United for Libraries has provided a variety of organizational tools to help your Board of Trustees be more effective. If you have ideas for resources to be added here, please email united@ala.org.
The Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA) has developed a resource for public library directors and state library agency staff members to draw upon for use in training members of their boards and governing bodies. The Public Library Trustee Manual: A Template for Use by State Library Agencies and Public Libraries consists of basic information needed by Trustees to be an effective board member and library advocate.
The Jefferson County Public Library (Lakewood, CO) implemented a naming rights program in conjunction with the recent remodel of its Golden Library. See the brochure (PDF, 994 kb), guidelines (Word, 34 kb), and policy (Word, 45 kb) for more information.
Looking for a sample library director evaluation? Check out these examples shared with permission:
- Board of Trustees of the Hatfield (Mass.) Public Library Director Evaluation (PDF, 110kb)
- Rochester Hills Public Library Board Evaluation of Library Director (Word, 37kb)
- Mid-Hudson Library Director Evaluation Part I (PDF,96 kb)
- Mid-Hudson Library Director Evaluation Part II (Word, 61 kb)
The Understanding Roles: The Separate But Complementary Roles of Friends, Trustees, and Library Directors (PDF, 58 kb) will help you define the roles of the Friends, Trustees, and library staff in working together to support the library. United for Libraries members also have access to an annotated version of this resource, available in the Trustee Zone and the Friends & Foundations Zone with a username and password. If you are a member of United for Libraries and need a login, please email united@ala.org. Once logged in, look for Toolkit 5: Model Friends Cooperative Network.
The sample policies are a good starting point for your board to discuss the issues and concerns particular to your library and community. United for Libraries members are invited to share their policies for posting as well.
The Public Library Trustee Ethics Statement is an official statement approved by United for Libraries.
Basic Principles of Parliamentary Procedure (Dr. John A. Cagle, Parliamentarian of the Academic Senate and Professor of Communication, California State University, Fresno)
The worksheet "Know Your Community Governing Official" will help Trustees prepare for meetings with their representatives.
Trustees in the Search for Web Order by Fred Stielow, Ph.D., M.L.S., is a summary from the Center for the Future of Libraries Symposium at the 2017 ALA Midwinter Meeting in Atlanta, Ga.
Cash for Your Classroom, a guidebook for school and classroom funding from Accredited Schools Online, offers funding ideas, strategies, and resources, as well as tips on different types of fundraising.