Citizens voice concerns at Dayton library board meeting

DAYTON—It was a full house at the March 18 meeting of the Columbia County Rural Library Board as area residents showed up to voice concerns about library policies and practices. Board chair Tanya Patton thanked the community for their willingness to be involved, saying there were more people in attendance at the meeting than she had seen at all the meetings in 13 years prior.

The meeting opened with an introduction of board of trustee members, their education and their work backgrounds. Sarah Reser is an educator in Dayton, Karin Spann is a former community planner and mediator who has worked with nonprofits, June Riley is an assistant city attorney in Walla Walla and Meredith Dedman has a background in bookkeeping.

Director Patton, an educator, spearheaded the formation of the library district in 2005 and is the only original member still on the board. Director Dusty Waltner came to the district in 2014 and holds a master’s in library science.

Shakira Bye, a recently terminated library employee, opened the public comment portion of the meeting by addressing the board with a series of questions, most of which went unanswered. For more than an hour, audience members voiced similar questions and comments.

Concerns included the high employee turnover rate at the library and the resulting burden on taxpayers for retraining, inconsistency of children’s programming, concerns with library policy, and the fact that background checks are not performed on library employees or volunteers, among others.

There were also accusations that employee safety concerns are not adequately addressed, that library employees and patrons were unknowingly under audio and video surveillance and that the reasons for Bye’s firing were suspect and the process did not adhere to policy.

Library board trustees declined answering many of the questions, saying it is against library policy and that library counsel recommended that they not disclose personnel information. Columbia County Prosecuting Attorney Dale Slack and Bye’s attorney, Jane Richards, who is also the Asotin City Attorney, both challenged the board on the legal necessity of withholding the information in question.

The issue that elicited the most concern from attendees was the fact that police background checks are not currently performed on library employees. Patton said that library policy does not require police background checks but that Waltner was currently researching to see what other libraries require and what the board would need to consider to safeguard against possible accusations of discrimination.

“It’s something we’re looking into, absolutely, but we want to make sure we’re fully informed as to all of the possible liabilities and legalities and balancing that with patron safety,” Patton said.

Waltner said she does check the sex offender registry prior to hiring an employee.

Audience member Desirae Jones said she had to pass a background check to read for an hour in a classroom, which is supervised volunteer time, while her daughter may be left unsupervised with an employee in the library basement who hasn’t had a background check.

“I just can’t believe that wasn’t established decades ago. I don’t understand. I’m on the board for The Club and that is number one for anyone that works with kids, volunteer or paid. I’m astonished,” Jones said.

“I hear you loud and clear. We’re working on it,” said Patton.

Patton assured the audience that even if their questions weren’t answered at the meeting, the board was taking everything under advisement and would follow up on all concerns.

Board Trustee Karin Spann was set to be reappointed at the last county commissioner meeting but, considering current interest and concerns, the commissioners requested that the library board make an attempt at broader advertising and reopen the position.

Applications and a fact sheet may be downloaded from the library’s website or can be picked up during library hours. The application deadline is Fri., April 5 to allow the board time to interview and make a recommendation for appointment at the April 15 county commissioner’s meeting, Patton said.

On March 19, the library suspended Toddler Story Time until April 10 with the following explanation posted on Facebook: “The Dayton Memorial Library is committed to providing quality programs for the community. In an effort to maintain this level of quality and intentionality, we will be taking a break from Toddler Story Time to allow for staff training, and the ability to revamp the program. We look forward to returning to this great program on April 10, 2019! Keep your eyes peeled for more information!”

At the March 18 board meeting, Patton encouraged the public to continue to be involved and invited citizens to attend monthly board meetings held the third Monday of each month in the Delany Room at 7 p.m. If the third Monday falls on a holiday, the meeting moves to the next Monday.

“Mark your calendars and please come. All of our business is done in public meeting. There are some very narrow rules for executive session and we seldom use it,” Patton said. “We take public comment at both the beginning and end of meetings. And the occasional question or clarification during the meeting is allowed,” she added.

“What we came away from is a whole list of things people are concerned about; human resources, policies, background checks. We knew we needed to listen and listen carefully. We’re going to start plowing through and addressing the issues,” Patton told The Times, following the meeting.