by Roger Seiler
On January 14, 2013 three Nyack Library Trustee terms expire. The incumbents have been nominated by the Board of Trustees to stand for reelection: E. Michael Growney, Jr. of Upper Nyack, and Debra Karten and Kevin Doyle of South Nyack.
As provided by the Bylaws of the Nyack Library, residents of the Nyack Library’s chartered service area may also nominate candidates to fill these positions, each with a term of three years expiring in 2016. The requirement for nomination by the public is that a library trustee nominating petition (on a form available from the library) with at least 25 signatures of chartered service area residents of voting age be filed with the library’s administration office no later than 1:30 pm on December 31, 2013.
Service on the library board is voluntary with no monetary compensation. Library trustees attend at least one regular monthly meeting on the second Monday evening. In addition, each trustee typically serves on at least two board committees, such as Finance, Personnel, Management, Building Maintenance, etc. The time requirement for each trustee generally ranges from about 3 to 10 hours per month. Trustees who are elected by the Board as its officers serve from 10 to 30 hours per month, also without monetary compensation.
The Board of Trustees’ main responsibilities are for adopting library policy, choosing and supervising the library director, adopting a budget and overseeing its administration, and obtaining financial support for the library. To adequately fulfill these responsibilities, trustees must be capable of reading and understanding financial statements utilizing balance sheet accounting. Insofar as the library has a complex annual budget of nearly $3 million, mostly raised by a library tax, this financial oversight ability is especially important. In addition, each trustee is expected to assist in building and maintaining strong financial support for the library in the community, such as assisting in the library’s ongoing fundraising efforts.
In making its nominations, the Board follows a policy of providing each of its constituent geographic areas with representation proportional to their populations, as well as adequate representation by gender, age, ethnicity and professional skills needed by the Board in order to effectively represent the community and do its job.
In addition to the three full terms up for election in January, there are two trustees appointed to unexpired terms that will be on the ballot seeking confirmation of their appointments. They are Stephen Beck of Upper Nyack, who has agreed to serve as treasurer of the library, and Peter Vermazen of Nyack, who has volunteered to apply his building expertise to building maintenance oversight and cost savings.
The election of trustees will occur at the Nyack Library on Monday, January 14th between the hours of 10 am and 7:30 pm. Absentee Ballot applications are available at the Library’s Customer Service Desk or by contacting Minerva Parker at 845-358-3370 ext. 218 or mparker@nyacklibrary.org. Completed applications need to be received no later than December 26, 2012, 9:00 pm, and the Absentee Ballot no later than 7:45 pm, Monday, January 14, 2013.
More information about the library trustees election, nominating process and absentee ballots is available on the library website: http://nyacklibrary.org
Roger Seiler is the President, Nyack Library Board of Trustees