Youth Services Section

Meeting Minutes 11/21/19

Present: Marissa Antosh (Duxbury), Katrina Ireland-Bilodeau (Northborough), Kat Lewin (Tewksbury), Bethany Coito (New Bedford), Ellen Sulzycki (Springfield), Sarah Johnson (Northampton), Corrina Stokes (Chicopee), Brent Tenerowicz (Chicopee), Erin Daly (Chicopee).

1. Executive Board Updates
1. Budget due; requested $400 for this year but haven’t spent any yet. $400 requested for next year as well.
2. Strategic plan for MLA; membership will vote in 2021
3. Submitted our new logo, made by Kat Lewin, as well as pet contest to eNewsletter for November
2. Conference updates: youth date is Tuesday, May 19 in Hyannis.
1. The conference committee is looking for shepherds to introduce the youth programs. Submit your name to Katrina if you're interested!
2. Fundraising/ideas for YSS basket.

                        a.      Ellen will coordinate collection of money and will put basket together.

                        b.      Thinking paper/stationary/fun pens or other writing implements to coordinate with summer reading theme (fantasy/write your own story)

       3. Fundraising

1. Pet contest: we have 11 submissions so far at $5 each. PayPal has been taking about 59 cent fee for each transaction. If we have 48 submissions, which is how many photo spaces we have, it would be $240 to offset the printing.
2. Marissa brought a prototype of the monthly planner. It’s 8 ½” x 11”, will be spiral bound with an info page at the front, “Local Information” page to put the government/school contact information at the beginning. Will change to contact page with name/organization/phone/email for more personalization. Will add notes section at the back. Index of pets. Librarian quotes in the boxes or below the month banner if we don’t have enough submissions in the pet contest. Place to enter numbers for the days.
3. What is our end goal for fundraising- scholarship? Yes! A youth services person specifically for the scholarship to go to conference. OR for MLA membership to join YSS! J

      4. Upcoming elections- all positions are coming up for election

1. Chair- runs meetings, goes to eBoard meeting , creates agendas, directs YSS.
2. Conference Committee Liaison meets every month except December- put out call for proposals to youth librarians, visit venues, go through proposals and coordinates the presenters. 
3. Secretary- takes minutes at meetings, posts on wiki
4. Voting is before conference, probably by February. Need to create a conference committee (of one person)

       5. General Merriment!

1. YSS only has about 35-40 current members. How can we make YSS more attractive? What is the money they pay to be MLA members doing for us? What if we rearrange the meetings to be *only* online and arrange quarterly meetings to be more social.
2. Social meetups ideas: Guerilla Storytime, ‘Stitch n bitch’, presenters, librarian libations 
3. Ellen is hosting a conference in Springfield. Chrissy Howard from Davis Foundation is helping: “Multicultural Children’s Literature Symposium” is working title. Hopefully a pilot of ongoing event: Will have speakers, local educators, librarians, short keynote, panel, breakout sessions and wine! Funding from Davis Foundation. Cosponsored by YSS? Springtime.
4. Hiring at Forbes a full time children’s and youth librarian!
5. Action items:

                            a.      Marissa will email conference chairs

                            b.      Get a list of all regional youth groups? CHATS, NOBS, SEYS, MVLC, etc. Perhaps we can collaborate with them?

                            c.      Email Esme with update and request suggestions. Can we invite non-members?

                            d.      Think about incentives for joining? New librarian skills booklet

                            e.      New children’s librarian wiki?

                             f.      Members of ALSC? They get newsletter, display ideas, programs coming up, frozen party, shared Pinterest board,

                            g.      Kat Lewin will create a quarterly newsletter for YSS specific

                            h.      yss@masslib.org is new email address

                             i.      Mock Newbery as general merriment/social hour idea