Circulation
Circulation for March was 4,523 items. This is slightly more than last month (5.9% increase) and slightly less than March of 2008 (4.5% decrease). 4,679 items were checked out at our circulation desk.
I am puzzled that we seem to be getting more people in the library, but circulation is not increasing. We are due for our quarterly visit count in the first week of April. I plan on extending the count to two weeks instead of one to get a more accurate sample to determine if we really are getting more visits or if it just seems that way.
New Patron Registrations
23 new patrons registered in March
Collection Development
We added approximately 134 items to our collection in March. Lisa and I ordered about $2,500 worth of non-fiction materials from Apple Books, and about $600 from Smart Apple Media. I have a visit from one more salesman scheduled for April 6th, Sebco Books. I plan on ordering a full set of updated Frommer’s Travel guides from Sebco. That should bring our materials expenditures up to the amount that we need to reach for State Certification.
Improving Library Signage Project
The shelf markers I ordered have arrived. They are not quite as visible from the ends of the aisles as I had hoped, but they will be able to serve their purpose. To start with, I am going to use them in the adult nonfiction section for bookstore style divisions, such as “self help”, “business”, “parenting” and so on.
Audio-Visual Labeling Projects
Lisa and I were informed of some concerns from patrons about children and teens checking out inappropriate movies. At first we considered adjusting where some movies are shelved, but finally decided the best course of action was to provide more information to assist patrons in making their own decisions, so I am in the process of labeling all our DVD movies with the MPAA ratings. (PG, PG-13, R, etc..) Movies without MPAA ratings will receive a “Not Rated” sticker. I have received three positive comments about the rating labels from patrons, and no negative ones.
Eileen and I have been working on re-classifying and labeling our music CD collection. After reviewing the collection, we divided it into 4 main categories; Juvenile, Classical, Band and Cultural. Each CD will have a unique identifying number and shelving position. The primary goal for this project is to make it easier for staff to retrieve a specific CD, but it should have a side effect of keeping similar items together for patron browsing.
Programs
Library book group: 11 people met on Wednesday, March 25th.
Senior book group: 9 people met on March 3rd.
Thursday storytime averaged 12 children per session.
TinyTots lapsit averaged 14 participants, a more manageable number then when we get 20+ per session.
Teen Tuesday was attended by 12 young adults.
Library Table: 4 visits, averaged 6 patrons and 9 items.
Special Events in March
Lisa was a guest reader at Memorial School for “Read across America Day”.
Volunteers
10 items were delivered to two patrons on March 3rd.
Several parents that participate in Storytime have asked Lisa if they can donate any craft materials. Lisa put together a wish list of craft supplies, and we have received a number of items from that list, along with a gift card to staples to use for whatever we need.
Upcoming Events in April
Wednesday, April 22nd, 11am, Creature Teachers will present “If I Ran the Rainforest”, a picture book accompanied by live rainforest Animals in the Upton Town Hall. This program is funded by our annual grant from Community Partnership for Children.
Plans for Next Month
1) Work with Personnel Board and Finance Committee to finalize budget for FY10
2) Complete signage and re-labeling projects.
3) Finalize Summer Reading program calendar and begin publicity.
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