It takes a village to run the Coronado Public Library. In addition to the dedicated staff, there are two other organizations that the library works in conjunction with: The Library Board of Trustees and Friends of the Library. Sharon Hall is on both boards and simplifies the difference between the groups. The Library Board of Trustees is appointed by the City Council. Friends of the Coronado Public Library is solely a volunteer nonprofit organization.
Friends of the Coronado Public Library
Mission: The Friends of the Coronado Public Library (FOL) is a group of community volunteers dedicated to supporting and expanding the library’s services and programs through fundraising, volunteer support, and community outreach. Our mission is to promote the library as an educational, community, and cultural center that provides learning and engagement opportunities for our community.
In layman’s terms, Sharon explains, “It’s a fundraising group to support all the library programs. The library has no city funds for its programming, so all the programs for babies, toddlers, children, teens, and adults are funded by the Friends of the Library. The Friends of the Library funds those through book fairs, the bookstore, Second Hand Prose, the shop in the library lobby, bequests, endowments, and donations from the community.”
FOL is currently focused on Scholarships for Class of 2025. They are accepting applications until April 21, 2025.
Library Board of Trustees
“The mission of the Library Board of Trustees,” Sharon explains, “is to ensure the effective management and governance of the city’s Public Library in accordance with the state law. The board is committed to fostering an inclusive and accessible environment that promotes literacy learning and cultural engagement, supporting the library as a hub of knowledge, technology, and community engagement.”
While the Friends of the Library and the Board of Trustees share a vision, the Board of Trustees is the group responsible for ensuring the effective management and governance of the city’s Public Library in accordance with state law.
Sharon talks about the Trustee structure: “We have five trustees on the Library Board of Trustees. All are appointed by the City Council. We meet monthly with the Library Director and Administrative Secretary.” Sharon was appointed president of the Library Board of Trustees in January 2025 and has been a board member since August 2022.
Four Areas of Governance
The Library Board of Trustees follows areas of governance and authority that guide their roles and responsibilities. “These are policies related to library services, customer and community, regulations and bylaws, long-range strategic planning, and annual planning,” Sharon explains.
Library Policies
This past year, the Board reviewed, revised and updated its room use policy. While reviewing policies may not sound exciting, there is typically a reason a policy is brought up for review. In this case, Tiny Patriots Story Time felt like the previous Room Use Policy unfairly denied them access to a meeting room.
The revised rules for public use of meeting spaces at the Coronado Public Library can be reviewed here. The changes became effective July 1, 2024, and were driven by the need to align with current legal practice and clarify and modernize the existing policy.
Another accomplishment in 2024 was that the Board of Trustees adopted bylaws to increase clarity regarding board authority. Sharon states, “As administrations change, there can be varying views of how things are done. We brought those up to date based on the current board. That’s pretty important.”
Community and Customer Engagement
In addition to working with the city and the library itself, library patrons will always be an area of importance. The Library Board of Trustees continuously examines customer concerns and conducts surveys to evaluate the customer experience. There is a comment box in the library and online for submitting feedback.
Strategic and Annual Planning
Other items reviewed during monthly meetings are the operating budget, library improvement goals, the library trust funds and gifts bequests. “We’ve developed goals based on our budget and make sure the funds are going towards those goals.”
Additionally, there is reporting to the city council. Sharon says, “At internal administration, our roles vary based on the topic. We can request reports from the director. Sometimes, we’re asked to review recommendations and approve them. Or review and provide input. We can review and make recommendations for the city council. Review and accept documents or statements. We can initiate, review, and approve.”
An example of this can be seen in the Winn Room project. Sharon says, “We reviewed the Winn Room renovation project and provided recommendations to the city council. Many of us attended regular city council meetings regarding that.”
The Library Board of Trustees wasn’t the only organization involved in recommendations for the Winn Room. There was a Winn Room Subcommittee, and Friends of the Coronado Library and the Cultural Arts Commission weighed in on the project.
Ultimately, the City approved the $9.72 Million Winn Room Expansion.
City Council meetings are open to the public, and the public can speak on items on the agenda. The community can speak about items not on the agenda prior to the beginning of the business meeting. Sharon says, “During public comments, the board members listen. We don’t interact or push back. We listen to the public.”
Author’s Note: How these different groups intersect in Coronado makes the city stronger and more responsive to residents’ needs. No one is unilaterally making decisions; let your voice be heard.
The Library Board of Trustees meets on the second Tuesday of the month in the Winn Room of the Coronado Public Library, 640 Orange Avenue, Coronado.
