Public libraries face change on 2 boards; pay raise for many workers planned

1/6/2005

Two new boards members - a substitute teacher and a press operator - start this month at Archbold Community Library and Delta Public Library; and most employees at Fulton County's six public libraries are getting 3 to 5 percent raises.

Corinna Miller, a substitute teacher who previously taught full-time at Wauseon's Elm and Leggett Street schools, was appointed to a seven-year term on the Archbold library board by the Archbold Area Local school board.

One of her goals on the library board is to bring her perspective as a teacher and mother of young children to the board. "My kids and I and my husband use the library a lot," said Mrs. Miller, 34, of Archbold, who said her family goes to the library two to three times a week.

She is to teach Spanish to first and third-graders at the library next month.

Mrs. Miller replaces Evelyn Buckenmeyer of German Township who did not wish to serve another seven years.

In Delta, Rick McKibben, a press operator at Style Solutions Inc. in Archbold, was appointed by the Pike-Delta-York school board to serve the last year of Mary Palmer's term. She resigned last month, citing family constraints.

Mr. McKibben, 53, has a family history with the library. His father, Dick, was a library board member in the 1980s and his mother, Julie, was employed as its clerk-treasurer in the 1990s.

He has helped with telephone and door-to-door campaigns for Pike-Delta-York school levies and said he would like to try the same efforts if the library asks voters for another building levy. Several such library levies were defeated in recent years.

Four members of county library boards were reappointed by their school boards to another seven-year library board term: John Bamonte, Delta Public Library; Gregg Simon, president of the Evergreen Community Library in Metamora; Michael Figgins, vice president of Normal Memorial Library in Fayette; and Janice Helm, Swanton Public Library.

Wauseon Exempted Village school board is to consider Tuesday reappointing Don Meeker, president of the Wauseon Public Library, to that library board.

Employee raises will cost many of the county libraries about $6,000 extra this year. With the raises, the salary range for most of the libraries will start at $6 to $10 an hour for clerks and assistants and go up to $17 to $21 an hour for directors.

Wauseon approved 3 percent raises for five full-time and four part-time employees at a cost of $6,438 and Archbold is giving raises that will average 3 percent to its six full-time and five part-time employees at a cost of about $6,000.

At Swanton and Evergreen, raises will range from 3 to 5 percent.

Despite the raises, the payroll at Swanton is expected to be almost $19,000 lower this year than last year because the library lost three employees in 2004 and the positions are not expected to be filled, director Linda Slaninka said.

"Because people were picking up all those additional responsibilities, it was imperative that we give raises," she said. Swanton, which has six full-time and two part-time employees, had not had raises last year.

At Evergreen, which has three full-time and seven part-time employees, the raises are expected to cost an additional $6,000 a year.

Delta's pay raises were awarded individually and the range was not immediately available from the board. The Normal Memorial board is to discuss raises Wednesday.

Contact Jane Schmucker

at: jschmucker@theblade.com

or 419-337-7780.