FREDERICK COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES BOARD OF TRUSTEES
MINUTES OF MEETING
OCTOBER 1, 2025
The Frederick County Public Libraries Board of Trustees Meeting convened at 7:00 p.m. on October 1, 2025, at the C. Burr Artz Library – Community Room.
BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: S. Sheppard, T. Lancaster, J. D’Agostino, G. Mayfield, D. Grisgraber, M. O’Leary, J. Donald
BOARD MEMBERS ABSENT: M. Richmond
STAFF PRESENT: J. Kelly, Director; C. Hall – Associate Director; S. McDuff – Associate Director; B. McDermott, Finance Manager; A. Archibald, Personnel Supervisor; C. Brohawn, Project Coordinator; J. Marshall – Systems Manager; B. Heltebridle – Branch Services Manager; M. Currens, Library Collections Manager; J. El-Zeftawy, Development Officer; B. Hissong, Community Engagement Manager; C. Krogh, Facilities Coordinator ; B. Watts, Staff Development Coordinator; E. Gambrill, Youth Services Coordinator; T. Floria, Librarian, Urbana Regional Library; S. Yates, Branch Administrator – C. Burr Artz Library; L. Branson, Branch Administrator – Walkersville Library; D. Spurrier, Branch Administrator – Emmitsburg Library; A. Knight, Branch Administrator – Middletown Library; B. Brannen, Branch Administrator – Thurmont Regional Library; J. Diaz, Branch Administrator – Brunswick Library; R. Cox-Steib, Branch Administrator – Myersville Library; R. Reeves, Branch Administrator – Urbana Regional Library and Point of Rocks Library; E. Noone, Library Associate; K. Pflaum, Library Associate; J. James, Library Associate; H. Phillips, Development Intern; G. Semedo Lopes, Development Intern; J. Spiegel, Special Project Manager – Frederick County Government Budget Office; and C. Smith, Executive Assistant and Recording Secretary.
CITIZEN REMARKS: None
APPROVAL OF MINUTES: G. Mayfield motioned to approve the Minutes of August 27, 2025, and September 3, 2025; seconded J. D’Agostino. No further discussion.
VOTE: Unanimous.
CHAIR’S REPORT: The Chair shared her gratitude for the FCPL staff and acknowledged that our branches continue to be welcoming spaces filled with connection, learning, and opportunity. She also noted Banned Book Week is approaching and the importance of protecting access to diverse voices. The Chair implored FCPL staff to continue their dedicated service to our mission and move forward with hope.
DIRECTOR’S REPORT:
J. Kelly introduced and welcomed our newest Development interns, Hadiya Philips and Gloria Semedo Lopes.
FCPL is anticipating, listening, and responding through highly successful events such as the Touch A Truck program which was held at the Keys Stadium before the Library Night game and the highly anticipated Frederick Reads event coming at the end of the month featuring R. L. Stine and several coordinated programs throughout the system. The Urbana Teen department introduced a new set of programming resources in an effort to allow all participants to engage in library programs with resources they may need to adapt to the environment – such as noise canceling headphones; a variety of fidgets and calming devices; wiggle seats; and adaptive art supplies.
FCPL is discovering ways to grow sustainably by finding partners who have a vision that aligns with our own and fostering collaboration. Partnerships with the Town of Walkersville and Glade Valley Community Services, over 170 volunteer hours were provided by teens and adults to set up and distribute lunches through the summer program. Summer lunch programs also took place at Brunswick, Thurmont, and Emmitsburg in partnership with the City of Frederick and with Helping Hands, Caring Hearts. Through these combined efforts, a total of 4,657 lunches were distributed across the library system this Summer.
FCPL is fostering belonging through new library card holder interactions, connections made at Back-To-School Nights reminding the community of our resources, and individual experiences of relationship building with customers that made them feel welcomed and excited to visit the library.
Pivoting to statistics, the Director shared the highlights from the August dashboard. Library card registrations and Wi-Fi usage are holding steady at last year’s levels, indicating a new normal following recent changes. Meanwhile, both library visits and circulation continue to surpass average figures, a positive trend to monitor moving forward. The Summer Lunch Program and the Student Success Card initiative were also highlighted. The library provides cards to all students enrolled at FCPS and the Maryland School for the Deaf and will continue issuing cards to new students moving into the area throughout the year.
BUDGET/CIP UPDATE:
J. Kelly shared that the budget planning for fiscal year 2027 has begun, which the County Budget Office has scheduled kickoff training for. The CIP kickoff provided updates on the process and timeline and the kickoff for the Operating budget is scheduled for October 16th. In the meantime, Directors Staff are meeting with staff to discuss departmental budgets and are reviewing potential budget appeals.
Important dates to note include November 12th when the Board Finance Committee will meet to review the County’s FY25 budget audit, followed by November 19th for the full Board meeting, and, finally, FCPL’s upcoming Staff Development Day on October 13th.
NEW BUSINESS
Financial Report:
B. McDermott shared FY25 budget numbers tentative as of August 31, 2025.
S. Sheppard inquired about the services provided by the workforce grant.
G. Mayfield asked about the partner’s database grant for Microsoft Office 365.
Summer Challenge Update:
E. Gambrill and T. Floria provided an update on the Summer Challenge. They were anticipating, listening, and responding by becoming increasingly more intentional with destinations as a feature of the community engagement aspect of the Summer Challenge.
Summer Challenge worked to grow sustainability by increasing middle and high school participation through building strong school partnerships. The team met with media specialists early in 2025 to receive feedback which they implemented in the spring. These meetings resulted in a robust PowerPoint presentation, a how-to video, postcards, and morning announcements.
Given the future branch located in the West Frederick region, the Summer Challenge team focused on fostering belonging through targeted outreach in those neighborhoods and partnering with Centro Hispano’s Exito program. They also fostered belonging by reaching out to other underserved communities through events such as Veteran’s Celebrations, the All Saints Block Party Pride Festival, etc. All of these efforts resulted in record breaking program participation and a successful Summer Challenge!
South County Libraries Update
B. Reeves shared an update on Urbana Regional Library and Point of Rocks Library.
Both branches improved access by focusing outreach on areas with low library cardholder rates and promoting technologies like Brainfuse through various events. Staff received training to confidently discuss library databases, helping connect job seekers to resources during a period of federal workforce reductions. Urbana Regional Library’s role as a polling site in 2024 significantly raised community engagement and awareness of Passport services, resulting in a notable increase in applications processed.
Urbana and Point of Rocks staff continued to build bridges through sustained partnerships and community outreach. Key activities include collaborating with schools through events and storytime visits, connecting families to local health and support organizations during playgroups, and engaging teens through co-created programs with various community partners. The library also worked with Frederick County Master Gardeners to offer a popular gardening series at Point of Rocks (POR), making valuable programs accessible to smaller communities. Recognizing local student needs, POR staff partnered with Brunswick Library for outreach at Brunswick High School, fostering connections among patrons and reinforcing consistent services across all FCPL branches.
Sparking excitement, in January, FCPL partnered with the Orioles Birdland Caravan to host a photo op with players Chayce McDermott and Ryan O’Hearn which attracted 325 fans. Additionally, the 10th annual Starlight Film Festival with a 2000s “throwback” theme was held in the Villages of Urbana, offering themed activities like a Shrek foam party, a Monster’s Inc. dance event, and a Finding Nemo experience.
Looking ahead to the new Strategic Priorities, FCPL staff anticipated, listened, and responded by engaging with FCPS Media Specialists by focusing on listening to school needs, resulting in actionable ideas to support students and educators. Growing sustainably, the POR staff achieved a 55% increase in storytime attendance by adding themed activities to enhance kindergarten readiness and community engagement. Fostering belonging, the teen department introduced an inclusive programming toolkit with various adaptive items, labeled in a way that empowers all teens to participate without stigma.
J. D’Agostino asked about the teen volunteer program size at Urbana and throughout the system.
Board questions and comments: None.
Other Citizen remarks: None.
The Board Finance Committee will meet at the C. Burr Artz Library – Trust Conference Room at 7:00 p.m. on November 12, 2025. The next FCPL Board of Trustees meeting will be held at the C. Burr Artz Library – Community Room at 7:00 p.m. on November 19, 2025.
T. Lancaster made a motion to adjourn the meeting; seconded by G. Mayfield. No further discussion. VOTE: Unanimous.
The meeting adjourned at 7:47pm.
Signed by,
S. Sheppard
Chair, Frederick County Public Libraries Board of Trustees