Board of Trustees

The Boston Public Library Board of Trustees oversees the Library’s operating and administrative policies, votes on and establishes Library policy, sets the institution’s strategic goals, and acts as an agent of public trust governing the Library. Trustees are appointed by the Mayor of Boston. (from BPL website)

The new Chairperson Raymond Liu opened the meeting, shared the BPL Diversity Statement, and spoke about his hopes for more connective tissue between BPL Trustees, staff, and the public.

He introduced new trustee, Jonathan Lavine, Co-Managing Partner of Bain Capital and Chief Investment Officer of Bain Capital Credit, and Julie Kim, President of the UB Business Unit of Takeda Pharmaceuticals, who was recently appointed by Mayor Wu.

President’s Report

President Leonard introduced new staff:

Judah Hamer, Human Resources Manager

Nicole Santiago – Manager, Research Services

Audrey Wynne – Legal Liaison/Policy Advisor

Room Dedications

Grove Hall Branch presented the proposal for naming of the Mezzanine Community Room after Mimi Jones, a revered civil rights activist who passed away in 2020.

Jamaica Plain presented a proposal to rename the Children’s Room after Barbara Rhodes, children’s librarian who worked for BPL for over 40 years. They also announced a Barbara Rhodes endowment fund for children’s books and programming after a successful fundraising appeal of four months to meet the BPL Fund $50K threshold.

Both proposals were supported by various Trustees and were unanimously approved by the board.

Governance Update

President Leonard shared that current vacancies are at 51 and a staff of 390. They continue to hire due to retirements and departures (moves out of Boston). The pre-Covid vacancy rate was about 30; this may not be the new normal.

Safety and security challenges have occurred in the last few months with an uptick in difficult behavior both outside and inside the Central Library. Police have been involved and leadership has increased security as needed. They have also partnered with Pine Street Inn and other organizations who help with folks who are unhoused, and people who are suffering from addictions and mental health issues. They are attempting to find the balance of compassion and service with safety for staff.

BPL has published its annual Management Discussion & Analysis Report for FY 2024. It can be found on the website at https://www.bpl.org/about-the-bpl/board-of-trustees/board-meeting-schedule/ in Trustee meeting materials.

Strategic Plan

Christian Westra, Strategic Planning Committee Chair, spoke about the collaborative process that has been underway for the development of a new strategic plan. With the help Erin Corcoran and Patricia Nobre of Gensler, many workshops have been held with staff and other stakeholders.

A key value with historic and present importance is “Free to All” that will figure prominently in the new plan. Strategic Roles that have come out of the process so far are:

Welcoming Destination

Lifelong Learning & Research Partner

Trusted Resource

Community Engager

Discussion about implementation ensued and the importance of effective prioritization of practical steps and timing, as well as integrating some of the activities that are already underway. Board members talked about the need for the plan to be bold and inspiring…and actionable. This planning work is slated to complete in November and will dovetail with the budgeting work that ramps up from November through January.

Finance & Audit

Finance and Audit Chair Arana Ortiz announced that the recent audit produced no material findings. BPL investment funds have increased in value. When the McKim building is closed for renovations, there will be financial impacts, and the committee will be reviewing those as part of the planning process. The board approved the audit report.

New Business

Amber DiAngeles of Research Services noted the department will be highlighting different research services every week. Examples included online forensic genealogy, stories of Native American and Black escaping slavery, a Roots database with specifics on the Chinese diaspora.

Public Comments

Elissa Cadillic, AFSCME President, offered her welcome of the new Trustees. She said safety and security concerns were raised several months ago. AFSCME would like to see the security personnel as part of the union, so that all employees would experience more support from their services. Ms Cadillic also suggested the Trustees could help with the vacancy issue which is related to too many procedures required by City Hall.

The next Trustees Meeting will be on November 19th at 3pm in the Mattapan Branch, 1350 Blue Hill Ave.