Friday, August 21, 2020

Q & A Thursday, August 20, 2020

 

Would anyone like to volunteer and tell us how things are going in the branches?

Cumming:  Denise said everything is great!  We are busier than we have been with students and tutors.  More patrons are wearing masks and we are still doing curbside.  The scavenger hunt has been popular, we recently had 8 High School students who participated just to get the dinosaur toys.  Bruce has started back volunteering.  This is his 2nd week back and he is volunteering Tuesdays/Thursdays.  We are super excited about our new staff.  We also have the Overbooked Book Club.  We have new furniture and the patrons love it every time we put out new furniture.  Also we are still hoping one day to get a new roof.

Post Rd:  Ann said more patrons are wearing masks which is great.  Some patrons are not wearing masks when they arrive but do take one of ours to wear.  There is an increase of kids, some are walking over but not in the usual droves, but I am hopeful.  Holly came over to discuss our furniture layout and was able to re-configure new 4-seater chairs.  We have lots of staff creating videos for virtual programs.  We have a new staff member, Jessica, and this is her 1st week and we are all very excited.

Sharon Forks:  Cleo said staff are logged in today but may not have microphones. Like CU, the branch is getting busier, but definitely not at all close to pre-COVID levels. We've seen some more people working in the branch during the day as well as seeing more teens in the teen room. On the kids' side, I know we've all gotten to do some more reader's advisory which has been a nice change. Curbside remains very popular. We've had some big pull lists this week as well. Most of our patrons have been wearing masks.

 Hampton Park:  Brooke said it’s busier but not crazy, computers are being used a lot and they are trying to figure out how to set out more.  Readers Advisory has increased with the launch of our new website, reading suggestions have exploded!  SF has been great at helping out.  We have a new CSA that started yesterday who was an amazing programming volunteer.  We are just plugging along…..

 How are Sarah/Joanie/Lorraine doing with the Lost Items list?

 Joanie said that Denise & SF have helped out, originally there were 510 patrons on the list and they have taken this on a case by case basis.  We have completed the list.  One patron paid for some lost items that she later found and went ahead and returned the items as donations.  There will be an update early next week on the staff blog.

 How did the RBDigital migration go?

 Jeff said the migration went very well and we have received positive feedback.  Some items are temporarily unavailable and OverDrive is working on these issues.

 Sometimes the supervisors are busy and staff arrive at the branch at different times over the course of the day.  Would it be possible for staff to take their own temperatures?  Staff would be more aware of their own normal temperature and would be able to notice a rise faster than a supervisor would.

 This is a great question.  We have talked about this and Steve is working on a survey and I encourage everyone to respond to the survey when it is distributed.

 Can we get an update on the availability of cleaning supplies particularly alcohol?

 There is a purchase limit of only 2 bottles at a time.  Disinfecting wipes are not easily available but we do have a source.  We cannot find the Purell refills anywhere.  Please email Tonya a list of any supplies you need.

 What is the current thinking on the 30 minute limit to patrons?  We have several regulars at SF who come in for computer use and ask for an extension on their way in.  We want to be fair to all.  Who gets to stay?  The people waiting to enter or the ones that have been at the branch over 30 minutes?

 We need to enforce the 30 minute limit to allow access for others.  If a patron asks for extra time immediately when they come in you can tell them they can have extra time but if others come in we may need to ask you to cut it short.

 General Discussion:

Anna discussed the Governor’s executive order no longer prohibits mask requirements.  We recently had a meeting with the Branch Managers to discuss the possibility of requiring patrons to wear masks and we will get advice from the County and our attorney.  We need to be cautious and remember this doesn’t fix everything.  We would need to make exceptions for patrons with health conditions or religious beliefs. We are investigating these options and will keep you posted.

 Steve let everyone know that we are currently looking at options to add additional Plexiglas to needed areas.  We are looking to make changes for long-term solutions that protect but also look nicer because we do not know how long the pandemic will last.

 Nikki announced that we are moving forward with the salary study that was delayed due to COVID.  Evergreen Solutions will conduct the study remotely beginning the week of August 31st and it will last approximately 2 days.  Employees will be asked to be part of focus groups and will be interviewed virtually.  More information to follow.

 Paula will initiate a new social media campaign called Thank You Thursday.  She came up with this idea after last week’s Q&A and several kudos and shout-outs were mentioned.   The first one was published on our Facebook page yesterday (Thursday) thanking staff and volunteers for all the work they do and we received several comments of gratitude from patrons.  Shout-outs in today’s Q&A were given to Tracy Walker, Nicholas Yeatman, and Jennifer Forbes for recent heroic efforts.  One last shout-out to Paula for coming up with such a great idea!

 Good luck goes out to both Lorraine and Joanie as they take their CDL exam today.  Best wishes from your co-workers!!

 

 

 

 

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