The Upper Sandusky Community Library Board of Trustees holds its regular meetings on the second Thursday of every month at 12:00 p.m. in the library's board meeting room in the basement. The meetings are open to the public.
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The approved minutes for the most recent Board of Trustees meeting is available below.
Upper Sandusky Community Library Board of Trustees: Oct. 9, 2025
The Upper Sandusky Community Library Board of Trustees convened on Thursday, October 9, at 12:45 p.m. in the Library Board Room with the following members present: Ms. Jenny Romich, Ms. Dianne Grafmiller, Mr. Ben Buckland, Mr. Todd Leightey, and Ms. Ann Kemerley. Ms. Amy Aldridge-Ritchey and Mr. Brian Kimmel attended virtually through Zoom. Director Kathleen Whitt, Deputy Fiscal Officer Patti Davidson, and Brian Hemminger of the “Daily Chief-Union” were also present.
President Jenny Romich asked for public comments. Hearing none, Ms. Romich asked if there were corrections or additions to the distributed minutes of the September meeting. Hearing none, Ms. Romich declared that the minutes stand as distributed.
Next on the agenda was a motion to ratify the payment of the bills. Ms. Romich asked if there were any questions about the bills. Hearing none, the motion was made and seconded to ratify the payment of bills; in a roll call vote, all attending approved the bills.
Under old business, the location of the November meeting was discussed. Ms. Whitt said she had previously thought it would be necessary to find another location to meet or to meet virtually, since the Board Room will be unavailable due to construction. The library’s large meeting room will be available, however, and the Board is scheduled to meet there.
Under new business, the Board considered a revision to the Virtual Meetings Policy. As adopted, paragraph 9 of the policy stated “Any Trustee who intends to attend any scheduled in-person Meeting remotely through use of electronic technology must notify the President of the Library Board of Trustees and the Library Director of same at least 48 hours prior to the Meeting, except in the case of an Emergency - in which event the Trustee is to give such prior notice as is reasonably possible.” It was moved and seconded to require only 24 hours’ notice of intention to attend an in-person meeting virtually. In a roll call vote, all attending approved the motion.
Ms. Whitt next noted that Mr. Leightey’s term of office will expire on December 31. Mr. Leightey said that he is willing to continue to serve if the Board agrees. The Board nominated him to serve another term, which under the provisions of HB96, which was passed in June of this year, will now be for four years rather than seven; Ms. Whitt will send a letter to the Board of the Upper Sandusky Exempted Village School District with this recommendation.
It was then moved and seconded that the Board move to executive session in order to discuss the director’s performance evaluation and salary action, as well as other personnel matters. In a roll call vote, all attending approved the motion. The Board entered executive session at 1:00.
At 1:30, the regular session was resumed.
The Board agreed with the director’s performance evaluation, and expressed appreciation for the library’s growth under her direction over the years. It was moved and seconded that the director’s salary be increased by 4.00%, effective November 8, 2025 (the beginning of the first pay period after the anniversary date of November 1); in a roll call vote, all present approved the motion.
The Board then reviewed and accepted the annual staff performance evaluations, which Ms. Whitt had submitted.
Next on the agenda was a revised pay schedule for 2026, with a 2.8% across the board increase in pay ranges in view of the 2.8% percent increase in the Ohio minimum wage effective January 1, 2026. This would affect only staff currently at minimum wage. The motion was made and seconded to approve the 2026 pay schedule; in a roll call vote, all attending approved the motion.
The next item on the agenda was consideration of the health insurance plan offered to eligible staff. At the regular meeting of April 10, 2025, Mr. Wes Campbell of LFG Benefits (formerly SEBO) offered the possibility of moving to an ICHRA (Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement), in order to control the steep increase in policy premiums. Under this arrangement, staff would be able to shop the marketplace for individual plans and receive a stipend from the library to help with the premiums. He suggested that the Board consider changing to this type of coverage beginning in January 2026. Mr. Campbell recently contacted Ms. Whitt again about this matter and suggested that a move to the ICHRA arrangement should save a significant amount of money to both the library and the participating staff members. It was moved and seconded to change the staff health insurance from a group plan to the ICHRA arrangement, and to pay up to $1,450 per staff member per month to assist with the premium; this is an 11% increase over the $1,316 (80%) of the current premium. In a roll call vote, all attending approved the motion.
The next topic of discussion was the 2026 goals and annual budget and appropriations request. Mrs. Whitt submitted the appropriations request together with an estimate of revenues expected. It was moved and seconded to approve the goals and 2026 budget request at the category level, as presented by the director. In a roll call vote, all attending approved the motion.
The Board next considered holiday recognitions for the library staff. It was moved and seconded to give $100 in VISA gift cards to each staff member, as well as one pass each for the annual Fantasy of Lights display, and to authorize the director to spend up to $600 for a staff dinner and party. In a roll call vote, all attending approved the motion. The last item on the agenda was a year-end bonus for library staff. In order to show the Board’s appreciation for the hard work and dedication of the staff, it was moved and seconded to award $200 to each part-time staff member and $400 to full-time staff members. In a roll call vote, all attending approved the motion.
In the Director’s Report, Ms. Whitt reported that:
- Our new microfilm scanner was received and installed on September 30. The basic controls for viewing and printing microfilm images are similar to those on our older machine, so users won’t have a lot of trouble getting used to this one. We had a demonstration on automatic scanning, but there will be a learning curve for this advanced function, in order to ensure we get good quality scans for digitization.
- A library patron has very generously donated $1,000 for the purchase of a new refrigerator for the meeting room kitchenette. This will make preparation for our food-related programming much easier.
- Kindergarten and 1st grade class visits resume this month. The week of October 20 will see our first graders at the library, while kindergartners will come the first Tuesday of each month throughout the school year.
- CraftParty is also back this month, with an Autumn Book Nook project. The Common Readers will discuss James by Percival Everett, and the Inglorious Bookworms are reading J. H. Markert’s The Nightmare Man. The Lunch Bunch theme this month is “Apples and Pumpkins.”
- On October 29, we will host our Jack-O-Lantern jubilee, with a pumpkin carving demonstration and workshop. Then on October 30, we will display these creations and offer treats at our S’mores Party and Pumpkin Glow.
- Memorial/Honor/Donations:
- In memory of:
- Jenny Barnes (donor: Steve & Kim Rall)
- Donna Crawford (donors: Gene & Sharon Stoner; Thomas & Valerie Bauer; John & Elaine Grundtisch)
- Becky Carpenter (donors: Sharon Blank; Dave & Shirley Herring; Steve & Jill Eyestone; Beth Garrison; Brian & Cynthia Couch; Dorothy Newell; Carolyn Bordelon)
- In memory of:
There were no Items Not on the Agenda.
Ms. Romich asked whether there were any additional items for discussion. Hearing none, the motion was made and seconded to adjourn; the meeting was adjourned at 2:10 p.m.
If you would like to view older Board of Trustees minutes, please email uscl@seolibraries.org.