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Record of Proceedings

St. Charles Parish Library Board of Control Meeting - November 18, 2025

Parish Council & Boards — Tuesday, November 18, 2025
BodySt Charles Parish, Louisiana
SessionParish Council & Boards
DateTuesday, November 18, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 31:44

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it
0:04

All right, good afternoon.

0:05

This is the St.

0:07

Charles Parish Library Board of Control meeting for November 18th, 2025.

0:13

If we can stand up and have a moment of silence, and then if Mr.

0:18

Mathern can lead us in the pledge.

0:36

Of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands by nation on the liberty and justice for all right.

0:51

Before we get to the agenda, I would like to welcome our newest member to the board, Miss Lindsay Toulier.

0:56

That's we're very excited to have you.

0:58

Thank you.

0:59

Thank you.

1:01

All right.

1:02

First article on the agenda is the approval of the minutes from our September 29th, 2025 meeting, which was actually a special setting.

1:11

Um it was the last week of the month.

1:14

Um Miss Benedict has previously circulated the minutes.

1:18

Can we get a motion to adopt and I mean to approve the minutes?

1:23

I'll make a motion.

1:24

We approve the minutes from last month or from last meeting.

1:27

Mr.

1:27

Mathern, can we get a second?

1:29

And I'll second it.

1:30

Ms.

1:30

Armstrong?

1:31

Yes.

1:33

All right.

1:34

We are going to be doing verbal motions because somehow Miss Armstrong was removed from the list.

1:43

And you've been, I mean, you've been the here for so long.

1:46

So all right, so if we can get if we can get eyes to pass.

1:55

Anybody have a nae?

1:57

All right, unanimous.

1:59

Um it passes approved approval of the minutes.

2:05

And then Miss Benedict has circulated the attendance report.

2:09

Has everybody signed it?

2:11

Yes.

2:11

All right.

2:14

Our next item is public comment.

2:17

Do we have any set public comment?

2:20

We do not.

2:21

All right.

2:24

And then next for our most informative section, the librarians report.

2:28

Miss Benedict.

2:36

Okay.

2:38

All right.

2:40

So I'm going to do things a little bit out of the order that I normally do.

2:43

And I'm going to start with staffing news.

2:45

Um, in staffing news, we had three new part-time staff join our team in October at the West Regional Library.

2:52

Leah Langan as a part-time circulation assistant, and Cheyenne Nikan joined us as a new page.

2:59

And then Stephanie Hill joined the East Regional Library team as a page.

3:04

As I mentioned at our last September meeting, September was library card sign up month, and we encourage library cardholders to tell us what they love most about our library for a chance to win a library prize pack.

3:16

And I've given each of you at your seats a little handout that has all of the comments that we received.

3:24

So it's really nice to read through a lot of really nice comments that we got from our patrons.

3:30

We issued 136 new library cards during the month of September, and we had 40 entries into the Love Your Library contest.

3:39

Three patrons were randomly selected as wenders winners of a library tote bag filled with books and a variety of library branded prizes, along with a library branded folding chair.

3:57

And thanks to everyone who participated.

3:59

And if you go to our Facebook page, you can see pictures of our winners.

4:03

They're really cute.

4:05

Especially one of them is a little one sitting in the chair that they got.

4:10

So cute.

4:12

We are excited to announce that we plan to kick off the 1,000 books before kindergarten program in January.

4:19

A thousand books before kindergarten is a reading program that encourages parents and caregivers to read a thousand books with their children before they start kindergarten.

4:28

The goal is to help children develop early literacy skills like speaking, listening, and communicating, and to build their confidence as readers.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Engagement██████████████████████████████████████38%
Budget Equity Analysis███████████████████19%
Procedural████████████12%
Education███████████11%
Personnel Matters██████████10%
Fiscal Sustainability██████6%
Youth Programs████4%
Summary of Proceedings

St. Charles Parish Library Board of Control Meeting - November 18, 2025

The St. Charles Parish Library Board of Control met on November 18, 2025, at 6:00 PM in the Council Chambers. The board welcomed new member Lindsay Toulier, approved the previous meeting's minutes, heard the Librarian's Report detailing upcoming programs and an exhibit, and received updates on the Hahnville Branch Library project and Hurricane Ida recovery. The board also approved the 2026 holiday schedule and adopted the 2026 budget.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public comments were made during the scheduled public comment periods or the budget hearing.

Discussion Items

  • Librarian's Report (Miss Benedict): Reported on staffing (three new part-time hires), library card sign-up month results (136 new cards, 40 contest entries, three winners), and the upcoming "1,000 Books Before Kindergarten" program launching January 2026. October outreach included 754 attendees at the East Regional Library trunk-or-treat and 139 at a STEM fair. A bronze tactile Braille American flag was donated by the Louisiana Mississippi Blinded Veterans Association. The library collected over 1,200 items for the Matthew 25:35 Thanksgiving food drive.
  • Americans and the Holocaust Exhibit (Lauren Pitts and Maria Bellello): St. Charles Parish Library was one of 50 libraries nationwide selected to host this traveling exhibit from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and the American Library Association. The exhibit will be at the East Regional Library from December 5, 2025 to January 10, 2026. It includes a $3,000 cash grant for public programs. Partnerships include the St. Charles Parish public school system (all eighth graders and some high school students will tour), the National World War II Museum, the Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience, and the Lafon Performing Arts Center. An opening reception will be held on December 5, 2025. The library will be closed that day for staff training.
  • Hahnville Branch Library Project Update: The architect expects to receive the 60% cost estimate from the CMAR on November 21, 2025. A special board meeting in early December will be needed to review and approve the 60% estimate to proceed toward the 90% estimate.
  • Hurricane Ida Recovery Update: No new updates; the matter remains under litigation.
  • 2026 Budget Discussion: Miss Benedict presented a revised budget format including actuals. Key changes: a decrease in the physical materials budget to increase digital spending (e.g., hoopla), and a construction line item of $9.2 million for the Hahnville project. The budget assumes a 2% cost-of-living adjustment and merit increases (approximately 4% total for personnel). The millage is anticipated to be rolled back. The board discussed part-time wage increases due to reaching full staffing. The projected ending fund balance remains comfortable.

Key Outcomes

  • Approval of Minutes: The September 29, 2025 meeting minutes were approved unanimously.
  • Approval of 2026 Holiday Schedule: Adopted unanimously, following the parish's holiday schedule.
  • Adoption of 2026 Budget: The proposed 2026 budget was adopted unanimously after a public hearing with no comments. The budget includes the Hahnville construction project funding and adjustments to materials budgets.
  • Next Steps: A special meeting in early December will be scheduled to review the 60% estimate for the Hahnville Branch Library project.

Meeting Transcript

All right, good afternoon. This is the St. Charles Parish Library Board of Control meeting for November 18th, 2025. If we can stand up and have a moment of silence, and then if Mr. Mathern can lead us in the pledge. Of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands by nation on the liberty and justice for all right. Before we get to the agenda, I would like to welcome our newest member to the board, Miss Lindsay Toulier. That's we're very excited to have you. Thank you. Thank you. All right. First article on the agenda is the approval of the minutes from our September 29th, 2025 meeting, which was actually a special setting. Um it was the last week of the month. Um Miss Benedict has previously circulated the minutes. Can we get a motion to adopt and I mean to approve the minutes? I'll make a motion. We approve the minutes from last month or from last meeting. Mr. Mathern, can we get a second? And I'll second it. Ms. Armstrong? Yes. All right. We are going to be doing verbal motions because somehow Miss Armstrong was removed from the list. And you've been, I mean, you've been the here for so long. So all right, so if we can get if we can get eyes to pass. Anybody have a nae? All right, unanimous. Um it passes approved approval of the minutes. And then Miss Benedict has circulated the attendance report. Has everybody signed it? Yes. All right. Our next item is public comment. Do we have any set public comment? We do not. All right. And then next for our most informative section, the librarians report. Miss Benedict. Okay. All right. So I'm going to do things a little bit out of the order that I normally do. And I'm going to start with staffing news. Um, in staffing news, we had three new part-time staff join our team in October at the West Regional Library. Leah Langan as a part-time circulation assistant, and Cheyenne Nikan joined us as a new page. And then Stephanie Hill joined the East Regional Library team as a page. As I mentioned at our last September meeting, September was library card sign up month, and we encourage library cardholders to tell us what they love most about our library for a chance to win a library prize pack. And I've given each of you at your seats a little handout that has all of the comments that we received. So it's really nice to read through a lot of really nice comments that we got from our patrons.

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