Becoming a Board Member at Regina Public Library

APPLY TO THE RPL BOARD via the City of Regina website

How to Apply

 

Appointments to the Regina Public Library Board are made by City Council. At least once each year, usually in the early fall, the City of Regina advertises vacancies on the RPL Board and invites applications from Reginans. Applications are compiled and reviewed, with decisions typically made in late fall for a two-year term that begins on January 1st of the following year.

The invitation for applications is initiated by the City Clerk’s office and interested residents are encouraged to contact that office for further information. (306-777-7000 or gov@regina.ca)

The Board and Its Mission

 

RPL is a board governed, integrated cultural organization that exists to provide opportunities for discovery and learning in an inclusive, customer-centred, and safe environment. The Board is a corporation under The Legislation Act and the authority of the Board is established under the provisions of The Public Libraries Act, 1996.

The Board is responsible for the general management, control, and operation of library services within the municipality of Regina, and is composed of the Mayor of Regina, and six (6) or eight (8) additional members, one of which may be a City Councillor, selected and appointed by the City Council. As a corporation, the Library is separate from the City of Regina.

The RPL Board governs the organization in the interest of Regina residents. To govern well and to show leadership, there are certain expectations and restrictions placed on the Board as a whole and on each Board member:

• The Board will deliberate in many voices but govern in one. 
• The Board cultivates a sense of group responsibility.
• The Board will be responsible for excellence in governing and will use the expertise of individual members to enhance the ability of the Board as a body.
• The Board will direct, lead, and inspire the organization through the careful establishment of strategic policies reflecting the Board’s values and perspectives.
• The Board’s major policy focus will be on long-term impacts.
• The Board will enforce upon itself whatever is necessary to govern with excellence, including clarifying expectations related to attendance, preparation for meetings, policymaking principles, respect of roles, and ensuring the continuity of governance capability.

Board Responsibilities

 

One of the Board’s foremost responsibilities is to ensure adequate resources for RPL to fulfill its mission and vision and achieve its goals and objectives. The Board works in partnership with the CEO to ensure that financial and other resources needed are in place to implement RPL’s goals and plans.

In order to remain accountable to its communities, the public, and to funders, the Board must:

• Approve the annual budget and set the mill rate
• Oversee a regular audit
• Ensure that proper financial and internal controls are in place
• Approve the collective agreement
• Provide oversight of library infrastructure, and
• Ensure assets are protected

A Director on the RPL Board…

 

• Must act honestly, in good faith, and in the best interests of RPL as a whole
• Has a duty to use due care and diligence in fulfilling the functions of office and exercising the powers attached to that office
• must recognize that his or her primary responsibility is to RPL, and should have regard for the interests, where appropriate, of stakeholders of the Library
• has an obligation to be independent in judgement and actions and take all reasonable steps to be satisfied as to the soundness of all decisions taken by the Board
• should not engage in conduct likely to bring discredit to RPL
• has an obligation, at all times, to comply with the spirit, as well as the letter of the law, and with the principles of the Code of Conduct
• shall not be absent from more than two scheduled and successive Board or Committee meetings per year without the Chair’s approval
• shall not disclose confidential information received in the course of the exercise of Board duties
• must avoid conflict of interests with respect to their fiduciary responsibility
• will disclose his/her involvement with other organizations, vendors, or associations that might be or might reasonably be seen as being a conflict on occasion or on an on-going basis
• must not take improper advantage of the position of Director
• must not allow personal interests, or the interests of any associated person, to conflict with the interests of RPL
• will not use his/her Board position to obtain employment in the organization for themselves, family members, or close associates. A Director interested in applying for employment at RPL must first resign from the Board.

Commitment of Time

 

The Annual General Meeting of the Board will be held each year, prior to February 28, to conduct all necessary business, including reporting and selection of the Chair, and special meetings may be convened as necessary at the call of the Chair or with majority Board consent. 

RPL typically has 6 Public Board meetings per year that take place at Central Library or at one of RPL’s branch locations. The meetings start at 4:30 p.m., and typically run approximately 2 hours. Board members are required to serve on at least one of the three other standing Committees of the Board. 

Appointments to Committees will be based on relevant skills, experience, interest, and availability. 

Audit
Governance
Human Resources

Each Board member is also required to serve on the Strategic Planning Committee that typically meets once a month for 3 hours. 

Each Committee meets roughly 3 or 4 times per year and meetings are generally scheduled at lunch time (12:00 – 1:30) or late afternoon (4:30 – 6:00). Committee meetings are scheduled around what works best for the members of each Committee. 

The Board may establish committees which are tied to the Board’s core responsibilities, and which support the work of the Board. Committees will assist the Board by preparing policy alternatives, identifying implications for Board deliberation, and monitoring performance within its defined areas of responsibility. 

Additionally, the Board will seek to hold planning sessions or retreats periodically, to allow for an extended period of concentrated discussion, dialogue and strategic thinking about the organization’s future. Retreats may include topics, such as strategic planning, discussion of specific issues or challenges facing the organization, team building, problem solving, development or review of annual goals and objectives and Board training and/or orienting new Members. 

While meetings in person are generally preferred, where necessary, meetings may convene via telephone or other communications facilities as agreed upon by the Board. For scheduled Board and committee meetings, accommodation for individual participation by telephone or other electronic means can be made in exceptional circumstances.

Board members and Committee members are expected:

• to attend all Board meetings and all meetings of the Committees to which they are assigned to ensure that Board and Committee members contribute their expertise and judgment to the business and affairs of the organization; and
• to inform the Board (or Committee) Chair if they are unable to attend meetings on occasion due to conflicts with other commitments or other unforeseen circumstances.

There are also events throughout the year where Board members are invited to attend on behalf of RPL, but these are optional.

The Board and the Library CEO

 

The RPL Board: 

• delegates to the CEO the authority and responsibility to manage the operations of RPL in accordance with the Act;
• holds the CEO accountable for carrying out Board policies and achieving the strategic priorities of RPL, and
• directs the CEO through motions made by the Board as a whole.

Board Professional Development

 

RPL Board members are encouraged and expected to regularly avail themselves of training opportunities, both as offered and supported by the RPL and on an individual basis as a matter of personal growth and commitment. Board members are also expected to participate in the annual Board evaluation process.

For more information about serving on the RPL Board of Directors, please contact the Regina Public Library CEO’s Office at librarydirectorsoffice@reginalibrary.ca. 

About Regina Public Library

 

Regina Public Library is an urban library system committed to providing community services, spaces, and technologies to inspire discovery, learning, and connection. We are an essential gateway for all people to advance themselves through literacy, lifelong learning, social engagement, and cultural enrichment. 

The delivery of this mandate is tied to our organizational values. 

• Intellectual Freedom: We champion the freedom to seek, receive, and impart information and ideas. Being the gateway for all people to engage with information means we are uniquely and vehemently dedicated as an organization and individuals to the intellectual freedom of all. Embracing intellectual freedom requires difficult and potentially controversial decisions operationally. It is a virtual guarantee that there will always be something available on our shelves or happening in our spaces that an individual will find objectionable, and it is through policy and expertise that we manage our approach to these objections. Our staff look to the Board of Directors for leadership in upholding our customers’ constitutional right to freedom of expression.
• Inclusion: We commit to diversity and access for all. Our provision of community services, spaces, and technologies is constantly evaluated for opportunities to remove barriers to participation. Investment in assistive technologies, multilingual collections, reviews of physical and digital infrastructure, and strategies for ensuring a safe and welcoming environment are all considered throughout RPL’s strategic planning and budgeting process. The Board considers the diversity of RPL’s customers in its aspiration to provide services to the whole community.
• Service:We apply our knowledge and expertise to provide service excellence in everything we do. RPL’s strategic imperative is Customer Service. This means that operationally and in strategic direction, we focus on how to deliver the best for RPL customers in terms of experience and value, and this is reflected in the measures and goals that are reported to the Board.
• Curiosity:We inspire ingenuity, innovation, and the pursuit of information and learning. RPL strives to provide opportunities for customers, staff, and the community to practice curiosity – this includes leisure, skill-building, and connection to other people. We also understand the importance of literacy, a love of reading, and lifelong learning as values a public library should inspire in its community. The library is a place where all these purposes are highly valued.
• Responsibility: We uphold high standards of accountability and governance. Board members are appointed members of the public who are expected to act with integrity and accountability. Through measures such as an evolving Strategic Plan, a commitment to regular board evaluations, financial and policy review, and CEO performance planning, the Board leads the organization with diligent oversight.