAIN-BR CUSTODIAN-Branch TG07 VACANT(KING,R) F 1.00 11/3/22

13 OP&MAIN-BR CUSTODIAN-Branch TG07 VACANT(MULLINS,L) F 1.00 2/15/22

14 OP&MAIN-MN CUSTODIAN-Main TG07 VACANT-NEW1/2YEAR F 1.00 1/1/22

15 CONFCNTR CUSTODIAN-MnConfCtr TG07 VACANT-NEW F 1.00 7/1/22

16 ADMINSVCS EQUIPMENT&SUPPLYCLERK ST06 VACANT-NEW-inFinanceDiv F 1.00 7/1/22

17 ADMINSVCS FINANCEADMINISTRATOR OR08 VACANT(MCELRATH-PROSSER,A) F 1.00 8/15/22 Interviewing

18 ADMINSVCS FINANCEOFFICER OR04 VACANT-NEW F 1.00 7/1/22 Jobpostinginprocess

19 ADMINSVCS HUMANRESOURCEANALYST OR04 VACANT-NEW F 1.00 7/1/22

20 TALKING INFOSYSTEMSMEDIATECH1 OR02 VACANT-NEW P 0.49 7/1/22

21 NECAT ISMEDIAANALYST3 OR06 VACANT-NEW F 1.00 7/1/22

22 NECAT ISMEDIATECH2 OR03 VACANT-NEW F 1.00 7/1/22

23 NECAT ISMEDIATECH2 OR03 VACANT-NEW F 1.00 7/1/22

24 EDPIKE LIBRARIAN1 ST09 VACANT(DELANEY,R) F 1.00 6/1/22

25 GRNHILLS LIBRARIAN1 ST09 VACANT(KINZER,K) F 1.00 11/17/22

26 REF LIBRARIAN1 ST09 VACANT(BARRETT,M) F 1.00 9/30/22

27 GRNHILLS LIBRARIAN2 ST10 VACANT(KAMMERMAN,A) F 1.00 6/30/22

28 HERM LIBRARIAN2 ST10 VACANT(SHAFFER,P) F 1.00 12/30/22

29 INGLE LIBRARYASSOC ST06 VACANT(WOODS,C) F 1.00 10/17/22

30 RICHPK LIBRARYASSOC ST06 VACANT(GILLEN,K) F 1.00 10/30/22

31 THOMP LIBRARYMGR2 OR06 VACANT(JENSEN,L) F 1.00 12/2/22

32 BELLEVUE LIBRARYMGR3 OR07 VACANT(HERBST,L) F 1.00 12/27/22

33 HERM LIBRARYPAGE ST02 VACANT(HAWTHORNE,C) P 0.49 12/29/22

34 EDPIKE LIBRARYPAGE ST02 VACANT(SCHWINDT,M) P 0.49 9/19/22 35 WISHCHAIR LIBRARYPERFORMINGARTIST ST07 VACANT(TANNER,M) F 1.00 9/30/22 36 OP&MAIN-BR MAINTENANCE&REPAIRWORKERSR TG09 VACANT-NEW F 1.00 7/1/22 StartsinJanuary2023 37 TALKING OFFICESUPPORTREP ST05 VACANT(ADKINS,M) P 0.49 6/8/22 38 BELLEVUE PROGRAMSPEC2 OR01 VACANT(MYERS,D) F 1.00 4/4/22

Brief Area Updates – January 17, 2022

Nashville Public Library

ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES

November

Safety & Security: November 2022

NPL had seven after hours special events at Main Library or outside events in which Security Staff had to cover. General Election Day, NPLF Patron Party, NPLF Public Lecture at MLK, NPLF Gala, two Archives after hour events, Congressman Cooper’s farewell party. Security interviewed for our current six vacant Security Guard positions.

Total number of incident reports for the month of November and the amount for each category: Total 44, up from the 40 reports in September.

Ambulance 4 Illness / Accident 2 Alarm 0 Suspicious Activity 0 Arrest 1 Property Damage / Vandalism 1 Medical 2 Theft (including 1 vehicle) 0 Mental Issues 3 Vehicle Towed 0 Suspensions 31 Safety Related 0

NOTE: NPL plans to institute a new Incident Reporting System in January. Numbers presented may change in the future.

Number of suspensions by conduct violation numbers:

#1 #9 #17 14 #2 #10 #18 3 #3 1 #11 #19 1 #4 3 #12 #20 #5 #13 #21 2 #6 3 #14 1 #22 2 #7 #15 4 #23 1 #8 7 #16

Suspensions for November:

# of days suspended # of patrons

1 day 5 days 10 days 30 days 3 60 days 90 days 8 120 days 365 days 10

Delivery: November 2022

Main:

• We received 410 incoming UPS packages and sent 42 packages UPS GROUND.

• There were 76 overnight packages received from FedEx, DHL, etc.

• We received 71 inserts of mail from the United States Post Office, and we sent 54 inserts of mail to Metro Mail for postage.

• There were 32 special deliveries from Ricoh, Supply Room, Firefly, Amazon, etc.

Branches:

• We moved: 4,885 hold bins (156,320 items) 3,972 non-hold bins (123,904 items)

1,224 Circulation/Main bins (39,168 items).

Total of 9,981 bins moved.

Total item count of 319,392.

An average of 499 bins and 15,970 items moved per day.

12 skids were sent to Pratt Industries for book recycling.

6 skids were sent to BWB.

Daily Complete Percentage:

Holds 20 of 20 days for 100% in November.

Facilities Maintenance: November 2022

Tamis work order report shows 344 work requests, 294 completed, 50 still active with an 86% completion rate for the month of November.

November Grounds/Custodial/Maintenance 2022 projects: Maintenance with 3 employees completed 174 work orders as of November 30, 2022.

Maintenance

1. Main priories were getting the Main Library ready for 2022 Foundation Gala. Helped with the Foundation party for Rep. Cooper

December

Safety & Security: December 2022

NPL implemented the new Patron Incident Report (PIR) system at Main in December. Gwen Brady took all other PIR reports submitted into the old system and put them in the new system for reporting consistency. We are reporting number of incidents (reports), types of incidents or conduct violations that occurred a bit differently going forward.

December was a busy month for Extra events requiring security.

3 full days for a total of 6 sessions (900) people, for ceremonies for US Citizenship. 3 US Marshalls were present during the 3-day event. The Metro-wide Talent show was also held at the Main Auditorium.

One new NPL Security Officer (Eric Simpson) started the last week of December.

Christmas Eve Madison branch fire sprinkler froze and pipe burst causing damage to the building.

Christmas Day Elm Hill Pike Archive storage building water pipe burst in ceiling of mechanical room causing damage.

Total number of incident reports for the month of December (39) and related categories per incident report up from 27 incident reports in November:

Below is the number of incident Reports per Branch and then breakdown of each Branch

NOTE: Each report could have one or more conduct violations, a safety or security concern, and an injury or accident associated with the report which could or could not result in a suspension.

Number of Incident Reports per Branch

Bellevue Branch 1 Bellevue Branch 1 Bordeaux Branch 2 Conduct or Rule Violation 2

Donelson Branch 1 Safety or Security Incident 1 Edgehill Branch 3

Edmondson Pike Branch 1 Bordeaux Branch 2 Madison Branch 1 Safety or Security Incident 2

Main Library 29

North Branch 1 Donelson Branch 1

Total 39 Safety or Security Incident 1

Edgehill Branch 3 Madison Branch 1

Conduct or Rule Violation 5 Conduct or Rule Violation 1 Suspensions 3 Safety or Security Incident 1 Suspensions 1

Edmondson Pike Branch 1 Injury or Accident 1 Main Library 29

Conduct or Rule Violation 34

North Branch 1 Injury or Accident 11

Conduct or Rule Violation 2 Safety or Security Incident 3 Suspensions 1 Suspensions 21

Number of Injury or Accident and Safety or Security Incidents

911 for assistance 3 Mental Issues 1 Ambulance 4 Alarm 2 Illness / Accident 1 Arrest 1 Injury 1 Police called 3 Medical 2 Safety Related 2

Number of Conduct or Rule Violations Suspensions 26

#1 #9 #17 7 Reminder of the Day 1

#2 #10 3 #18 30 days 12

#3 2 #11 #19 5 60 days 2

#4 1 #12 #20 1 90 days 5

#5 5 #13 1 #21 2 365 days 6

#6 2 #14 1 #22 1 #7 #15 2 #23 1

#8 3 #16 7

Top 2 Conduct Violations

1-5 Sleeping placing head on table 5 2-16 Intentionally damaging or stealing 7 2-17 Intentionally engaging in harassing 7 2-19 Suspended patron entering library 5

Delivery: December 2022

Main:

• We received 338 incoming UPS packages and sent 23 packages UPS GROUND.

• There were 70 overnight packages received from FedEx, DHL, etc.

• We received 81 inserts of mail from the United States Post Office, and we sent 50 inserts of mail to Metro Mail for postage.

• There were 27 special deliveries from Ricoh, Supply Room, Firefly, Amazon, etc

Branches:

• We moved: 3,913 hold bins (125,216 items) 3,146 non-hold bins (100,672 items) 1,082 Circulation/Main bins (34,624 items).

Total of 8,141 bins moved.

Total item count of 260,512.

An average of 407 bins and 13,026 items moved per day.

0 skids were sent to Pratt Industries for book recycling.

6 skids were sent to BWB.

Daily Complete Percentage: Holds 20 of 20 days for 100% in December.

Facilities Maintenance: December 2022

Tamis work order report shows 478 work requests, 273 completed, 205 still active with an 58% completion rate for the month of December.

December Grounds/Custodial/Maintenance 2022 projects: Maintenance with 3 employees completed 143 work orders as of December 31, 2022.

Maintenance

2. Main priorities were repairing the damages caused by the cold weather at the Madison Branch, Main Library, and Archives building.

BRANCH SERVICES REPORT FOR NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER 2022

GIVING THANKS: Several branches kicked off the holiday season by facilitating donations for the community. Edmondson Pike registered as a food donation location for Second Harvest Food Bank through the end of January. Hermitage staff put up their annual Tree of Giving to encourage customers to donate gloves, scarves, hats, socks, and other cold weather clothing to be donated to a local organization such as Catholic Charities or Metro General Hospital. Saint John Lutheran Church gave Pruitt forty Thanksgiving meal boxes including $15 gift cards that staff passed out to families at the branch. At East, patrons added feathers to the “Thankful Tom Turkey” bulletin board display saying what they were thankful for this year.

DOLLY PARTON’S IMAGINATION LIBRARY CARD: Branches are promoting the special edition library card at story times, on social media, and with Dolly cutouts at all locations.

INTERNAL CUSTOMER SERVICE TRAINING: Madison Regional Manager Jessica Piper led eighteen sessions of Internal Customer Service training at various locations for all NPL staff in October and November. The Customer Service Committee also began creating and sharing a monthly newsletter with answers to staff questions, customer service stars, and helpful tips.

INGLEWOOD GRANT: The Inglewood Neighborhood Association (INA) awarded Inglewood their funding request for $1,000 to purchase three basic sewing machines and related supplies for adult and teen programming.

JOB LAB AT LOOBY: Branch Manager Greg Hall is working with Family & Children’s Services, a local non-profit in North Nashville to plan a weekly Job Lab that will provide wrap around support from co-aligned nonprofits, such as American Job Lab, Goodwill, The Academy, and Connecting Forward. The Job Lab will provide support for neighbors and patrons seeking, securing, and sustaining employment by connecting them with existing resources close to home. A launch party is planned for January 28, 2023.

MADISON TREE LIGHTING: The Madison-Rivergate Area Chamber of Commerce Tree Lighting event at Madison featured singers from St. Joseph School, pictures with Santa, the tree lighting, and craft stations in the children’s area.

NEURODIVERSITY TRAINING: East Teen Librarian April Smyth presented on neurodiversity and inclusion at the Children’s and Teen Services’ meetings this month. They discussed how to communicate respectfully with and about neurodivergent people, how differences may impact inclusion in programs, and identified evidence-based strategies and supports to promote accessibility and inclusion for neurodivergent patrons and staff.

SPANISH CLASSES: Thompson Lane partnered with Voces de Nashville to bring a series of Spanish Classes to their patrons. Voces de Nashville is a co-op located in the Woodbine neighborhood that trains Spanish speaking immigrant women to teach Spanish classes. They prioritize paying a living wage and empowering the teachers to support themselves in their new home. The registration was full with a waiting list and staff are working with the organization to schedule the next session.

Nov New Circulation

User category # of Unique Users Items checked out Digital 35,336 207,486 Physical 20,040 129,502* Totals = 55,376 336,988

Nov New Acquisitions

Format Copies added Digital 7,302 Physical 6,536 Totals = 13,838 *Physical checkout statistics do not include renewals as this report is used by Material Services to determine the demand for content, not how long customers want to borrow the content.

December Technology

In addition to ongoing maintenance and support, projects included in prior reports, highlights include:

• Adding DeepFreeze Software to print release to be able to manage and control user printing behavior.

• Training new Admin Assistants on SharePoint (INK).

• Staff badges will start being replaced in January.

• New Patron Incident Reporting software will rollout in January.

• Emergency support over holidays for power outages at Main and Madison.

Production Services

• Provided A/V for twenty-three live events at Main and Branches.

• Ten videos recorded for events.

• NPL Universe had a total of 12,200 views, 4,000 hours watch time.

• Filmed and Edited Digital Literacy commercial for NECAT.

NECAT

• Aired 15,420 minutes of NPL programming.

• Trained 33 individuals from public on TV technology and production best practices.

• Screenings and live tapings were attended by 118 folks.

• Began airing MTSU content in collaboration with MTSU.

• NPL’s Let’s Play Games began taping at NECAT Studio.

• 433 people completed CATV survey to be used as input for renegotiation of Comcast contract.

Materials Management

Shared Systems

Resumed Shared Systems Office Hours. Hosted virtually on the second Tuesday of each month with the next one scheduled for the 1/10/23, to answer staff questions about the ILS, Discovery Layer, and MNPS Systems support. The questions and answers are then posted as a read-only document on INK.

Team submitted request for quotes to various Metro vendors for translating the Limitless Libraries website to Spanish and Arabic through Jess Horn and Metro Procurement.

Online Library Card registration software will debut in January. Circulation procedures are being updated along with this debut.

Circulation Committee updated Library Card registration Terms & Conditions.

Sustainability Committee

Congratulations to the committee for receiving a $5,000 grant award from Urban Green Labs Kate Wingate has been the lead on this relationship great work, Kate! This award will fund a television program on Food Waste Management and Environmental Best Practices at the Library, to be produced and filmed by NECAT.

Additionally, NPL becoming a Certified Silver Urban Green Lab.

EDUCATION & LITERACY

November

Adult Literacy – Jamil Sameen

- Began planning for a conference to be held in spring 2023. The conference will be held in-person and will include the 2023 Adult Educator of the Year ceremony.

o The 2023 AEY will be announced in our next monthly newsletter and nomination forms will be accepted until 01/20/2023.

- The 1st mobile lab served 38 learners at Project Return and the 2nd mobile lab continues to be used by Metro Action Commission to provide entrepreneurship and computer learning training until the middle of December. Total of 38 new NPL cards were issued to learners.

- Nashville Helps received 17 requests in total. Based on the types of referrals requested, we will be reaching out to additional organizations to gauge their interest in supporting the site.

- Trained a new volunteer for the English Conversation Club at Southeast branch.

- Jamil continued supporting Shared Systems with the translation of NPL website into Arabic and Kurdish. There is a lot of excitement in the Arabic and Kurdish speaking communities for this resource. One partner is interested in hosting a livestream to help educate their community about it.

- Had a zoom meeting with Chantez Neymoss a senior program manager at Charlotte Mecklenburg Library. They are working on developing an adult literacy program and they are impressed with the NPL’s model. ALA’s president referred them to NPL as a stellar model for how libraries can support adult education.

Be Well – Bassam Habib

- We have officially begun lactation counseling at NPL! Lauren Jones from Realistically Fed, CLC is our current lactation counselor, and she will be teaching the first class in January here at Main! Lauren also does home visiting and virtual lactation counseling for pregnant people and their families as well as tailed support to families once their baby is born. Lauren has an extensive history in the social work field and worked for WIC. This is heartwarming because Lauren is a member of our "new moms" group that meets regularly at the Inglewood library! Lauren focuses not only on the science and evidence of breastfeeding and lactation, but also on the importance of learning, growing, and honoring the relationship between a mother and her newborn baby. This is an awesome service, and it will be free of charge which is even more amazing!!!!

- Small World Yoga has expanded free yoga and mindfulness classes to more branches, including Edgehill, Pruitt, and Hadley Park, and we have added sound bath meditations for branches!! Sound baths trigger "sound healing" and lead to stress reduction.

Typically, this will be added to the yoga and meditation classes already offered. Small World's list of trained providers is impressive, and they use crystal bowls, Tibetan singing bowls, bells, and gongs to lead the meditations. There are many studies done on the benefits of sound baths for mental and physical health and can help in the treatment of depression and anxiety. I'm really excited to see this flourish and help many patrons!!

- Liz Coleman, our incredible librarian here at main, is certified in the Coordinated Entry/HMIS system and can enter any of our patrons needing housing into the metro housing system! Some other librarians across branches are wanting to become CE/HMIS certified, especially at Pruitt, which will be so amazing! I am working with Liz on a warm weather clothing/coat drive here at Main to be able to provide our patrons needing to stay warm with some warm clothing this season.

- Be Well represented the Library at "Wellness at the Library Workplace" and "Beyond an Apple a Day: Providing Consumer Health Information at Your Library" webinars, provided by NNLM.

- Be Well is working on a Transformative Justice Summit with the Mahaba Center and I have been invited to speak on how the library can be used as a space for transformative justice in February! Some of the other speakers are many community advocates, social workers, and therapists.

- Helped the Department of Health plan a meet and greet on January 18th for all the Health and All Policies members. This will be a space to meet people across Metro Government to network and learn about the Health in All Policies Initiatives!

- Some new partners that will be added are Mental Health Coop, Nashville Center, Planned Parenthood, Shade Tree Clinic, Matthew Walker Comprehensive Health Center, Meharry, Neighborhood Health, and New Beginnings! Slowly but surely, I am coordinating coffee meetings and zooms, but everyone seems to be eager and excited to partner with NPL. I was also asked to be on the board of the Tennessee Nature Academy, which is opening next spring.

- We are in the development stage of creating a podcast called "The Well" which will feature many of our trusted voices on a wide array of topics covering individual and community health and wellness!!

- Our Main Branch Blood Drive is December 13th!

- Program numbers are amazing, with a great turnout for our cooking and yoga classes across all branches.

Bringing Books to Life – Liz Atack

- Provided 32 programs with 747 in attendance in November

- Thanks to the generosity of the Dollar General Literacy Foundation, all BBTL staff were able to attend the daylong Families Learning Conference hosted by the National Center for Families Learning at Vanderbilt University. This was our first in-person conference

in nearly 3 years, and staff enjoyed networking with others who work to support families in schools and community settings.

- This was a busy month with 8 Loving & Learning workshops occurring. One participant gave the following comment following a virtual workshop: “…it was helpful to have her model for us how we would incorporate all the elements of pre-reading and emerging literacy activities, conversations, and tips as well as selecting a picture book and reading to us.”

- We provided 4 teacher workshops this month, including onboarding a new BBTL partner, St. Pius pre-K! Teachers continue to enjoy BBTL’s free workshops, making comments on surveys such as:

o It was entertaining and interactive which I usually hate but don't with Bringing Books to Life

o I loved the quiet books and activity! I've already put the books on hold! Yay!

- BBTL staff were active in the work of the Blueprint for Early Childhood Success as the collective begins to map out strategies to better support families and early learning across Nashville. NPL and its resources (including but by no means limited to BBTL!) are frequently cited as essential in this work.

- Liz met with representatives from MNPS to discuss their new Grow Together initiative for families of children, birth to five. We will continue the conversations as there are many ways NPL and MNPS can collaborate to ensure all children are ready for kindergarten.

Digital Literacy – Marian Christmon

- Digital Inclusion team has been busy holding 1st Senior Tech Academy at Preston Taylor Homes (MDHA), a “Sip-and-Swipe” program for older adults at Trevecca Towers and a workforce skills training program at National Council on Aging.

- The Digital Inclusion team will be featured in an NPT Documentary in the Aging Matters Series. This particular video deals with CyberSecurity and Privacy for older adults. Clips are from a live security class at National Council on Aging and an Interview with Manager, Marian Christmon.

- NPLF and NPL Digital Inclusion were notified this month of the approval of a $50,000 grant from the West End Home Foundation. The foundation has supported the Digital Inclusion program for over 5 years.

- Much work is in process around the Affordable Connectivity Program and the library’s role in assisting Nashvillians to apply for this benefit.

o ACP training by the FCC has been arranged for library staff across the system.

o Marian Christmon, Lee Boulie and Andrea Fanta developing ideas for ACP grant application that would support a media campaign and enrollment events.

o Marian met with Paige Shapiro of National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to discuss NPL’s role in Digital Inclusion Efforts in Davidson County.

o DI attended White House Briefing on the ACP program.

COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT

- Sarah and Emily completed the January Pre-Pub orders and provided the school librarians with multiple bulk lists while working through special requests submitted via Schoology.

- As of November 1, 2022, school librarians have spent 27% of their designated Metro funding.

COMMITTEE/GROUP PARTICIPATION

- Syreeta Butler attended The Library Corporation User 2022 Conference virtually November 1-3, 2022.

- Malia Wing attended the National Center for Families Learning Regional Meeting at Lowes Vanderbilt Hotel on Thursday, November 3, 2022.

- Syreeta Butler met with NPL departments to review the upcoming changes to the budgeting process for Metro and NPLF submissions.

- Syreeta Butler met with Shawn Bakker, President of NPLF, to review and reconcile the LL budget submission and NPLF budget submission to Dollar General Literacy Foundation.

- Syreeta Butler and Emily Farmer met with Jeff Clark of Midwest Tape to review services and new materials, as well as discuss opportunities for ordering Playaways.

- Sarah Allen attended the Children Services Meeting on November 16, 2022.

Limitless Libraries – Syreeta Butler

- Syreeta Butler attended the NPL Managers Meeting on November 17, 2022, and learned a great bit about Neurodiversity in the Workplace presented by Blaire Donnelly-Mason from TRIAD (Department of Vanderbilt University)

- Emily Farmer attended the Teen Services Meeting on November 17, 2022.

OUTREACH

- Malia Wing visited 8 schools and met with the school librarians and chatted virtually and by phone with 6 school librarians to discuss circulation woes, needs, and review LL availability for support.

STAFF UPDATES

- Malia Wing submitted her resignation from Outreach Specialist on November 30, 2022.

ADDITIONAL UPDATES

- There were 7907 materials circulated through Limitless Libraries in November. This consisted of 335 grey bins from NPL, 47 book trucks sent to MNPS and 48 returned from MNPS, and closures for Veterans Day and the Thanksgiving Holiday.

NAZA – Anna Harutyunyan

- As of end of November 1357 youth attended NAZA-funded programs.

- In the fall semester NAZA provided 18 training sessions with over 300 participants.

Puppet Truck – Bret Wilson

- P.T. conducted 52 programs (in person/virtual) at daycares/schools/retirement/organization with an audience count of 4,760 participants

- Took part in the performance this week for the Fantastic Jimmy Miller performance project. Performance title is A Perfect Day. Conducted a load in at TPAC’s Polk Theater on Monday to setup multiple performance sets for the Perfect Day presentation. Tech rehearsal is scheduled to start on Wednesday with the actual performance on Thursday. Hundreds of audience members marveled at the collective vision of this show and celebrated their vision. The performance concluded at 8:30p.m. After loading out and attending the VIP Cocktail party, the Puppet Truck was returned to the library loading dock at 9:30p.m

The audience will be taken on whimsical journeys through each Friend's unique perspective of a perfect day featuring film, music, live performance, video projection, visual art, costume design, dance, music, and more. Friends Life Community is a Nashville-based nonprofit serving adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Through the immersive, weekday program,

Friends can build confidence, self-advocacy, life skills, employment skills, and friendships as they live a fulfilled and purposeful life. A Perfect Day is a fundraising celebration for Friends Life Community.

- William Kirkpatrick and I retrieved PT1 from 12 Point Sign Works. This completes our two-month long connection with having the trucks wrap updated.

- The Puppet Truck represented NPL by offering performances at two community events. At both events, the newly wrapped Puppet Trucks served as a backdrop to hundreds of audience

members. The Frog Prince and Hansel Gretel were the shows offered.

Celebration Parade and School Options Fair

Save the Date Parade and Fair logo

Saturday, November 19 at Nissan Stadium

Join us for a free and fun-filled Celebration of Schools Parade and Fair. Schools and students will parade down Titans Way - with lots of music and fun - and will bring us all to the Fair, where in addition to food, giveaways and activities, you will have the chance to meet educators representing their schools. The Fair is a great way to enjoy a day of community, plus learn more about our schools and about MNPS school options.

- This outdoor market will take place on Friday November 18th and Saturday November 19th from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on the grounds of Two Rivers Mansion. The Donelson Hermitage Chamber of Commerce in partnership with Friends of Two Rivers are looking forward to hosting local food trucks, the market vendors, and "Photos with Santa".

- MTA is interested in partnering with NPL/WCP to create a show to change the perception of mass transit. According to MTA, residents in our city don’t use the bus system. I’ve scheduled several visits to MTA/Mobil Transit to conduct research during the month of November. Only Lillian Willis knows that I’m conducting research for a potential performance project with MTA. None of the MTA staff are aware of who I am. I’ve talked with multiple riders, drivers, and ticket booth staff to gain insight into their operation. Follow up meetings with Lillian will take place in December.

Studio NPL – Niq Tognoni

- November was a heavy month for Studio, with a steady pace of young people coming to our space for our daily workshops, and increased participation at branches like East and Southeast. We hosted an elementary school in the recording studios as they recorded scripts for story-book based puppet shows; they also received a tour of the library and the puppet theater. While the students were in second grade, much younger than we usually serve, we’ve worked with this group via the wishing chair staff for several years. We hosted a community presentation by the Southern Word YOUTH poet Laureate

competitors, who battled it out for a spot in the top 3 candidates in front of other teens, families, and adults from the writer community in Nashville– final contest early December at Vanderbilt.

- An exciting partnership for our MAIN branch took effect this month, as we worked with Hume Fogg’s Integrated Math Classes on a product design project. HF students and teachers spent their class periods with us at the MAIN studio, where we instructed them on the 3D design and printing part, and over the next couple of weeks we worked with a number of students to help them refine and print their designs. The project introduced a lot of new students to our program, and also connected us to another teacher at HF, who we’ll be meeting with next week to discuss more MAKERSPACE integration into their curriculum.

- Outreach was robust in November, with Megan, Niq, and the outreach team attending 18 programs offsite. Megan worked with Old Hickory Community Center to help their students prepare for the NAZA showcase, hosted an outreach table at an NPT and Ken Burns documentary event in Green Hills, and brought a large team out to Hayes Middle School for an all-day STEAM event; hosting hundreds of students across 3 Studio NPLled activities. Megan and Niq also attended Carter Lawrence Elementary for an Engineering career day, where Niq spoke about Makerspaces, and we led the students in a short Robotics activity.

- Final numbers are forthcoming, but we had at least 550 in outreach and a couple hundred in our Studio library locations.

Wishing Chair – Bret Wilson

- Wishing Chair Productions conducted 19 in person performances at Main/Community Partners with an audience count of 1624 participants.

- Wishing Chair is proud to present John Updike’s classic story A Child’s Calendar during the month of November and December.

- Wishing Chair Productions presents String City at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. Load in and setup scheduled for Monday, November 28th at 8:30a.m.

Performances scheduled for November 29th through December 3rd

- Nashville Public Library Administration posted the vacant Program Manager position for Wishing Chair Productions. Interviews are being conducted by NPL Administration.

- Nashville Public Library Administration posted the vacant Library Performing Artist position for Wishing Chair Productions. Interviews are being conducted by Wishing Chair Productions.

December

Adult Literacy @ NPL

Jamil Sameen has been working on the Adult Education Spring Summit, which will be held inperson at the main library in late April or early May. The survey results from last spring’s survey will be used to help determine specific content tracks for the event. The event will also hold the 2023 Adult Educator of the Year ceremony.

Nominations for the 2023 Adult Educator of the Year are open until 01/20/2023. Adult Literacy is working on recruiting individuals for the review panel, which is made up of library staff and community members.

The 1st mobile lab served 21 learners at Project Return and the 2nd mobile lab was returned to NPL after Metro Action Commission completed the entrepreneurship program class of 10 students. There were 36 new NPL cards issued to adult learners. As a result, Nashville Helps has placed 7 requests for mobile lab access.

Jamil Sameen, Marian Christmon, and Liz Atack all attended a training for the Affordable Connectivity Program and announced to various partners that NPL would be offering this service to clients using the mobile lab and staff availability to lead the workshops.

Adult Literacy staff continue their contribution to the translation of the NPL website for Arabic and Kurdish speakers! The Arabic version is complete and live as soon as mid-December!

Be Well

Be Well programming has been going great, despite December being the slowest month. There was a total of 95 offerings (classes, talks, healing sessions, etc.) with an average of approximately 20 patrons in attendance!

Shandi Demumbreum a programming coordinator at the Pruitt Branch has started a program that brings NPL services to Sarah Cannon cancer patients. Shandi has been leading this program and signing people up for library cards.

Be Well added a new teen program at Main where teens make self-care packages for patrons experiencing homelessness. The kits will include painting supplies, comics, and socks.

The first Be Well coordinated Blood Drive was this month and resulted in double the number of anticipated donors.

Alfreda Miguel a librarian at the Bordeaux Branch is leading the Health Fair at Bordeaux in conjunction with Be Well on 1/28/23. There will be several partners and vendors available to library patrons, including vision and dental checks, The Bridge Program, Music City Prep, free vaccines and boosters, chair yoga class, and more.

The new Juvenile Book Club is currently active and meeting at Edmonson Pike Branch. The books chosen will focus on mental health and wellness practices.

Lactation and Breastfeeding classes are now offered at the Main, Madison, and Bordeaux Branches.

Bassam Habib attended 4 NNLM trainings and webinars this month to better enhance ways to improve the Be Well Program: Telehealth and Health Libraries, Trans Accessible Libraries, Caring for the Mind: Providing Mental Health Information at Your Library, and From Problem to Prevention: Evidence-Based Public Health

The Be Well Podcast and online presence will be launching in 2023! The current working title is "Groundwater”, where Be Well vendors and trusted community experts will discuss individual and community health and wellness.

Bringing Books to Life – Liz Atack

The BBTL team led 34 programs with 686 patrons in attendance for the month of December.

The Holidays Around the World interactive story time was revived again this year. Children learned about various holiday traditions through a play in a village. BBTL provided 11 of these special story times this month, along with Anansi themed story times. Puss in Boots materials have also been delivered to various locations, in preparation for early January story times.

BBTL hosted two, in-person workshops with local author Jessica Young for 24 educators. The educators learned about Ms. Young’s process, her books, and concrete ways to use her books in a preschool classroom. Teachers also got to participate in a hands-on art activity, which they received the supplies to do in their classrooms, along with a copy of Ms. Young’s book. Several teachers commented that this was the best professional development they had attended in a long time.

Preparation to holding focus groups for childcare/preschool directors, preschool teachers, and families is in the works. Their input will help BBTL determine how to go about expanding services.

COACH sessions are on pause until mid-January to match with MNPS’s schedule.

BBTL was invited to present at the 2023 Tennessee Literacy Association Conference, which will be held in Murfreesboro next December. In 2013, BBTL received the Community Award from the organization and has presented at their conference in previous years.

Digital Literacy – Marian Christmon

The Digital Inclusion team completed their programs this month at National Council on Aging, Metro Center Teachers Apartments., and Preston Taylor, wrapping up Digital Inclusion programming for the year.

Digital Inclusion arranged for tech staff across the system to receive training from the FCC on the Affordable Connectivity Program. The first session was held in December with another session scheduled for January.

Marian Christmon presented more information on the proposed Digital Navigator Program and the Affordable Connectivity Program at this month’s branch managers meeting. The plan is to convert the library’s current tech help program into a Digital Navigator service that will include assisting customers with all the elements needed to become a digital citizen. The elements include affordable devices, affordable home internet, digital literacy training, technical support, and the ability to locate relevant content and services.

Marian Christmon and Lee Boulie worked on the Affordable Connectivity Program Outreach Grant Application. The proposed project will include activities across the system to raise awareness and increase enrollment in the ACP.

The required hiring processes has been completed to move Digital Literacy Educators from NPLF funded positions to Metro employment. The Metro start date will be January 9th.

COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT

The deadline for MNPS school librarians to submit collection development requests totaling at least 50% of their overall budgets was December 16, 2022, and all but a few have reached their 50% budget goal.

Sarah Allen and Emily Farmer have completed the February Pre-Publication orders and have begun research for the second semester of AAPI orders.

Limitless Libraries – Syreeta Butler

Sarah Allen and Emily Farmer met with Noel Rutherford, Bethany Baeuerlin and Melissa Myers to gather information for the bookmobile test order with Ingram and aim to have this order completed at the beginning of January so that bookmobile ordering can begin in earnest in midJanuary.

COMMITTEE/GROUP PARTICIPATION

• Emily Farmer attended the Summer Reading Committee Meeting.

• Sarah Allen, Syreeta Butler, and Emily Farmer attended the Limitless Libraries/ MNPS/ Shared Systems Quarterly Meeting

• Syreeta Butler and Jewel Thompson participated in the Procedure Review Committee meeting.

• Syreeta Butler met with the Benefactor Group’s Summers Hammel to discuss changes and prepare documents for the DGLF grant.

• Sarah Allen attended the special children’s service meeting with the Marketing and Communication department to discuss Imagination Library promotional ideas.

• Syreeta Butler attended the Children Services Group meeting at the Bellevue branch to share information about the Nashville Reads Poetry Contest, Meet and Greet, and Limitless Libraries reminders regarding student and educator accounts.

OUTREACH

Ivy Noelle Weir has formally agreed to be the speaker at Middle School Battle of the Books. She is the author of Anne of West Philly, one of the required books for BOTB 2023.

Malia Wing visited and conversed with librarians at the following schools:

• Gateway Elementary School

• East Middle School

• Paragon Mills Elementary School

• JE Moss Elementary School

• Hunter’s Lane High School

• Madison Middle School

• John Early Middle School

Syreeta Butler visited Early College High School during the Honors US Government & Civics Project proposals to provide feedback and support to students, and met with the following charter school admins to discuss school and students need, gauge interest in the bookmobile, and discuss expectations:

• Intrepid College Prep Middle School

• Republic Schools

Angel Pridgen Director of the Susie McClure Library on the campus of American Bible College has expressed interest in collaborating with NPL. She and Syreeta Butler are discussing ways the library can potentially support ABC in the future.

STAFF UPDATES

A request to hire was submitted for the Outreach Specialist position and the Bookmobile Outreach position. Limitless Libraries will hopefully receive approval and have a new person hired by February.

ADDITIONAL UPDATES

Circulation of materials for December consisted of 208 grey bins from NPL, 23 book trucks sent to MNPS and 24 returned from MNPS which included 7 business day closures for MNPS and NPL holidays.

NAZA

The NAZA Youth In Action team a group of 9 young leaders participated in a youth conference in Chicago to discuss the future of afterschool programming. They presented a proposal at the conference, which was awarded a $15,000 grant from Mott Foundation to implement their ideas in Nashville.

The new Nashville Out-of-School Program Locator has launched! The online locator is a collaboration between the Office of Mayor John Cooper, Nashville After Zone Alliance (NAZA), Metro Nashville Public Schools, and the United Way of Greater Nashville. The interactive map shows details of afterschool programs located throughout the Greater Nashville area, regardless of affiliation with NAZA. The NAZA website is now a one-stop shop for finding the program that best meets each youth's needs and interests. Learn more

Puppet Truck

The Puppet Truck conducted 30 programs this month both in person and virtual at daycares, schools, retirement homes, and organizations, with an audience count of 2,718 participants.

The Puppet Truck fall season came to an end on December 16th. Both Trucks had annual maintenance appointments with Velocity Truck Center on December 17th and will be offsite until programming resumes on January 12th, 2023.

Puppet Truck artists took part in the 2nd Annual Donelson-Hermitage Tree Lighting Ceremony at the Hermitage Community Center. Last year, the event was held in the Hermitage Branch and the number of attendees was larger than expected. This year, in anticipation for a larger crowd, the activities were spread out and the puppet show commenced in the community center behind the branch.

Rehearsals for the Winter/Spring lineup (Puss in Boots and Tomas and the Library Lady) were held on the following dates in the 1st floor auditorium of the main library:

• Blocking rehearsal – Monday, December 19th

• Walk Through rehearsal -Tuesday, December 20th

• Rehearsal – December 27th – 30th and January 3rd – 11th

The Puppet Truck received an invitation to perform The Stonecutter at the Frist Museum of Art.

This performance is in collaboration with a new exhibit Weaving Splendor – Treasures of Asian Textiles which presents rarely seen Chinese, Indian, Japanese, Persian, and Turkish textiles drawn from the renowned collection of The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Made with fine materials, exemplary techniques, and stunning artistry, Asian luxury textiles have been integral to global trade for centuries.

The Puppet Truck received a request from BNA International Airport to offer two performances during the Holiday Travel Season. BNA made a financial donation to the program in the amount of $1,100. It was a fantastic experience, and the Puppet Truck staff is looking forward to working with them in the coming year.

Wishing Chair Productions

Wishing Chair Productions conducted 27 in person performances at Main and through community partners, resulting in an audience count of 2,991 participants.

Bret Wilson attended his third meeting with members of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum to discuss potential revisions to String City. This is in preparation for the 10th Year Anniversary of the show in the summer of 2023. Meeting participants included Ali Tonn with CMHFM, Abi Tapia with CMHFM Education, one of the CMHFM Historians, and Brian Hull.

Ideas Presented included adding lyrics onto the projection screen so audiences can read/sing along, adding another musician for the 10th Anniversary, updating the projection device from computer to Blu ray ensuring seamless video projection and decreasing the chance of freeze framing, and ensuring diversity when considering the additional artist.

Linda Harrison announced the Program Manager position with Wishing Chair Productions to Bret Wilson on December 12th and Bret officially assumed the role on December 27th. He has informed the entire WCP/Puppet Truck team of the promotion and will be conducting interviews for the vacant Puppet Truck Coordinator/Supervisor position in January and February 2023.

Bret Wilson conducted a meeting with Lillian Willis from MTA and they discussed the following topics:

• Bret’s Position Update

• Altering timeline for the MTA show

• The Experience – MTA drivers, riders, equipment, ticket agents, the community

• Potential vision for the show

• Next steps – Development, renderings, possible storyline, characters, musical number(s) and rough script ideas Rough renderings will be sent to her towards the end of the month.

Interviews have started for the open Library Performing Artist position in the children’s theater at Main, and 6 interviews are scheduled to be held over a three-day period with the hope of finding a new full-time member for Wishing Chair Production and the Puppet Truck.

Studio NPL – Niq Tognoni

December was a slower month for Studio NPL, as patrons move away from workshops and focus on studying for finals and finishing final projects. In addition to offering them help in their academic work, staff continued working with Studio mentors to provide hands-on activities like podcasting, knitting, 3D design and music. Studio NPL and Teen Center's Dungeons and Dragons club also partnered to teach 3D design and 3D printing for pieces they can use in their game. Following the partnership, Studio has received several other 3D requests from other community members of all ages across Nashville.

The staff worked to meet with partners, schedule Spring events, and bring groups in for field trips to Studio NPL. The Outreach Coordinator spoke with The Frist, Oz Arts, NMAAM, and several other libraries, schools, and community center sites, while the team’s Lead Mentor met with a number of Metro Parks representatives to bring in field trips and schedule Spring visits.

Studio has had some staffing changes, including resignations which will hopefully be balanced out in January. A full-time Tech Coordinator has officially been hired, and a former employee has returned as a mentor.

MAIN

November

• Over the past few weeks, Main Library has been battling body lice that have been carried into the building by a couple of our patrons. We have been working closely with Main Metro Health Department and our pest control company to come up with a solution. The number of live bugs found in the library has diminished.

• Adult Services staff assisted in a donation of books to be used in military personnel overseas.

• Special Collections programming staff offered a Teach Virtual Open House to engage with local schools, educators, and teachers know that the Special Collections Department is available to assist with our resources.

• Special Collections staff are working on a strategic plan for programming and will also be developing a plan for their collections.

• The Teens Department is working with teens to plan two teen-led events during the spring semester. The hope is to expand the program to a Teen Advisory Board in the future which will help inspire youth leadership and give opportunities for our students to engage in socialemotional growth as they work together to brainstorm ideas, utilize a budget, and implement library programming.

December

• The weather-related power outage over Christmas weekend resulted in the Talking Library not being broadcast for 55+ hours. The battery backups did automatically come online but not for very long. Eventually, some equipment lost power and needed to be turned on manually.

• The blast of arctic air also caused a busted pipe at the Archives off-site storage facility. Special Collections team spent many days helping Archives to dry and preserve some of the water-logged documents.

• Main Library is grateful to have obtained several pieces of updated equipment. Equal Access has a new refreshable braille display device and an ADA computer with upgraded equipment. The Special Collections team has a new negatives scanner for the reproduction of images requested from The Banner and other collections.

• Sandy Cohen presented an “Introduction to Working with Patients with Hearing Loss” at Belmont University to grad students in the Physical Therapy program.

• December marked a return to in-person holiday programming with so much beautiful music. Main hosted several great performances by the Ukedelics, Harpist Liana Alpino, NPL’s Amanda Dembiec playing piano as well as four different recorder ensembles (Providence Players, Basses Rule, Bicinium, and Providence Pipes).

• The Children’s Department has had so much success in the special Spanish story times that they have offered this fall, that they decided that it will be a regular monthly program starting in February.

MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS

November 2022 (for period covering October 2022)

MarCom ramped up to launch campaign to offer special edition NPL Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library card.

To date, just more than 2,400 people have registered for this card; this campaign ends January 19, 2023.

December 2022 (for period covering November 2022)

MarCom launched campaign to offer special edition NPL Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library card.

To date, just more than 2,400 people have registered for this card.

January 2023 (for period covering December 2022)

MarCom continued campaign on special edition NPL Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library card and also ramped up for two 2023 campaign launches: Nashville Reads 2023 and Library of Things, a new special NPL collection.