By Nels Johnson, Marin Independent Journal -
The county's new librarian is taking criticism from the civil grand jury to heart.
Sara Jones, who took over as chief of Marin's library operations last month, said officials will provide a "significant overview" of Measure A library tax funding when the county Library Commission meets at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Novato library at 1720 Novato Blvd.
Library commissioners, she said, will be provided with an "opportunity for input of further details, decisions and reports the commission is interested in for their further involvement."
Jones, in candid commentary included with the commission agenda this week, added she agreed that "more input and oversight is desirable," saying she thought a recent grand jury report had merit.
"I believe the grand jury's report provides a good road map for the future of the Marin County Free Library and establishes priorities for me as the new library director," she said.
"The report indicates staff feel they were not involved enough in planning," she noted. "A thorough strategic planning process is needed and staff will provide foundational input and that is a top priority for me."
She has scheduled an "all-staff meeting" for Sept. 27, coupled with a community telephone survey aimed at broadening planning perspectives while assessing resources and services.
Jones takes the helm in the wake of a particularly biting grand jury probe, with jurors contending that oversight of the annual $2.5 million library parcel tax fund was ineffective, plagued by "lack of involvement" from the library commission. The panel operates in the dark and asks few questions about a fragmented budget that makes expenses difficult to track, the jury said. Jurors portrayed the commission as having neither bark nor bite, saying commissioners engaged in "virtually no discussion or dialogue on substantive issues" and "gave no feedback, offered no opinions and had no open discussions of issues."
The commission, appointed by county supervisors in 2010 as the independent "watchdog" panel voters were promised would audit Marin's $49 Measure A parcel tax, has done little to fulfill its oversight role, with "input ... limited to twice-yearly reports from the library administration," the jury concluded, adding the panel has no communication with county supervisors.
County supervisors promptly reappointed four commission incumbents but otherwise gave the jury report a rare reception by embracing many of its observations. In a departure from business as usual, the Board of Supervisors agreed with or called for more study of most jury criticisms. "The library needs to do a better job of showing how the Measure A funds are being used to benefit the communities," supervisors agreed. "The library will work to improve this transparency."
Jones, head of the Carson City library system who was honored as Nevada's 2012 co-librarian of the year, took command of the Marin County library July 8.
In Carson City, colleagues credited the 51-year-old Jones with computer, media lab, business and youth club improvements as well as launching what one called "a team approach that was well-received and won over the rank and file."
She joins a Marin organization in which morale has been ebbing, with an employee survey indicating lackluster support for management. Issues cited by some include a "best seller" book priority mentality that comes at the expense of older works and resource materials that have been tossed out.
Jones earned a bachelor's degree in interpersonal communications from Boise State University and a master's in library and information science from Syracuse University.
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