Category Archives: Trustee-Home Page

Catch up on the Trustee Handbook Book Club! Co-authors of the Handbook for Library Trustees of New York State Jerry Nichols and Rebekkah Smith Aldrich, MHLS Executive Director discuss a different chapter of the Trustee Handbook and answer your questions every month. You can catch up on past sessions, register for upcoming events and submit

Let’s get ready to speak up for libraries! MHLS has put together a checklist to prepare you for Advocacy Week, February 28th – March 4th. Attend the MHLS Advocacy Briefing at 2:00 pm today (2/22)! Join Executive Director, Rebekkah Smith Aldrich to discuss the 2022 budget & legislative priorities, effective talking points and what advocacy

The Committee on Open Government released a memo on February 15th that indicates the adjustments to Open Meetings Law that allow for remote meetings has been extended through March 16th , 2022. Kristin O’Neill, Assistant Director of the Committee on Open Government, will be presenting a virtual Open Meetings Law training program on Thursday, February

Join co-authors of the Handbook for Library Trustees of New York State Jerry Nichols and MHLS Executive Director, Rebekkah Smith Aldrich for the next session in the Trustee Handbook Book Club series on Tuesday, February 22nd at 5:00 pm. The chapter covered will be Facilities. Register for this session or visit https://midhudson.org/trusteebookclub/ to view upcoming sessions and

Governor Hochul extended the NYS “mask or vax” mandate through February 10th, 2022. Hochul indicated the mask rule will be considered every two weeks for an extension. New Yorkers are encouraged to upgrade to KN95 masks. KN95 masks have most recently been distributed to local organizations through state legislators.

Ask Me Anything (AMA) with Rebekkah Smith Aldrich, MHLS Executive Director & Co-Author of the Handbook for Library Trustees of New York State is a monthly installment where Rebekkah will answer your questions! Feel free to submit your question here or to contact Rebekkah at rsmith@midhudson.org with the subject line: AMA Trustee Question. Q. Does

The MHLS Board of Trustees met on Tuesday, January 11th. Highlights from the meeting included: Appointment of Peter Carey to fill the seat representing Putnam County recently vacated by a resignation. Review of the board’s 2022 Priorities; A review of the new gender-neutral protocols for the board’s minutes; Approval of the annual fiscal designations; Approval

What libraries need to know about the Digital Equity Act: Signed into law by President Joe Biden on November 15th, 2021, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) includes an historic investment in advancing digital equity and an opportunity for libraries to leverage and expand their digital inclusion roles. The Digital Equity Act (DEA), a

Annual evaluation of the library director and the library board are key ingredients to a healthy organization. Evaluating the director without a companion evaluation of the board can create a lopsided evaluation strategy of the governance and management of the organization so be sure to plan for both, each year. For tips and sample forms

Oath of Office Reminder for Public Library Trustees: New York State Public Officer’s Law §10 requires all public library trustees (but not association library trustees) to take and file an oath of office within 30 days of beginning their term of office. Public library trustees are public officers, and the oath of office is required