Trustees of the Newton Public Library District met November 17, 2025, at 5:00 P.M. Present were Travis Farley, Emily Carroll, Jennifer Hinterscher, Ilene Woods, Amanda Lessley, Jeanette Hickox and Director Jacque Cowger.
President Farley called the meeting to order.
Minutes of the October meeting were reviewed and will stand as presented.
The October financial report was reviewed. Bills were presented. Trustee Woods made a motion to pay the bills, seconded by Trustee Lessley, motion passed.
Director’s Report
Circulation for October was 2,761. Money collected from fines, faxes, copier, book sales, cards and miscellaneous items was $615.45. Eight new cards were issued. The patron door count for the month of October was 1,636.
Akra has repaired the upstairs windows. It was mentioned that regular painting will protect the stucco from decline.
Jacque visited some of the libraries that participated in the Library Crawl. Jacque also mentioned that they are working on updating the Genealogy Room. Most libraries on the library crawl kept their Genealogy Room stocked with only county specific items.
Old Business
Trustee Hinterscher gave an update on the museum.
New Business
The Trustees discussed purchasing new shelving for the Genealogy Room as the current shelving needs repair. Trustee Hickox made a motion to accept the quote to purchase shelving, seconded by Trustee Woods, motion passed.
The Trustees discussed State of IL HB1910 which requires all libraries open to the general public in the State of Illinois to include a supply of opioid antagonists in an accessible location. Library personnel will require training in administering the of the opioid antagonist. Jacque will ensure that training will be completed and locate a supply of the opioid antagonist to have on hand.
The Christmas Story Walk “Pig the Elf” will start on December 1st and begin at the library and end at Ginger’s Garden & Gifts..
The library will participate in Christmas on the Square on Saturday December 13. The Jasper County Ukulele Group will be performing at the library from 10:30 am to 12:30 am. There will be Story Time with Mrs. Claus at 11:00 am in the afternoon, the library will re-open from 3:30-5:30 p.m. to allow children to make Snowman Soup prior to the Christmas Parade.
Per the Per Capita Grant Requirement, the board reviewed and discussed the following items from the Illinois Public Library Standards:
Governance & Administration
Human Reosrces
Information Service
Marketing & Promotion
The next board meeting is December 15, 2025, at 5 p.m.
Meeting adjourned.
Emily Carroll
Secretary, board of Trustees
Newton Public Library District
