Meyer/Frank FYI

Just a few new things to mention happening at your HPL!

The Librarian's Guide to Homelessness: Practical Online Training so YOU can Solve Problems with Compassion

• This is a required training for all staff members.  It must be completed by February 6th.  To receive the 2.5 hours of training credit, you must email hpltraining@houstontx.gov with your name, e#, date of completion, the title of the training, and the number of earned training hours.
• To complete the training, create an account at http://www.homelesslibrary.com/houston and check your inbox for an email with the subject line "Welcome to www.homelesslibrary.com!" from a sender named "Invite."  This email will have the link you need to complete the training.
• As a heads up, this training is VERY long, but can be completed in segments.  You will also need to pass a test at the end with a score of--at least--80%.

Renewal Extensions

• Customers can now ask for a renewal whenever they want and get the full six week checkout period.

Holidays in December (taken from the Kashmere & Lakewood Neighborhood Libraries Blog)

• We're closed for Christmas from Friday, December 23rd - Monday, December 26th. No one will be scheduled to work on Saturday, December 24th. The work [week] will will start Monday, December 26th.
• This means that people scheduled to work on Saturday will not have a shift for that day; shift will start the following Monday, so you will get holiday pay and not a holiday accrual.
• Schedules for full-time employees will reflect a Monday-Friday schedule for the week of December 26th.

~BAH

Meyer/Frank FYI

Staff Development Day

• You must bring your badge to get 6 hours training credit!
• SDD starts 8 AM @ JIB on Monday (10/10)

Learning Link

• Both parent and student can check out materials on the student's learning link account by providing the student's name, birth date, and HISD ID number.  No physical ID required.
• Only books/audiobooks are allowed checkout on Learning Link accounts
• All electronic access is provided for students and HISD staff
• Elementary students can check out JUV items, only.

Voter Registration

• According to the Harris County Tax Office:

You must be registered to vote in Harris County at least 30 days prior to Election Day in order to vote in Harris County.

Early Voting

• From Kendal Library's blog:

The Harris County Clerk's office has provided the early voting schedule for the Nov. 8 General Election: 

Monday, October 24 - Friday, Oct. 28:  8 AM-6 PM
Saturday, Oct. 29: 7 AM - 7 PM
Sunday, Oct. 30: 1-6 PM
Monday, Oct. 31 - Friday, Nov. 4: 7 AM - 7 PM

~BAH

Meyer/Frank FYI

Just thought I'd add a quick update to our blog with more news you can use from across the HPL system.  Enjoy!

-----

Information on the Houston Housing Authority Pre-Application:

The ONLY place to fill out the pre-application is www.getontheHHAlist.com

To fill out the pre-application, applicants will need to know the names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, genders, veterine status, disabled status, contact info, and combined income for every person listed on the application.  Income information could come from wages, unemployment benefits, Social Security, retirement, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), etc....

As well, applicants will need an email service, if they do not have one, you may need to help them sign up.  (Note: the Dixon and Moody Neighborhood Libraries blog has some great suggestions for emails sign ups that don't require a phone number.)

Applicants must keep their contact information up to date for everyone listed on the pre-application.

To check the status of their application, applicants may visit hha.apply4housing.com/status/

Applicants with questions can call the HHA hotline at (713) 260-0500.

-----

From the IT Help Desk on public access devices:

Greetings HPL Team,

Wireless printing and internet are now available on all HPL devices including public access laptops. Please contact the HelpDesk if you continue to have issues regarding this matter.

-----

From Sonia on the 2016 Combined Municipal Campaign:

Hi everyone,

CMC is here again!!! The theme this year is: "COMPASSION IN ACTION!"!!!

As we all know, CMC is the Combined Municipal Campaign. Every year, the employees of the City of Houston are encouraged to give back to the community by donating money to charitable agencies of their choice. CMC runs throughout the month of OCTOBER and the last day to donate is October 31st, 2016!

The easiest way to donate is through the ESS system. You can choose to either do a one-time contribution, or multiple contributions throughout the year (payroll deduction).  The amount you want to donate is up to you. Every little bit helps these charitable organizations. You can find more information here: http://cohemployeenews.com/cmc-campaign

If you prefer, you can make a donation of cash, check or money order by filling out a form and giving me the money. The form is in the back of the paper CMC Tribute which would be distributed later and can also be found online.

In addition to that, HPL will be hosting its annual CMC Fall Festival, on Friday, October 28, 2016 @ 11 AM  - 2 PM and Dr. Lawson has approved a one hour delayed opening for every location(except Central & Clayton).

As such, FRA/MEY would be sponsoring a BOOTH where different donated items would be sold and the proceeds would be donated to any charity of our choice. Please let me know if you are willing to donate any items to be sold that day.

Volunteers are also needed for different contests e.g. Dance Contest, Costume Contest and Carved Pumpkin Contest.

100% participation for each location means a pizza party!!!


I hope you all will voluntarily donate money to the agencies of your choice and help HPL to meet all their 3 goals:  $50,000 total contributions; 100 % participation; and increase the number of Above & Beyond Donors (donor who give 1%+ of their gross salary).

With your help, HPL met all of their goals last year, and we can definitely "DO IT AGAIN!"

-----

From Fred Schumacher on the new Learning Link cards:

The Learning Link accounts for HISD students were recently created in HPL’s Symphony system, and the accounts will now appear in Workflows.  Please keep the following in mind:

1.       Learning Link has not yet launched and the accounts are not ready to begin circulating material.  Please do not check out materials on these accounts yet. You will be notified when the program launches and the accounts are ready to use.
2.       Students may also have a regular My Link library card account or want to sign up for a regular My Link library card account in addition to the Learning Link account.  If a student and his/her parent choose to register for a regular card, you may issue a full service My Link card, even if the student already has a Learning Link account.
3.       My Link library cards do accrue fines/fees for overdue and unreturned material, and customers may not have more than one My Link library card account.

Again, you will be informed when the Learning Link program launches and the cards are ready to use, but you may continue to issue My Link cards to students, even though they have Learning Link accounts in the system.  If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me at fred.schumacher@houstontx.gov or at 832-393-1567.  I’ll get back to you as quickly as I can.

-----

A simple technique for getting jammed cards out of the Coin Copier card machines:

1. Hold top button
2. Press bottom button two times
3. Press bottom button one more time and release the top and bottom buttons simultaneously.

-----

And just a reminder:

5 Steps the HPL Way!

1.      Specialize in smiles, always
2.      Make eye contact
3.      Use the customer’s name
4.      Thank them for visiting
5.      Add a pleasantry to close the interaction


~BAH

Meyer/Frank FYI

Just thought I'd add a quick update to our blog with more news you can use from across the HPL system.  Enjoy!

-----

Information on the Houston Housing Authority Pre-Application:

The ONLY place to fill out the pre-application is www.getontheHHAlist.com

To fill out the pre-application, applicants will need to know the names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, genders, veterine status, disabled status, contact info, and combined income for every person listed on the application.  Income information could come from wages, unemployment benefits, Social Security, retirement, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), etc....

Applicants must keep their contact information up to date for everyone listed on the pre-application.

To check the status of their application, applicants may visit hha.apply4housing.com/status/

Applicants with questions can call the HHA hotline at (713) 260-0500.

-----

From the IT Help Desk on public access devices:

Greetings HPL Team,

Wireless printing and internet are now available on all HPL devices including public access laptops. Please contact the HelpDesk if you continue to have issues regarding this matter.

-----

From Sonia on the 2016 Combined Municipal Campaign:

Hi everyone,

CMC is here again!!! The theme this year is: "COMPASSION IN ACTION!"!!!

As we all know, CMC is the Combined Municipal Campaign. Every year, the employees of the City of Houston are encouraged to give back to the community by donating money to charitable agencies of their choice. CMC runs throughout the month of OCTOBER and the last day to donate is October 31st, 2016!

The easiest way to donate is through the ESS system. You can choose to either do a one-time contribution, or multiple contributions throughout the year (payroll deduction).  The amount you want to donate is up to you. Every little bit helps these charitable organizations. You can find more information here: http://cohemployeenews.com/cmc-campaign

If you prefer, you can make a donation of cash, check or money order by filling out a form and giving me the money. The form is in the back of the paper CMC Tribute which would be distributed later and can also be found online.

In addition to that, HPL will be hosting its annual CMC Fall Festival, on Friday, October 28, 2016 @ 11 AM  - 2 PM and Dr. Lawson has approved a one hour delayed opening for every location(except Central & Clayton).

As such, FRA/MEY would be sponsoring a BOOTH where different donated items would be sold and the proceeds would be donated to any charity of our choice. Please let me know if you are willing to donate any items to be sold that day.

Volunteers are also needed for different contests e.g. Dance Contest, Costume Contest and Carved Pumpkin Contest.

100% participation for each location means a pizza party!!!


I hope you all will voluntarily donate money to the agencies of your choice and help HPL to meet all their 3 goals:  $50,000 total contributions; 100 % participation; and increase the number of Above & Beyond Donors (donor who give 1%+ of their gross salary).

With your help, HPL met all of their goals last year, and we can definitely "DO IT AGAIN!"

-----

From Fred Schumacher on the new Learning Link cards:

The Learning Link accounts for HISD students were recently created in HPL’s Symphony system, and the accounts will now appear in Workflows.  Please keep the following in mind:

1.       Learning Link has not yet launched and the accounts are not ready to begin circulating material.  Please do not check out materials on these accounts yet. You will be notified when the program launches and the accounts are ready to use.
2.       Students may also have a regular My Link library card account or want to sign up for a regular My Link library card account in addition to the Learning Link account.  If a student and his/her parent choose to register for a regular card, you may issue a full service My Link card, even if the student already has a Learning Link account.
3.       My Link library cards do accrue fines/fees for overdue and unreturned material, and customers may not have more than one My Link library card account.

Again, you will be informed when the Learning Link program launches and the cards are ready to use, but you may continue to issue My Link cards to students, even though they have Learning Link accounts in the system.  If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me at fred.schumacher@houstontx.gov or at 832-393-1567.  I’ll get back to you as quickly as I can.

-----

A simple technique for getting jammed cards out of the Coin Copier card machines:

1. Hold top button
2. Press bottom button two times
3. Press bottom button one more time and release the top and bottom buttons simultaneously.

-----

And just a reminder:

5 Steps the HPL Way!

1.      Specialize in smiles, always
2.      Make eye contact
3.      Use the customer’s name
4.      Thank them for visiting
5.      Add a pleasantry to close the interaction


~BAH

Meyer Back to School Scavenger Hunt

Announcing...

Back to School Scavenger Hunt

August 1-26th @ MEY

Kids are encouraged to go on a scavenger hunt in the library, finding book titles to match clues & win free books. Clue sheets are available at the MEY front desk. Kids must answer all 8 clues & fill out their name, age, and phone number on the clue sheet in order to be eligible to win prizes. The deadline to submit their clue sheets is 5pm on Friday, August 26th and winners will be randomly picked from all the completed clue sheets. 

First Prize is a complete set of Harry Potter books (Books 1-7). Second prize will be Books 1-3 of Rick Riordan's The Kane Chronicles. 

Kids must be ages 6-12 years old to enter. Child must be present to submit a clue sheet -- Adults cannot submit answers for their kids!! 

If a patron has any questions, feel free to grab Lauren for help!

~Via Lauren

NOTICE: New FLIP Kit Check-in Procedure Effective June 13th

Check out these new Flip Kit procedures from the Kashmere & Lakewood Neighborhood Libraries Blog

----

Hello,
Please be aware that there is a new procedure for checking in FLIP Kits that staff are expected to follow starting on June 13, 2016. This procedure does two things our current procedure does not:

1. Staff can now easily distinguish records for FLIP Kits that are being refurbished from those that are missing, which should reduce the number of kits that fall out of the system while being refurbished.

1. Items will be "shadowed" while they are being refurbished, so they will not be visible in the OPAC and will not be paged to fill  holds.

The PowerPoint with the instructions have been attached. It has also been placed in the "Workflow Procedures" section of the blog under "Sirsi Processes." I will be meeting with each of you individually starting on Saturday to train you on this new procedure. In the interim, please review the attached procedures so that you may become familiar with it.
If you have any questions or concerns about the new procedure, you may contact the following persons:

• Circulation Administration (832-393-222, option 3)

• Fred Schumacher 

• Esther Reyes

• Sylvia Espinosa

PowerPoint for New Flip Kit Procedure
Thank you,
MR

----

~BAH

Teen Writing Contest

  

Showcase your creative writing for a chance to be recognized as one of Houston’s top teen writers or poets.

June 1, 2016 - July 30, 2016

We are hosting our 1st Teen Writing Contest! Channel your imagination into an original short story or poem for a chance to win some amazing prizes.

Subjects for your short story or poem are limited only by your imagination. Entries will be judged on originality, use of language and technical skill. You can submit to both categories – short story and poetry.

Categories:

• 1A – Poetry: Grades 6-8
• 1B – Short Story:  Grades 6-8
• 2A – Poetry: Grades 9-12
• 2B – Short Story: Grades 9-12

All entries will have to adhere to contest rules and deadlines. Entries will be judged on the following:

• Originality
• Use of Language
• Technical Skill

Prizes for Each Category:

• 1st Prize = $25 Barnes & Noble Gift Card
• 2nd Prize = $15 Barnes & Nobel Gift Card
• 3rd Prize = $10 Barnes & Nobel Gift Card

How to Submit Entry:

• In Person: at any HPL Location. Use the fillable PDF form.
• By Mail: Houston Public Library | Attn: Rebecca Denham - Teen Room | 500 McKinney St., 77002. Use the fillable PDF form.
• Online: complete the form below. Don't forget to upload your document file!

Contest Submission Rules:

• Participants must be a current student between grades 6-12.
• For each submission fill out the entry form (download here) and attach to your submission. A submission consists of 1 entry form attached to 3 copies of your entry. (If you participate in two categories, you should have two Entry Forms.)
• One entry per category per participant
• Submit 3 copies of your entry typed on white paper with 1 entry form attached. No handwritten entries will be accepted.
• Text & Formatting
• Title of work should appear at the top of the submission. Your name should only appear on the entry form. Do not put your name on the copies of your short story or poem attached to the entry form.
• Color – Black ink only
• Font – Times New Roman
• Size – 12pt
• Spacing - 1.5 line spacing
• No pictures are permitted
• All entries must adhere to the word count. Poetry must be 800 words or less. Short stories should be a minimum of 1000 words and not exceed 5000 words.
• All short stories must be stand-alone. Excerpts of larger works will not be considered.
• All entries must be original work; Fanfiction will not be accepted.
• All entires must be received by 5 PM on July 30, 2016

Questions? Contact a Teen Librarian at 832-393-1521 or email

Summer Reading Program

Aim for the Stars!

Our annual Summer Reading Program for kids, tweens and teens is here! Sign up, read, log, review and win awesome prizes!

Register! Read! Reap the Rewards!

What is Summer Reading Program (SRP)?

It is a free incentive-based program to encourage kids and teens to read and explore various library programs including diverse, free educational and fun programs for kids and teens up to 18 years of age.

When does it start and end?

SRP runs from June 1 – August 1, 2016. Registration begins June 1 and continues through the end of the program.

How do I register?

You can register at any Houston Public Library location, online from your home computer or a mobile device.

How do I participate?

READ or listen to books, enter book titles or time read online and in your Badge Log Booklet (make sure to ask for one at your HPL location). Visit your local Houston Public Library to pick up your prize at the 5, 10, 20 and 30 book level.

ATTEND fun and exciting programs and workshops. Participate in at least 5 library programs to earn additional prizes!

What are the prizes?

• Register for SRP and earn a free book*
• 5 books read - HPL ribbon and a Chipotle meal coupon
• 10 books read - Houston Dynamo or Dash game ticket
• 20 books read - Houston Astros game ticket
• 30 books read - HPL Summer Reading Amazing Reading Trophy
• Keep reading and be one of the Top 2 Readers per location to earn an AWESOME BIKE (provided by Cycle)
• Attend 5 programs for a Children’s Museum of Houston coupon

Families Can Win Prizes Too!

Parents and caregivers can read this summer too! Sign up for the Summer Reading for Grown Ups and get a chance to be one of the 100 families to win a FAMILY SUMMER READING PRIZE pack.

To win a family prize, the youth SRP participant must reach the 30 book badge level. The parent or caregiver must complete 1 adult book review and 1 children’s book review.

Family prizes include:

• Two tickets to the Health Museum
• Tickets to the Houston Museum of Natural Science Cockrell Butterfly Center*
• Raising Cane’s coupon
• Tickets to the Bike Museum

*while supplies last

Summer Reading Program Registration 
begins June 1!

More details to come on Summer Events and Programs!

Calendars of Events and Events by Category

Flood Damaged Items

Just a quick reminder on how to deal with flood damaged items for different accounts via Esther P. Reyes:

Fines and Fees:

• The Symphony system has been set to see 04/18/2016 as a closed date for fines purposes.  No fines will accrue for those days.
• Fines that accrue for other overdue days are legitimate and should be collected.

Items damaged/lost as a result of the 04/18/2016 flood:

• Check in the item from the customer record.
• Check the item out to your locations 160418FLOOD agency record.
• Dispose of the damaged item.

Accounts in Collection:

• Items reported as flood damaged on accounts In Collection will not be forgiven.
• Charges remain owed on these accounts.
• Refer customers in collection with concerns about flood damaged items on their accounts to Circulation Administration.

Flood Damaged Item Discards:

• Look up your location’s Flood Damaged Item account:
• In Check Out, use the User Search Helper to look up the account using the following name: 160418FLOOD, then select the account with your agency’s acronym (ALI, CEN, BLU, etc.).
• Or look the account up by using the following pattern: 160418FLOOD- followed by the agency acronym, such as 160418FLOOD-ACR.
• Check the flood damaged item out to your location’s Flood Damaged Item account.
• Dispose of the flood damaged item.

Holds:

• Items set to expire from the Holds Shelf on 04/19/2016 will be extended to 04/21.

If you have additional questions or concerns, please contact Circulation Administration at circinfo@hpl.lib.tx.us or at 832-393-2222 (choose option 3).

Children's Book Celebration Art Contest

Below is an important announcement from Youth Services about a current contest for our juvenile customers.  Please, read the rules so you're familiar with them.  If you need clarification, you can direct questions (and customers) to Lauren.

CONTEST RULES:

1. Participants must be children in grades K-6.
2. Imaginary Friends may be created using any art medium. Participants will then take pictures with their imaginary friend for contest submission. 
3. Photos will be judged on creativity of poses with your imaginary friend.
4. Original art only. Traced or copied artwork or images will not be accepted. Please do not use copyrighted images.
5. Photos of contestant with their Imaginary Friend should be taken using the free app InstaBooth using the “Original” filter (i.e. No special filter). The 3 picture vertical photo strip should be used. If you do not have access to a smart phone or tablet, you can have your photos taken at any Houston Public Library Neighborhood Library location or Central Library.
6. One person per entry and one entry per person.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:

1. Photos of contestant with their Imaginary Friend should be taken using the free app InstaBooth using the “Original” filter (i.e. No special filter). The 3 picture vertical photo strip should be used. If you do not have access to a smart phone or tablet, you can have your photos taken at any Houston Public Library Neighborhood Library location or Central Library.
2. Submissions should be saved or renamed using the following format: Child’s Full Name_Child’s Grade_Parent’s Name_Email or Phone Number
• Example 1: DonnieGold_1_LeighGold_832-393-1313
• Example 2: Donnie Gold_1_LeighGold_lgold@iluvbooks.com
3. Submissions should be uploaded to the childrensbookcelebration@gmail.com Google Drive or emailed to childrensbookcelebration@gmail.com.

FOR STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS CLICK HERE.

.

Meyer/Frank FYI

Here's some news you can use from across the system!

• First, from Stella Link's auspicious youth blog:

A printable Flip Kit survey!

• Second, a great tip from Park Place Regional's amazing team blog:

Trick to Fixing Coin Copier Card Reader 

"I figured this would be helpful when a card is jammed in the coin copier card reader. To get the card out hold the top button down while pressing the bottom button three times. If this does not fix the problem, you can unplug the card reader, wait 10 seconds, plug it back in and the card may pop out. If all else fail, call Coin Copier. The number is located on the right panel of the blog."

• Third, from Looscan's awesome staff blog:

Library Card Creation Date 

"Did you know you can see exactly when a customer signed up for their library card by clicking on their name when in Display User? Customers who had cards before we transitioned to Sirsi will have a 7/5/2013 user date created.  This is a handy tool to use when making sure new customers have had their cards for at least 30 days when checking out laptops."

Also

eResource Central (eRC) 

"eResource Central (eRC) allows customers to place holds or download eBooks from the public catalog rather than going to the vendor site. eRC also allows you to see what ebooks you have checked out and what ebooks you have on hold inside your HPL catalog account. 

eRC currently works with the following vendors: Overdrive, Recorded Books, Axis 360, and Hoopla. 

When eRC is implemented the ebook records in the catalog will be coming from a separate SirsiDynix eRC server that keeps track of our holdings with the participating vendors. 

There are significant changes to the electronic resource check out process. See this document posted to the HPL Training Portal."

• And finally, here's some important information from the city's IT team:

[tl;dr: our email server has been updated to stop some messages with sensitive information in the subject, body, and/or attachments of an email.  It will bounce the email back to you and ask for verification that you want the information sent.  If this happens, see the guidelines listed bellow.] 

Server Security Upgrade 

"As part of the effort to secure sensitive emails, our infrastructure that handles email encryption has been updated. The new “Proofpoint” servers now have the ability to scan attachments in outbound emails. When it is determined that an email may contain Personal Health Information (PHI) – dealing with health care, or healthcare coverage,  Personally Identifiable Information (PII) – such as Social Security Numbers or Credit Card Information (PCI-Payment Card Industry information) “Proofpoint” will automatically encrypt the email and notify the sender with a message similar to:

“The City of Houston Data Loss Prevention service indicates that your email probably contained social security number information, and automatically encrypted your message. In the future, add the keyword [encrypt] in the subject line of emails containing this type of information to ensure protection of the data.”

The recipient(s) will receive an email with a link that takes them to the secure server allowing them to view/reply/forward the message.

Additionally, messages sent that are determined to have PII in the subject line will be rejected with the message:
“Your recent email was rejected as it appeared to have SSN data in the subject line. As this part of an email cannot be encrypted, the message will not be sent as is. Please edit the subject line to remove SSN data or potential SSN data and resend your message. If you need assistance contact HITS Security at HITSSecurity@houstontx.gov.”
To ensure all sensitive data is properly protected, before sending any emails that have PHI, PII, or PCI in the email or attachments, the sender must add the keyword [encrypt] to the subject line and force encryption. 

... 

The recipients of encrypted emails will click on the link to access the message on the secure server. If this is the first time they have done so, an account will be created based on their email address as the username, and they will supply the password. The encrypted email will appear as a web based email, and can be downloaded, replied to, etc.

Rejected emails must be edited to meet the compliance requirements and resent.

If you believe emails that do not contain sensitive data are being encrypted or the recipient cannot use the Proofpoint reader to access the encrypted emails, contact HITS Security for assistance."

~BAH

Open Carry Signs—School Sponsored Events and Elections

School Sponsored Events: HPL SPACES has purchased sign holders and signs to display when a school sponsored event is occurring at the library. According to Danielle Folsom, Assistant City Attorney,

“Texas Penal Code Section 46.03(a)(1) prohibits firearms (including licensed handguns) on the physical premises of a school or educational institution and any grounds or building on which an activity sponsored by a school or educational institution is being conducted. Neither the Penal Code nor the Education Code contains a definition of “educational institution.” However, when that term appears elsewhere in state or federal law, it generally refers to any private or public preschool, elementary, or secondary school, or any institution of vocation, professional, or higher education.”

This would include a school field trip to tour the library, to attend a program, or to use the library to conduct research. These field trips should generally be during regular school hours and include a teacher and chaperon(s) with the students. It is not a school sponsored activity to have students attend an after school program such as After School Zone or an afternoon movie as the school does not sponsor the program. The prohibition of firearms in the library would only be in effect when the school group is in the building. If staff members are unsure of what schools are considered official schools they can search by school name on the Texas Education Agency (TEA) site AskTED, by school district with the School District Locator, or the Texas Private School Association list of member schools.

Work Instructions:

1. When a school group is scheduled for a field trip (or appears unannounced), staff should remove the sign holder from storage and place near the entrance facing outward so that customers can see the information as they enter.
2. If a customer(s) is already in the library prior to the school visit and has a weapon openly carried, approach the customer(s) and inform him/her that a school group is currently using the location for a school sponsored event and that weapons are prohibited during that time. If questioned, staff can explain the law or show them the section in the Texas Penal Code (see link above).
3. After the school group leaves, the sign should immediately be stored in a staff area.
4. The sign and sign holder are designated for the purpose of announcing the school visit. The sign may not be switched out for any other sign.

Election Polling Places: HPL locations sometimes serve as polling places either on the day of the election or while early voting is in progress. Similar to school sponsored activities, weapons are prohibited “on the premises of a polling place on the day of an election or while early voting is in progress” (Texas Penal Code Section 46 (a) (2)). Locations that periodically serve as polling locations will be given an additional sign that can be switched out with the school sponsored sign to use during the polling times. The sign should be posted near the entrance before the polling site opens and removed once polling has ended.

FAQs
Q: What groups count as a school group? My location has a day care and a summer camp come daily to the library for summer programs.
A: Schools generally defined in state and federal law as public or private preschool, elementary or secondary school, or any institution of vocational, professional, or higher education. If staff members are unsure of what schools are considered official schools they can search by school name on the Texas Education Agency (TEA) site AskTED, by school district with the School District Locator, or the Texas Private School Association list of member schools. The summer camp and day care would not be considered school groups.

Q: My location has a scheduled program for a school that starts at 11 AM. How early should I post the sign about weapons?
A: Signs should be posted 10 to 15 minutes before the scheduled program starts and be removed once the school group leaves.

Q: What should the person legally carrying the weapon do while the school field trip is using the library?
A: Weapons are prohibited while the school activity is occurring and should be removed from the building.

Meyer/Frank FYI

1.  We should be receiving $25 for our participation in CMC, soon.  Woo--yeah--party!!!

2.  What to do when the cash draw is...
    -Over: ring up the excess as book sale and process as normal.
    -Under: send in the deposit short with a note explaining why it is short.  The cash draw must be exactly [$70 at Meyer / $60 at Frank] in the morning.

3.  The Lynda library is live.  It's a great product, very addictive.  Please, educate at your own peril.

4.  The Texas Primary election day is March 1st (AKA "Super Tuesday")!
    -Early voting locations, here.
    -Find your Election Day voting location, here.

5.  There was a recent OverDrive update that is causing some issues with the iOS mobile app.  There are some troubleshooting solutions, here.


~BAH

Meyer/Frank FYI

1.  The 2016 Student Summer Jobs Program is starting.  To find out if a student lives in a Houston District, enter their address into the search bar here.

2.  Everyone needs to have taken the Lynda webinar by March 4th.  The sooner the better.

3.  Tax help and forms available through the library may be found at the locations listed here.

4.  We have not received any League of Women voters' guides for the primary, yet.  If a patron needs a copy, please direct them to the League of Women Voters' Texas website: http://www.lwvtexas.org/

5.  If you need to work on a new display, Central now offers Room 455, which is full of crafting supplies including die cuts, colored paper rolls and much, much more!

6.  Meyer is getting a new Chinese Community Center volunteer.  His name is Mr. Thanh Phan.  He is still learning English and has only been in the U.S. for two months.  Mr. Thanh (pronounced "Tahn") will start out shelving picture books.  He gets one 15 minute break per day, but may study English and tech skills on our laptops for long periods of time.  As well, if he asks for someone to sign his time sheet (and Byron is not available) any staff member may sign it.  If you need him to help you with something other than shelving, he has the right to refuse.


~BAH

Meyer/Frank FYI

1.  It's tax season, again (yay!) and--as usual--we will not be receiving forms or booklets.  Instead, customers can obtain this years tax papers from the Central library or any of HPL's regional libraries.  As well, they can get them directly from the IRS online, by mail, by phone (1-800-829-3676), or by visiting their local tax office (nearest in SW Houston is 8701 S. Gessner, 77074)

2.  The Mayor has sent us new and official information on the Open Carry law.  You can read all about it, here.


~BAH

Meyer/Frank FYI

1. In Sirsi, we should not use the “super” override anymore. We should be use our personal Sirsi password. Please log out of Sirsi at the end of your desk shift. The next person to the desk should then log in

We do not have to log out and in within each hour if there is a lot of movement and several people may use that computer, but please at each transition we need close Sirsi and re-open with the new staff person’s log in.

2. The CDs at Frank are organized and the shelves on the spinners for CDs are labeled by genre (i.e. Country Western, Young Adult Pop, Hip Hop, etc.) For paging and shelving purposes, please be sure to find the appropriate label and shelve/look for the CD in the correct area. Please let us know if you have any questions. And thank you, Loni, for your excellent work on this!

Thank you, and have a great weekend!

vg

Meyer/Frank FYI

1.  There's a new Cyber Security training for 2016.  If you're required to take this training, you will receive an email from David LaPlante and will need to register at Knowbe4.com.  Please keep in mind that the training takes approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes (not 40 minutes as the email suggests).

2.  To fill out the front of the Voter Registration application (the CITY and ZIP CODE lines), you may put the city and zip code of the customer's home address.  Please note, this may take longer for the post office to process and it may not register them in Harris county.  To expedite things, you can look up the patron's election office by searching for their county at this website.  Use the city and zip code associated with  this office (note: the office may be listed as an Elections Administrator, Tax Assessor, County Clerk, etc.).  For Harris county, use: Houston, 77253.

3.  For stacking boxes, we may stack six boxes high (no more).


~BAH

Meyer/Frank FYI

Open Carry Information

https://hplnet.houstonlibrary.org/open-carry-law.html

 

Hope Meet and Confer Agreement

According to the new HOPE Meet and Confer Agreement, all City of Houston part-time and full-time employees will be getting a raise of up to $.50 an hour.  The raise will show up starting on your 1/22/16 check.  The amount depends on your current base salary (pre-tax) and your paygrade.  Please see the handout with the Article 10 description (Meet and Confer Agreement) and two tables with the projected raises in FY16, FY17 and FY18.  Please remember that you have to divide the number on the chart by 26 pay periods to get your salary increase.  CE Administration will email a link to an additional chart where you can see the salary ranges for each position paygrade.  Using that chart, you can calculate where your pay falls in the salary range for your paygrade.  Using that information, see the charts on the Article 10 handout to see how much your raise will be. Those staffers that earn the minimum to the midpoint salary range for their paygrade should use the top chart, and the bottom chart should be used by those that earn a salary above the midpoint to the salary cap. 

 

New Security Contract

The City of Houston signed a new contract with another security company named Norred Associates.  They will begin on 12/20/15.  Many of our current security guards were absorbed by Norred, so you will be seeing familiar faces.  Their uniform will be black pants, white shirts but wear different badges.  Any issues regarding security should be vetted through John Middleton’s office in SPACES, not GSD Security’s Zach McMahon.  Please ignore any previous calls made to your library with information about new guards.  The current security guard assignments will remain the same.