ELT Presentation

A BIG THANKS to Jennifer for an outstanding presentation to ELT. She was able to express staff concerns regarding storage space at the service desk and a need for a public phone line. She also provided customer feedback concerning lighting in specific areas of the library. Jennifer was able to describe and explain the dynamic work that staff are doing at Frank Library, with limited resources. She provided examples of the effectiveness of cross trained staff and the flexibility to provide coverage whether its programming or working the service desk. Thanks for the great work, considering the short notice.

Thanks to everyone on the Frank Library staff for all of the hard work and effort.

Edward Melton
HPL Express

Notification of Tardiness or Absence

The City of Houston Human Resources Department asked each City department to review, revise and/or create an absence/tardiness policy that describes appropriate notification methods. In particular, the use of electronic technology needed to be addressed.



A cross-section of employees provided input and a new Library Policy and Procedure was created: 5.0 Notification of Tardiness or Absence



Highlights of Policy and Procedure 5.0 Notification of Tardiness or Absence

· Employee must report unscheduled absence or tardiness to appropriate staff which includes: the supervisor, authorized employee designated by the supervisor, or manager in the upward chain of command, at or before reporting time.

· The employee is required to speak directly to the supervisor or appropriate staff.

· If supervisor or appropriate staff is not immediately available then employee may leave a message with a direct contact number on voicemail, email or text message.

· Supervisor or appropriate staff must respond upon retrieval of the message, however, it is still the employee’s responsibility to ensure they speak directly to their supervisor or appropriate staff no later than 30 minutes after scheduled reporting time.

· An employee may make up time (up to 4 hours) in the relevant pay period if approved by the supervisor.



Revisions were also made to the existing Library Policy and Procedure: 5.1 - Hours, Time and Attendance.



Important Revisions to existing Policy and Procedure 5.1 - Hours, Time and Attendance:



Prior to Revision

· In 5.1 Hours, Time and Attendance Procedure, section C it was stated “In no case should notification be later than 1 hour after scheduled starting time.



After Revision

· In 5.1 Hours, Time and Attendance Procedure, section C now states “In no case should notification be later than 30 minutes after scheduled starting time.



You can review the entire policy and procedure by visiting the Library’s intranet site, at https://hplnet.hpl.lib.tx.us/. Once there, choose Forms and Documents/Policies and Procedures. The new policy and procedure is under the Human Resources tab, Policy and Procedure 5.0.



If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact your immediate supervisor or HPL’s Human Resources Division. Thank you.





Regards

Roosevelt Weeks

Deputy Director of Library Administration

Houston Public Library

832-393-1327

Discovery Green Staff Schedule

Starting the week of December 5, the Discovery Green Schedule will be added to the Frank on-line schedule. Keith and Norma will be the primary staff at Discovery Green, with Anthony as a back up to fill scheduling gaps in the absences of either. Anthony will be primarily scheduled at SW. Carolina will be responsible for scheduling the Discovery Green staff and notifying Thuy when Anthony is needed for coverage. This will be in effect until further notice. If you have any questions please contact me.
Edward Melton

AP 2-2 Compliance - Driver Record

A friendly reminder: We have not received all Driver Record Applications for employees who drive on city business. Please assist us with compliance and have these forms in the Human Resources office by close of business Friday, December 4, 2009.

Your cooperation is greatly appreciated.

Edward

Slideshow

Hi Guys!

As you all know I am trying to update our slideshow in the front screen. If you guys have any events that you would like to highlight please create a slide and send it to me by 5pm Tuesday. So far we have:

Adult Programs:
Computer Class
Citizenship Class
GED Courses

Teens:
Animeniacs
Pink Ladies

Juvenile:
Story Time
Book Club
Homework Help
Crafts

And we have included and this months Halloween Party

Please let me know if there is something missing before we upload the new presentation.

Thanks Alot!!!

Jennifer C

HPL Express Vinson

As a follow up to Dr. Lawson's email "Experimental Service Model". HPL Express and Neighborhood library will operate with one unified staff. Esmeralda and Sumitra have been assigned to this service model. The rotating training model that was previously discussed for Vinson Express will not be implemented.

Thanks, Edward

Fire Drill Blitz

FYI...
From Gwen Walter, HPL Safety

Hello. I am planning to start visiting all Neighborhood Libraries to conduct their annual fire drill conducted by HPL Safety. I call it my annual "Fire Drill Blitz." I would like to start next week and continue into December – until I get them all done. I will conduct as many as I can each week with the following parameters.

1. Weather – I will never conduct a fire drill in inclement weather.

2. Geographical Convenience – On any given day I will conduct drills for libraries in close proximities.

3. Time of Day – I will check current library hours and conduct drills when libraries are open to the public. When possible, I will conduct drills before 3:00 p.m. – before school is out.

4. Schedule – I will not have a rigid schedule to complete this task. I will blend the "Fire Drill Blitz" schedule in together with my regular schedule of core duties.

5. Results & Documentation – Upon completion of this tour I compile a report of all drills for the files of Planning & Facilities and the City of Houston Fire Marshall. I will send you a copy of this report as well.

Thank You.

Library Programs

According to library policy we are not to turn customers away from our programs, even if the program is already underway. The exception to this rule is if the room is at or over capacity. The capacity of the Classroom/Big Meeting room is 30 people, and the capacity of the Conference Room is 10 people.

If a customer comes into a class that has already started, you may need to explain that we won't go back so they can catch up, or that you don't have a computer for them to use, but they can still attend the class if there is less than 30 people in the room. Customers can always come back another day to catch part of a class that they missed.

--Jeff

Circ Daily Tally Sheet

I've put the Circ Daily Tally Sheet up on the Google Docs site. You can follow the link here, or see the link "Circ Daily Tally Sheet" under the Desk Information section on the right hand column of the blog page.

--Jeff

Money - Part 2

Frank’s terminal was moved from Location “Frank” to Location “HPL Locations”. So for any reports, such as Merchandise Category Report, beginning today select “HPL Locations” and terminal 5821.

Money - part 1

Feature release: Fines detail button

Search for fines by entering the library card number. When the results appear, you will see a summary of the patron record. It will display the total fines owed. Under the Fines category, it will display an option to pay Fines in Full or Partial. See image below.





If all you wish to do is apply a partial amount towards the fines, or pay the full balance, double click on the “Fine Full/Partial Payment” item. It will then pop up a small window to enter the amount you wish to pay towards the patron’s fines. This can be an amount equal or less than the total due. Then click OK.





You will then see this item in your shopping cart. Then continue the check out process as usual. It pays against the oldest fines first.

Fines Detail

If you wish to see the details of the fines, and pay a select few, you will need to first click on the “Fines Detail button highlighted in the image below.





Upon clicking this the “Fines Detail” button, it will expand the list of fines, displaying each individual fine. This will allow you to,
a. Pay a specific fine item
b. Pay a partial amount towards s specific fine item

Schedule for next week

The schedule for next week is complete through Tuesday.

Wed, Thurs, and Friday are still somewhat incomplete (I still need to add bookddrop, and review everything for programs, etc.). There is a chance that next week we will be hosting some staff members from VIN so that we can help with their cross-training as they prepare to open.

Please let me know what I have missed anywhere on the schedule. I work this Sunday at Alief and I will try to work on the schedule some while I am there.

--Jeff

FY 10 Stats

I have uploaded the full-year FY10 Stats workbook into our Google Docs account. I need all staff to have their stats input by the 3rd of each month so that I can have time to complete everything and copy the data to the Excel workbook on the G: drive by the deadline on the 5th.

Thank You,

--Jeff

Slide show out front

While I am on vacation, someone needs to make sure the slide show in the flat screen TV by the restrooms is running every day. Usually, I just turn off the TV when we close and turn it back on when we open the next day.

Here are the full instructions for how to start up the slide show if we lose power, etc.:

1. Make sure the power on the comptuer behind the TV is turned on.
2. Login using the same username and password we use for Staff machines.
3. Open the Power Point file named "Frank Loop MASTER-1" on the desktop.
4. Start the Slide show by either clicking on the small slide show icon in the lower right corner of the program window or from the Slide Show menu at the top of the screen.

Thank You,

--Jeff

Foerster Elementary

Heads up! The principal of Foerster Elementary has invited her entire school to meet her here on Saturday, 9/12/09, at 10:30 AM. She does not know how many kids will actually show up, but she guesses around 50.

Enjoy!
Megan

Sign In Sheets

All staff are required to sign in when reporting to work and sign out upon leaving. If you fail to complete this task your time and attendance will be adjusted according to the sign in log. It is your responsibility to document your attendance.

Edward Melton

Paperback Classics

Paperback classics should now be visible in the Catalog with a call number of "paperback classic." And they are holdable! This means that staff that does your daily title paging list may now find titles to pull that have a call number of "paperback classic." Please make sure that they are all aware of this change--and that they know where your paperback classics are shelved.

We have done our best to identify and unsuppress all of the appropriate bibliographic records for the paperback classics but it is certainly possible that we missed some. If you come across a paperback classic record that is still suppressed, please send the bib # and title to Erin Cody in COMS.

Staff Meeting with Edward on Sept. 1, 2009

Edward would like to meet with Frank Staff tomorrow morning at 9:30. Rachel from Mobile Express will cover the desk. Please provide any agenda items or concerns that need to be addressed.

Thanks.

--Jeff

Announcements Regarding Technology

Greetings fellow HPL Staff,

I want to update you on some issues so that you know what IT is doing to help with certain challenges we face daily.

First: in an effort to reduce cost, IT has enabled ALL PATRON machines for automatic shutdown after hours. You have probably noticed that when you come in – they have to be turned on. If we are missing any (you find them on) please let the helpdesk know. Our normal night for software updates is Thursday so if there is a long update there is a chance that they are not turned off on Thursday nights.

Soon we will do the same for STAFF PC’s. Until we are able to do that, please log off and then do a shutdown prior to your departure each day. If you have a desktop or laptop with a docking station, you may leave those in Log Off mode on Thursday Nights (do not shut down on Thursdays).

Second: I want to remind you again to be conservative with color printing. There are certain reports that would be meaningless or simply hard to understand if it were not for the use of color. Obviously those can and should be printed in color (if you have a color printer). The most obvious instance of where you do not need color is searching for something on the Internet and then printing. Color will be part of that web page and most generally, the color does not add any real value to the printed document – i.e. mapquest directions, Magazine article, safety tips, Information from medical sites such as Humana or the City of Houston’s Blue Cross, Blue Shield website. I of course cannot give every possible example but I think these should allow you to make a good choice. We have a very difficult time ahead of us and we must be very conscious of our expenditures.

Third: I am sure you are experiencing slow speed on your network. We are aware of this and had hoped that the Optical network project would be complete by now. Unfortunately there were some issues we were not aware of that has caused delay. This project is beginning with a pilot of 10 locations. Due to AT&T planning, an optical circuit can’t be ordered until the site is certified ready and then the lead time is as much as 120 days if your library is not in an area of the city where fiber already exists. I am not going to include the entire schedule at this time but the first locations based on their overall readiness in the network switch closet, are Central, Stella Link, Blue Ridge, Montrose, Johnson, Looscan, Pleasantville and Marston. Due to the Hub and Spoke nature of our Wide Area Network, Central had to be first. Then each line is a point to point connection from Central to that library. When the Fiber is installed, your speed will go from 1.5 million characters per second to 10 million characters per second. This should make a big difference in your Internet experience.

Fourth: LAPTOP’s and Batteries. We realize as our laptops age, that the batteries just do not hold long enough to keep checking a laptop out all day long. It is not recommended to checkout the power supply for two reasons – an outlet must be available near seating to accommodate plugging them in and second, cords stretched from the seat area to outlets become hazards for tripping and falling. We in IT have engaged Hewlett Packard experts to look at this problem with us. We have provided you the reconditioners but the fact remains – HP specification indicates that it takes 4 hours to get a 2 hour charge. We are purchasing new batteries for laptops that will not be replaced this year. We are providing HP with some of the batteries that will not hold a charge any longer so they can test them. We do hope to come up with a good solution to this annoying problem.

I hope this information helps to let you know we are aware of situations you face daily and are diligently working to make them better. I hope we can records some wins in these areas this year.

As always, I will answer your questions.

Best Regards

Ron

Ronald L Stauss
Assistant Director - CTO
Houston Public Library

New Internet Usage Policy - 4.8

There has been a change made to the policy governing Internet Usage here in the library. The change to the policy is as follows:

Change to Section 4.8 (B) 1:

· Old Policy – Current policy states that each user is limited to 2 hours per day.

· New Policy – The new policy states that internet usage is provided in one hour session increments. There is no limit to the number of sessions per day.

This means that users can now use the computer all day if they want to as long it is done within the limits of the policy. Thus, if a patron requests more time on their card then they are to be given that extra time. Staff is empowered to terminate or extend a user session if appropriate. For more information on this particular policy please visit: link.