2009 Achievement Report

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2009 ACHIEVEMENT REPORT

Message from the Chair

2009 was another exciting chapter.

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s the year concluded, VPL’s Strategic Plan, Today For Tomorrow 2008-2011 was well under way. Year two proved to be a rewarding one and we are proud of the great strides that were made in achieving the goals mapped out in the plan.

Ultimately VPL is all about responding to the community’s needs. That’s why 2009 saw the implementation of a number of new initiatives, including the expansion of our multicultural collection of materials and our resource libraries opening earlier on Mondays, at 10 a.m.

For the first time, we sent our annual achievement report to every household. We had a great response to Celebrating Success in 2008 and many citizens commented that they returned to their local library after reading the report and learning about what VPL has to offer.

2009 was a challenging economic time for everyone and, like a good neighbour, VPL was there to lend a hand to the citizens of Vaughan. Not only did we provide resources such as books about job search strategies and career development, we also provided free programs to assist people in developing their computer skills. All seven of our locations offered free access to the Internet and software such as Microsoft Word to assist people in preparing and submitting resumes and job applications.

VPL was there to help people save money too. More citizens than ever (including over 14,000 new customers) discovered the incredible value their library card represents. They signed out books and movies and participated in great programs—all for free. We even added a new tool to our website (www.vaughanpl.info), the Library Use Value Calculator, so you can see exactly how much you’re saving by borrowing materials from us.

Our terrific staff made all the accomplishments you will read about in the coming pages possible. In 2009 we launched an Employee Recognition program so we could officially acknowledge their efforts and let staff know how much we value them on an ongoing basis.

On behalf of the citizens of Vaughan, thank you to all VPL Board Trustees and staff for your caring, dedication and commitment to making our libraries such an integral part of our community.

Gino Rosati Chairman, Vaughan Public Library Board VPL’s Board Members Front Row (from L): Marie Chiaromonte, Michael McKenzie (Vice Chair), Gino Rosati (Chairman), Filippo Gravina. Back Row (from L): Rajbir Singh, Suri Rosen, Tony Genco, Mario F. Ferri, Margie Singleton (CEO), Devender Sandhu, Lorraine de Boer, Jeffrey Stone, Rocco Capone. Absent: Isabella Ferrara, Pradeep Puri, Alan Shefman.

OUR MISSION: Vaughan Public Libraries contribute to the success of our growing

diverse community; serving its information, learning, leisure and cultural needs in a welcoming and safe environment.

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Message from the CEO

More than a library… a dynamic destination.

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ur vision at VPL is to be a dynamic destination, a central hub for every citizen in our community. Now in the second year of our strategic plan, that vision is being realized.

Throughout the year a number of exciting and diverse programs, events and achievements took place. In 2009, VPL was a place of celebration marking Family Day, Black History Month, the Day of Slavic Written Language & Culture, Chinese New Year, March Break, Seniors’ Month, Teen Read Week and more.

VPL was a place of innovative thinking as well. We launched the For Your Leisure blog, a great way for customers to discover new books, movies, music and magazines that the library has to offer. VPL also welcomed a settlement worker who assisted more than 650 newcomers with their transition into the community. Through our Beyond the Basics program, teen volunteers helped seniors learn about the world of Facebook, blogging and instant messaging.

Being part of the community means giving back too. Once again, we ran the Food for Fines program, in which VPL customers donated food items to the Vaughan Food Bank in lieu of paying library fines. A grant from the Ontario Ministry of Culture allowed us to create Villages to City: An Oral History of Vaughan, a program where teens recorded interviews with local citizens to preserve their personal stories. We also collaborated with local school boards on Building Blocks for Learning, Spelling Bee of Canada and Battle of the Books and partnered with community groups to host a very successful Volunteer Fair for students.

Looking back, 2009 was a rewarding year for all at VPL. Thank you to the dedicated VPL Board Trustees and hardworking and innovative staff for playing such a vital role in making it all happen.

Margie Singleton Chief Executive Officer

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Executive Management (L to R) - Aleksandra Dowiat Vine, Director of Planning & Communication; Terri Watman, Director of Service Delivery; Margie Singleton, Chief Executive Officer; Marilyn Guy, Director of Operations; Sandy Vander Werff, Director of Finance.

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If it’s happening… it’s happening here!

So much was happening at Vaughan Public Libraries in 2009 that over two million visitors stopped by to check us out. What kinds of things? Well here is just a taste.

What a collection! Almost 53,000 new items were added to VPL’s collection.

What a connection! Free wi-fi was available in every VPL location.

A great day!

VPL helped celebrate Family Day by offering programming at three of our locations. Over 2,100 children and parents dropped by.

Awesome Asian Heritage Month We did it up right, welcoming internationally-renowned author and award-winning journalist Jan Wong, and offering Chinese brush painting, Buddhist meditation workshops, storytimes, book chats and more.

Amazing author readings In 2009 VPL sponsored 11 Author Visits for children, teens and adults. Among them, local authors Deborah Kerbal, Doris Heffron and Rita Vetere read from their books, discussed the inspiration behind their work and provided insight into the writing process.

A teen sensation For the first time ever, VPL hosted two after-hours events for teens. It was way cool, but if you’re on Facebook you already knew that!

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Fast Fa

cts

Cool new activity areas Every library in Vaughan added activity cubes to create family-friendly fun areas where preschoolers can develop their emerging literacy skills by solving mazes and playing matching and sorting games.

Helping out online

• Visit ors to V PL: up • New by over custom 9% e r s: up 8% • Atten dance a t progr • Item ams: up s in the 20% c o l l ection: • 2,65 5,262 m 543,57 0 aterials • 639, borrow 882 pe ed: up ople vi up 19% 14% sited th e websi • 585, te: 635 were an questions up 24.2 swered: % • 70 d atabase s current ly in collecti o up 16.7 n: usage %

More and more customers submitted questions to Email Librarian, a virtual reference service that provides an answer from a qualified librarian within one day. For immediate assistance, students took advantage of askON, a free chat-based interactive information and research service.

Air Guitar ruled!

VPL hosted its first ever Battle of the Bands competition for teens, firing up the Nintendo Wii and Guitar Hero World Tour.

We love a parade We jumped on the bandwagon, and had our very own float in the Vaughan Santafest parade.

Space for rent Once again, VPL’s meeting rooms, training suite and boardroom were in high demand by groups and organizations from across the community.

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Champion Literacy

Fueling the passion for reading.

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ne of the biggest stories at VPL this past year was the incredible array of events and programs we offered in order to champion literacy among children, teens and adults.

Inspiring tykes Our kid-friendly computers were enjoyed by children over 13,000 times. Over 26,500 parents and children participated in our weekly storytime programs. During the week leading up to Family Literacy Day, the message of early literacy was shared with more than 950 children and parents through fun-filled library programs and outreach visits. The big day culminated with our 6th annual pyjama party at the City Playhouse with this year’s special guest, bestselling author of Grumpy Bird, Jeremy Tankard. VPL’s Summer Reading Club kept the passion for reading strong all through the summer for the 4,300 children participating.

Motivating teens When it came time to develop our library services for teens, we invited teens to take part. Over 500 teens attended TRAC (Teen Readers’ Advisory Circle) meetings, providing us with their thoughts, insights and direction. That’s not the only way teens helped out at VPL. More than 300 teen volunteers also provided reading support to over 300 school-aged children through our Reading Buddies program.

Once again VPL held the annual Early Harvest Competition, an event where teens submit their writing, photography, painting and sketching. The response was incredible — we received over 400 entries!

Life-long learners Over 200 adults participated in a variety of literacy programs including ESL Book Clubs, Conversation Circles and Storytime for Adult Learners. Literacy learning extended to the desktop where over 500 adults took part in computer training programs, including Meet the Mouse, Internet for Beginners, Email Made Easy and One-on-One Computer Training. Through our Beyond the Basics program, teen volunteers introduced seniors to social networking programs such as Facebook, blogging, instant messaging and more.

Champion literacy for all members of the community by providing literacy programming and education for all ages, backgrounds and skill levels to build a healthy and prosperous Vaughan.

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Collaborate with the Community

Meeting the wants and needs of our customers.

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s a community-focused organization one of the goals of VPL is to listen and meet the requests of our fellow citizens. In 2009 we did so in a variety of ways.

Storytime in a Bag picture book kits were added to the Pierre Berton Resource Library collection. Topics ranged from animals and hockey to children’s classics and manners. To be or not to be was the question, and VPL decided to be the resource for Shakespeare in a Box as well as curriculum kits for teachers to assist them in teaching Ancient Civilizations, Provinces of Canada, Explorers and more.

The cultural diversity of our community continues to expand. To meet this growth the Maple Library welcomed a library settlement worker. She speaks Dari, Farsi, Hindi, Urdu and Pashto, and assisted over 650 new members of the community with transition, settlement, legal and employment issues.

To assist the area’s youth in acquiring their community service hours VPL held a two-day Volunteer Fair.

140 teens attended, many of them signing up to volunteer with the 15 community organizations that took part in the event.

Through the Knowledge Ontario Databases program, VPL was able to provide our customers access to several new databases, including: Career Cruising, Actualité Francophone Plus, Dailies from Across Ontario, Auto Repair Reference Centre and more.

The After Hours Study Hall program was expanded so that college and university students could have a quiet place to study for exams during the spring and fall exam periods.

The popularity of our Senior Social program led to it being offered at four libraries now. Over 300 seniors participated in book chats, activities, computer and library training, workshops and guest lectures.

Collaborate with the community, to ensure responsive and accessible library collections, services and programming tailored to the needs of an ever-changing and growing community.

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Connect the Community

A place to come together.

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t VPL we’re dedicated to ensuring that your library visit remains an exciting and enjoyable one. That’s why in 2009 VPL introduced a number of initiatives.

To provide customers with even more access to VPL’s vast range of resources, the Bathurst Clark Resource Library and Pierre Berton Resource Library opened their doors earlier on Mondays, at 10:00 a.m.

To offer families in the community with another option for celebrating Family Day, VPL provided programming at three locations. Over 2,100 children and parents attended.

Ever wonder what happens at the library when the day’s all done? This past May VPL celebrated Youth Week with an after-hours Twilight party at Bathurst Clark Resource Library. Then we unlocked the doors and did it all over again in October at the Pierre Berton Resource Library where we capped off Teen Read Week with an awesome, spine-tingling Murder Mystery Night.

Another way VPL connected with the community was by taking to the road. Through our Libraries on the Go program library staff brought cases of materials to daycares and seniors groups. Over 7,000 items were borrowed because of this program.

In 2009 facility refurbishments were made at all of our locations. These ranged from maintenance work on structures and a new coat of paint to new display units. Thanks to $575,000 in grants from the City of Vaughan, and the provincial and federal governments, in 2010 VPL will be able to move forward with accessibility improvements to Bathurst Clark Resource Library and Kleinburg Library.

Lastly, planning got underway for VPL’s third Resource Library which will be built at the new Vaughan Civic Centre Campus. Over 50 staff members volunteered to participate in the design process, providing invaluable guidance and ideas for the new facility.

Connect the community by providing enjoyable, welcoming destinations for people of all ages to spend time, gather with friends, learn something new, read, meet neighbours, study, attend a program, conduct a business meeting, hear a story, see culture in action, meet an author, search the Internet, live life.

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Commit to Empower Staff

A people-first organization.

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he greatest resource we have at VPL is the people who work for us. With that in mind one of our most important goals as an organization is to foster the ongoing professional growth and involvement of our staff. In 2009 that commitment was evident throughout the year.

Training was big on last year’s agenda. Staff members attended over 400 training sessions.

The seminars covered such areas as technology skills, Serve-Ability, supervisory skills and more.

Six staff members completed the Certification in Management Excellence program, and this year 15 employees attended the Ontario Library Association SuperConference.

We also initiated an Employee Recognition program in partnership with the City of Vaughan. Eighteen bronze awards were presented to staff and hundreds of thank you cards were distributed.

To keep things rolling we launched the Steps to Excellence Program (STEP). This staff-driven program allows employees to participate in identifying and developing innovative ideas to improve our processes and procedures.

Another way we strengthened our team was through our Social Committee. Camaraderie was enhanced via a number of fun and community-beneficial activities, including: the United Way Campaign and its CN Tower Climb, Pimp My Book Cart competition, Take Our Kids to Work Day and more.

Commit to empower staff to continue to provide excellent public service in a dynamic culture that reflects the quality of service the community expects from their Libraries.

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Communicate with Stakeholders

Getting the word out.

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hen we’re not helping customers find information, running our programs and providing great customer service, we’re busy letting the citizens of Vaughan know all about everything VPL has to offer.

We made our presence known at a number of community events throughout the year. VPL was on display at the South Asian Trade Fair, Bindertwine Festival, Maple Lions’ Annual Pancake Festival, Woodbridge Fair, Mother to Be Expo and more. We also participated in the Communities in Bloom, WinterLights, Peace Tree and Character Community initiatives.

Through all of this involvement we were able to connect with over 28,000 children, teens and adults.

To keep teens in the loop, VPL created a Facebook fan page. Here teens can talk books in our online forum, get the scoop on upcoming programs, volunteer opportunities and more.

We continued to reach out to teachers and students by collaborating with the school boards to promote Battle of the Books and Spelling Bee Canada.

Citizens were kept informed of upcoming programs, new arrivals and our ongoing services via At the Library, our quarterly magazine. Every household in Vaughan learned about all of VPL’s initiatives and offerings through Celebrating Success in 2008, our first annual achievement report which was distributed to every residence in the City.

VPL also actively sought out the opinions of Vaughan citizens. Focus groups were held to solicit thoughts and ideas on the new resource library. As well, several thousand customers were surveyed in the Libraries and online in order to gather important feedback on our services, programs, resources, and new tools the public would like to see us offer.

Communicate with stakeholders to create, cultivate and expand awareness, usage and relevance of Vaughan Public Libraries’ collections, services and programs designed to fulfill their information, learning, leisure and cultural needs.

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2009 ACHIEVEMENT REPORT

The Corporation of the City of Vaughan Public Library Board Financial Activity for the Year Ended December 31, 2009 REVENUES City of Vaughan contribution $ 10,654,933 Fees, rental and sundry 279,863 Provincial/other grants 176,150 Total

$ 11,110,946

City of Vaughan Contribution (96%) Fees/Rental & Sundry (3%) Provincial/Other Grants (1%) City of Vaughan Contribution (96%) Fees / Rental & Sundry (3%) Provincial / Other Grants (1%)

EXPENDITURES Staffing $ 7,787,781 Resources 1,742,396 Facilities 983,706 Communications 454,575 Administrative 142,488 Total

Resources (14%) Staffing (71%) Facilities (9%) Communications (4%) Staffing (71%) (2%) Resources (14%) Administrative Facilities (9%) Communications (4%)

$ 11,110,946

Administrative (2%)

TOTAL NET LIBRARY EXPENDITURE – BY BRANCH Woodbridge Pierre Berton Maple Kleinburg Dufferin Clark Bathurst Clark Ansley Grove Admin/Operations

($ MILLIONS)

11.00

8.25 5.50

2.75

0.00

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

Our Customer Service Pledge

We Value our customers.

Provide collections, services and a community hub.

Lead through our commitment to customer service.

Our Principles

In every interaction with our customers we will meet or exceed their expectations by being: • Proactive • Resourceful • Knowledgeable • Respectful • Pleasant • Discreet

• Efficient

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CONTACT US 905-653-READ(7323) Administrative Office 900 Clark Avenue, West Vaughan, ON L4J 8C1

www.vaughanpl.info LOCATIONS Ansley Grove Library Bathurst Clark Resource Library Dufferin Clark Library Kleinburg Library Maple Library Pierre Berton Resource Library Woodbridge Library

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at story th at has everyone talking.

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“The Chin e was a fan se New Year program tastic activ ity.”

“Thank yo u such great for always offering and innov ative programs.”

“Thank yo u greetings a for the friendly nd helpful recommen dations.”

“Thank yo u library so for making the accessible, and an im helpful p our family ortant part of ’s learning .”

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