From the Director's Desk

August 20, 2010
Beverly J. Obert, Executive Director, Rolling Prairie Library System
Beverly J. Obert, Executive Director

The Future: The planning has begun

On Thursday, August 12, the first official meeting of the Southern Systems Planning Panel met. The group affirmed the process and created four subcommittees to begin work towards a merged system. Those subcommittees are Strategic Planning; Legal, Governance and Membership; Delivery; and Resource Sharing. Each subcommittee met briefly that day to begin their work.

One of the decisions of the panel was to hold each of the next four meetings at a different system headquarters. The September 14th meeting that was originally scheduled to be in Effingham will now be held in Carterville, the location of the Shawnee Library System. The exact dates of the following meetings have not yet been set but the locations have been announced. The October meeting will be held at the Lewis and Clark Library System in Edwardsville, and the November meeting will be at Rolling Prairie Library System here in Decatur. Lincoln Trail Libraries System in Champaign will be the location of the December meeting. As soon as exact dates are known we will post them.

There are many unknowns at this time. The only thing that we know for certain is that support of delivery and LLSAP services must continue in the new entity that is being created. How will these services be provided, from what locations, and by whom? These are all unknowns. This is the work that the panel and current System staff will be undertaking. At this time we do not know when merger documents and application documents for the new system need to be sent to the State Library. What we do know is that the new entity must be in place and ready to operate on July 1, 2011, if there is to be no interruption in services.

What can you do to stay informed about the planning process and decisions?

  • Read the documents found on the Cooperation Today website. You can add comments to any of the documents listed there, and we need to hear what you have to say. Give us your feedback on the current documents. Ask questions or propose solutions.
  • Contact the members of the planning panel directly. Their names and contact information have been added to Cooperation Today. Ask your system director questions on the process.
  • Attend meetings of the System Board where the process is being reported and discussed.
  • If you are an RPLS LLSAP member, plan to attend the October Users’ Group meeting, where the planning process as it relates to the LLSAP will be discussed.
  • Attend the meetings of the planning panel, observe what is happening and talk with the panel members face-to-face.

Get involved now, and let your voice be heard.

Beverly J. Obert, Executive Director

Rolling Prairie Library System
A Library for Librarians
Helping Libraries Serve Illinois Citizens