Public Library Board of Directors

BOARD MEMBERS Laura Nicole Miller, President Katherine Bagdis, Vice President Roseann Fitzgerald, Secretary Matthew Noe, Treasurer Christina Andrianopoulos Harriette Chandler Mary Chenaille David Dominguez BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING AGENDA Gail Schuyler December 16, 2025 – Ellipse Meeting Room Kimberly Smalley Worcester Public Library Sheila Trapasso 3 Salem Square William Wallace CONTACT This Board of Directors for the Worcester Public Library meeting will be • Address: 3 Salem Square held in-person at the date, time and location listed above. Meeting • Phone: 508-799-1655 attendees will additionally have options to participate remotely by • Email: comms@mywpl.org joining online or by phone: • Use the following link to join the meeting via computer • Website: www.mywpl.org • https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84085615147?pwd=k17ARzj0zmZd 6PYvGJU9kuYnbCPAZu.1 The Worcester Public Library is committed to • Meeting ID: 840 8561 5147 ensuring that its public meetings are accessible to • Passcode: 507457 all. Should you require interpretation, auxiliary aids, services, written materials in other formats, or reasonable modifications in policies and Note: If technological problems interrupt the virtual meeting procedures, please contact the library a minimum of 2 business days in advance of the scheduled component, the meeting will continue in-person. meeting. Hay disponibles servicios de interpretación y Application materials may be viewed by appointment at the Main otras adaptaciones con solicitud previa. Branch of the Worcester Public Library between 9:00 a.m. – 5 p.m., ‫ﺗ ﺘ ﻮ ﻓ ﺮ اﻟﺘﺮ ﺟ ﻤ ﺔ اﻟﻔ ﻮ ر ﯾﺔ و ﻏ ﯿﺮ ھ ﺎ ﻣ ﻦ و ﺳ ﺎ ﺋ ﻞ اﻟﺘﯿﺴ ﯿﺮ ﻋ ﻨ ﺪ اﻟﻄ ﻠﺐ اﻟﻤ ﺴ ﺒﻖ‬ Monday through Friday. अनवु ◌ाद र अ6य आवसह अ'-म अनरोधपचत ◌ु उपल5ध For more information concerning this meeting, please contact the :6छ। Worcester Public Library by email at comms@mywpl.org. Please send Interpretação e outras adaptações estão written comments, requests for reasonable accommodation, or disponíveis mediante solicitação prévia. requests for language interpretation 2 business days or more in advance Përkthimi dhe akomodime të tjera janë në of the meeting. dispozicion me kërkesë paraprake. Kasa nkyerɛaseɛ ɛne akwanya afoforɔ da hɔ • Call to Order – 5:00pm ma wɔn a wɔn bɛ bisa ato hɔ. • Approval of November 19, 2025 Minutes Phiên dịch và các hỗ trợ khác có sẵn theo yêu cầu trước. • Report of the President of the Board • Officer Nominations, election in January WPL LEADERSHIP • Report of the Executive Director Jason Homer, Executive Director • Administration Committee Report • Report of the Friends of the Worcester Public Library WPL MISSION • Report of the Worcester Public Library Foundation As the heart of the community, we strive • New Business to nurture lifelong learning, cultivate knowledge, and champion • Adjourn intellectual freedom. 1  BOARD OF DIRECTORS WORCESTER PUBLIC LIBRARY Meeting Minutes Wednesday, November 19, 2025 Worcester Public Library 3 Salem Square, Green Room Directors Present: Laura Nicole Miller, President Christina Adrianapoulos Kathryn Bagdis Mary Chenaille David Dominguez Roseann Fitzgerald Matthew Noe Kimberly Smalley Shela Trapasso Directors Remote: Gail Schuyler William Wallace Directors Absent: Sen. Harriet Chandler Staff Present: Jason Homer, Executive Director Sulma Rubert-Silva, Director for Administration and Operations Tressa Santillo, Director for Library Innovation and Public Services Peggy Lelievre, HR and Development Manager Angela Bennett, Deputy Director for Youth Services Jen Marien, Deputy Director for Adult Services Garrett Morin, Deputy Director for Borrower Services 1. Call to Order at 5:00 PM President Laura Nicole Miller called the meeting to order at 5:00 PM. 2. Approval of September 24, 2025 Minutes Nicole Miller asked the WPL Board if there were any comments or questions about the September 24, 2025 Minutes and noted that there was no October meeting. Since there were none, President Nicole Miller asked for a motion to approve the minutes. MOTION TO APPROVE: Katie Bagdis and SECONDED by Sheila Trapasso. Nicole Miller asked the board to approve the minutes by a show of hands, and the minutes were approved unanimously. 3. President’s Notes (Nicole Miller) President Nicole Miller noted that there are two open seats on the Worcester Public Library board and asked the WPL Directors to share the announcement with friends who they believe would be a great fit for the board and would like to serve the Worcester community. The announcement will be posted on the City of Worcester website soon. She noted that directors Katie Bagdis and William Wallace have completed their terms and will leave the board at the end of December. Nicole Miller also noted that the recordings of the Worcester Public Library board meetings are now accessible on the City of Worcester YouTube channel. She noted that the WPL is recruiting for the Projects and Special Events Coordinator position which is the re-envisioned position of Executive Assistant to the Executive Director. This includes the responsibilities of Recording Secretary for the WPL Board. ED noted that there have been a record number of applications for the opportunity. Nicole Miller noted that Sen. Harriet Chandler is unable to attend tonight’s meeting because she is attending the unveiling of her official portrait at the Massachusetts State House for her service was President of the Senate. Nicole Miller congratulated Sen. Chandler on this great event and being honored at the Museum of Worcester Harvey Ball last month. Nicole Miller noted that Bill Wallace attended the event at the State House. Finally, Nicole Miller noted that the Directors’ Retreat has been postponed indefinitely with the intention to plan the retreat so that the ED, WPL staff and consultants can plan the programmatic portion of the retreat. Nicole Jones noted that the retreat would not happen in this fiscal year. 4. Report of the Executive Director (Homer) ED had some exciting announcements. The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) announced the Commissioner Awards. In 2025, the Samuel Swett Green Award was present to the Trans-Librarian Advocacy Group. A WPL staff member named Ray who works for One City One Library moderates the Trans-Librarian group meetings and is among the recipients of the Samuel Sweet Green Award, named after the second head librarian of the Worcester Public Library. Highlights from November 2025 Report Connect Our Community On November 13, 2025, the ED was invited by Sen. Robyn Kennedy to speak at the press conference for Bill S. 2328, An Act Regarding Free Expression. The Act was passed by the Massachusetts Senate and now moves onto the House. It was championed by Sen. Julian Cyr and co-sponsored by Sen. Jake Olivera. Both of Worcester’s Senators also sponsored the bill. The Act protects librarians and school librarians against book bans and requires 2 all libraries to have collection development policies. Other speakers at the event included ACLU, Mass Quality, David Leonard, the president of the Boston Public Library, and a librarian in charge of the Intellectual Freedom Committee. Worcester History Deep-Dive Series: On 10/18, Local History and Genealogy Librarian Alex presented the latest installment which featured the history of Worcester State Hospital, which attracted 55 attendees. Since the series began in December 2024, there have been more than 300 attendees. He is planning an upcoming session on the Catacombs. Youth Services: Youth Services visited four Know Your School Nights and two Trunk or Treat events reaching 1,000+ people with WPL materials and program information. School officials have complimented WPL Teen Librarian Winter for her amazing presentations. Promote Learning & Literacy Adult Services: WPL Adult Services Librarian Kira helped an older patron who called the TIS Line for understand the reasons for the government shutdown, as well as the current immigration climate. She was able to pull up reputable sources to explain the key issues thoroughly, as well as to dispel some inaccurate claims that he had heard. At the end of the 15-minute call, he thanked Kira for her time and said that he called the WPL because he trusted a librarian to give him accurate information. Nurture Inclusion & Ideas Alyssa hosted a bilingual Portuguese and English program making Brazilian pão de queijo (cheese bread). Youth Services Manager Allison is working with Angela to do some assessments of the Library’s children’s spaces to be more inclusive for neurodiversity. ED noted that he plans to take that report and make improvements to all WPL branches. Invest In Staff Two WPL staff members presented at NELA in November 2025 consisting of Tara and the ED. Tara’s presentation was the day before the ED’s presentation. Her talk was entitled, “It’s Alive! Reanimating Adult Programming in New England’s Largest City.” The ED’s talk was about staff motivation, and he was able to reference her success in his remarks. ED noted that the WPL is proud of Tara’s work to reinvigorate and reimagine adult programming since she began managing the department in March 2023. WPL Staff had a Costume Contest for Halloween (ED references photo in the November 2025 Report) which included the ED in a costume of “Sean the Page.” 3 Prepare Our Community for the Future Talking Book Library & Federal Government Shutdown Impact: Since 10/1, the federal government has furloughed most Library of Congress staff. TBL cannot submit cataloging records, request music scores, or receive guidance from LOC staff. Existing collections remain fully available and TBL is continuing to monitor the situation and communicate with patrons. The TBL collection is now hosted on a third-party server which enables librarians to make sure patrons receive the books/materials they are requesting. RightHear App: Innovative Wayfinding Technology: Lee Ann Hooley is testing a new app which used Bluetooth to give directions to where things are located in the WPL and helps direct patrons with orientation challenges to different floors. There are signs with blue hexagons throughout the WPL. The app has passed all tests that information on patrons is not being collected. Lee Ann completed a year of research before the app was approved for testing. ED noted that WPL directors have a T-shirt from the Peanuts event. Also, directors received a large WPL umbrella that was given to Friends of the Library volunteers at the October 2025 luncheon Upcoming events: First Friday of December is the Festival of Lights and the WPL is open until 8:30 PM. This is the third year that the WPL has participated. He noted that in 2024, ambulances arrived too late (35 minutes). The WPL has been in touch with the City of Worcester Emergency Preparedness to make sure the City of Worcester is prepared for the Festival of Lights, which is a City event. ED praised the City’s Emergency Preparedness Department for their hard work and improving safety for Worcester residents. ED asked the WPL Directors if they had any questions. David Dominguez asked about the new library cards for students at local colleges and universities. ED noted that Jen and Garrett coordinated the outreach to these schools to make sure these student realize the resources available to them at the public library. David asked for an update on the library’s conference trip to California. ED noted that he has connected with the president of Reforma which is a library association which specializes in surveying Hispanic communities. Reforma held their conference at the end of September 2025, and New Americans Librarian Katelyn Duncan attended the conference. Katelyn has also been working with the City of Worcester on its Welcoming Community initiative. She is now a certified auditor of the Welcoming organization. David asked about the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Great Brook Valley branch and the timeline for completion. ED explained that he and Christine Murray at the WPL Foundation are applying for a Hanover Insurance Foundation grant ($250,000 to $500,000) grant to fund the interior improvements of the new branch. ED said that he 4 anticipates that planning meetings for the new facility will begin in January 2026 and it will be a 21-month timeline from start to finish. For example, WPL IT Manager Mike is working with Trinity Financial to make sure the internet and electrical outlets fit the WPL branch. Angela Bennett oversees all the WPL branches. Matthew Noe asked if the ED had heard any updates on winter sheltering in the City of Worcester. ED said that there is a plan which will soon be announced. There will be a winter shelter located somewhere in Worcester that is not near the WPL. ED added that the City’s winter sheltering plan will be announced by the nonprofit agency and in The Worcester Guardian. 5. Administration Committee Report (Noe) Matthew Noe said that the Administration Committee met on Tuesday, 11/18 to discuss the annual evaluation of the Executive Director. The Admin Committee plans to meet in early December to report to the full board on the evaluation at the December 2025 meeting. 6. Friends of the Library Report (Dominguez) David Dominguez reported that the Friends of the Library Meeting was held at the Green Room of the WPL, on October 21, 2025 at 4:30 PM. Ø Last meeting minutes were approved. Ø Angela and Jen requested support which was approved an amount of $1,860 for six different programs including the Giant Pumpkin (Charles Schultz exhibit), Zumba, and Virtual Cooking Classes. Ø Staff gave a presentation on the Peanuts/Charles Schultz exhibit and were excited about the Friends Bookstore decorations. Ø There was a Mass Friends Meeting on November 8th which was hosted by the Worcester Public Library which brought Friends groups from Truro on Cape Cod. Ø Upcoming Book Sales: There will be a holiday book sale at the Main Branch on December 5th (including wrapping books for a blind date with a book) and a second book sale at the Frances Perkins Branch on January 29, 2026. Ø Financial Report shows total sales of $8,457.35 for June-August 2025. All the budget lines are on track with a remaining balance of $7,849.00 to expend for the rest of the year. There was a $600 additional expenditure for the Talking Books Library. David noted that fax sales continue to be robust ($821/month) and that fax services should be expanded to the Great Brook Valley branch. ED added that the WPL uses a vendor for printing services. There is a plan in place for the Friends to take over operations of the printing at the WPL, and income from patrons’ printing would go to the Friends. The WPL is checking to make sure that the service does not add any expenses to the Friends’ budget. The WPL is trying to keep 5  the costs as low as possible ($10/black and white and $.30/color). There are printers for patrons on every floor of the Library. 7. Worcester Public Library Foundation Updates (R. Fitzgerald) Roseann Fitzgerald noted that Christine Murray and the WPL Foundation are meeting tonight. There will be more to report about the WPL Foundation Celebrate Our Authors event at the next board meeting and noted that event was a resounding success. ED said that many of the bills from the event are still coming in, but the 2025 event was more successful (but the expenses were also higher than 2024). Roseann added that the WPL Foundation event patrons also saw a preview of the new Great Brook Valley Branch and money was raised at the event for the branch. 8. New Business Laura Nicole Miller asked if there was any more new business. ED said yes! He would like to introduce Tressa Santillo, the WPL’s new director of innovation and public service to the WPL Board. Tressa introduced herself and said that she began work at the WPL on November 10th. She is from Central MA and is a Holy Cross graduate. She worked at the Massachusetts Library System, WPI, and the Worcester Art Museum. She has many connections to the Worcester community and is happy to be part of the WPL team. She serves on the board of the Rutland Public Library. The WPL Directors welcomed Tressa and wished her the best in her new role. Nicole Miller inquired whether there was any additional new business to discuss. Since there was none, she asked for a motion to adjourn. MOTION TO ADJOURN by Matthew Noe and SECONDED by Katie Bagdis. The meeting was adjourned at 5:56 PM. 9. Adjournment at 5:56 PM. Respectfully submitted, R. Fitzgerald 6 NOVEMBER BOARD REPORT Jason Homer Executive Director Worcester Public Library  Diwali Celebration CONNECT OUR COMMUNITY Youth Services Librarian Cara coordinated a Diwali celebration featuring three local artists who taught cultural dance, created hand-drawn henna designs, and led diya painting with 80 patrons. Feedback from families was An Act overwhelmingly positive, with children enthusiastically participating in the dance challenge tied to rhythmic Regarding Free footwork. Expression Community Outreach & School Engagement Youth Services staff visited four Know Your School Nights and two Trunk or Treat events, reaching 1,000+ people with WPL materials and program information. Alicia’s Babysitter Training engaged 12 tweens from six schools across Worcester. Participants bonded so strongly that they Worcester History Deep-Dive Series formed a group chat to stay connected. On October 18, Local History and Genealogy Librarian Alex presented the latest installment of his Worcester History Deep-Dive series on the Worcester State Immigration & Social Support Hospital, drawing 55 attendees, including former staff and former patients who On October 15, Katelyn facilitated a regional convening with contributed firsthand stories. The series, launched December 2024, has now the MA Office for Refugees and Immigrants and staff from brought nearly 300 attendees and continues to connect longtime residents the Attorney General’s Office, drawing 60+ service with newcomers through shared local history. providers and community members. PROMOTE LEARNING & LITERACY Helping Patrons Navigate these Times: Kira had an older patron call the TIS line the other day asking for reference help. He wanted to understand the reasons for the government shut down as well as the current immigration climate. He had heard some of the broader talking points used by specific government officials, but he wanted to know about it on a deeper level. She was able to pull up reputable sources to help explain the key issues more thoroughly and also help dispel some of the inaccurate claims that he had heard. The patron was genuinely open to new information and asked additional questions over the course of the 15-minute conversation. At the end of the call, he thanked Kira for her time and said that he called us because he trusted a librarian to give him accurate information. Working with WPS Winter taught two database research to a total of around fifty seventh graders at Burncoat Middle. We talked about how to choose a database from the WPL’s website, how to develop a search strategy, and how to assess a source. Students learned about thinking critically about the information they consume, and the different resources the WPL offers to help them with school and research. ED Jason has been at 3 meetings this month where someone from WPS has praised Winter. NURTURE INCLUSION & IDEAS Alyssa hosted a bilingual Portuguese and English program making Brazilian pão de queijo. Twenty-seven people enjoyed making and eating the bread and chatting with each other in both English and Portuguese. Allison hosted an observation with the Lark center, and afterwards discussed what improvement could be made to the children’s and teen spaces to be more inclusive of neurodiversity. Lark Center prepared an entire report, which will be taken under consideration for what improvements could reasonably be made. Bright Star Theatre presented their Hispanic Folktales program in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month INVEST IN STAFF Tara recently presented at NELA about adult programming, which she also presented at MLA in May. Titled “It’s Alive! Reanimating Adult Programming in New England’s Second Largest City”, Tara discussed how she revamped adult programming since she became Manager of Adult Services in March 2023. Using photos from actual programs hosted at the Main Library, Tara illustrated how to keep up with current trends, dealing with positive and negative patron feedback, working with outside presenters, the value of all types of programs from educational to entertaining, marketing and promotion, and staff buy-in. Afterwards, several librarians asked Tara for advice about various aspects of program planning, including a librarian who was overwhelmed with programming at her small library and wants to work with Tara on reshaping programs for that community.  PREPARE OUR COMMUNITY LOOKING AHEAD FOR THE FUTURE • Expanded staff de-escalation training through November. • Continued rollout of RightHear accessible wayfinding. • Ongoing Youth Services outreach to schools and family Talking Book Library – Federal programs. Government Shutdown Impact • Continued Peanuts programming and exhibit promotion through January 4, 2026. As of October 1, the federal government shutdown has furloughed most Library of • Increased community partnerships through Community Congress staff. TBL cannot submit cataloging records, request music scores, or Resources, including multilingual and immigration support receive guidance from LOC staff. Patrons remain concerned about access to new services. materials; however, existing collections remain fully available. TBL continues • Holiday season programming across all locations. monitoring the situation and communicating with patrons. Innovative Wayfinding Technology (Talking Book Library) RightHear testing is underway and receiving extremely positive feedback. This system will significantly improve independent navigation for patrons with orientation challenges by using bluetooth receivers at key locations to allow for blind people to navigate to each location!