The Verde Valley City Library says the impact of the Yavapai County Board of Supervisors’ decision to cut the financial burden on the city library by 28% has been minimal so far. Librarians report that their respective cities have increased funding for their library systems, despite the cuts in full-time jobs in Cottonwood and short-term internships in Camp Verde.
“The municipality understands the situation,” said Yavapai County Librarian Director Corey Christians. “They all went there themselves and had to deal with budget issues. It seems that they are adapting by either compensating with their own funds or finding other ways to resolve the situation.”
Fiscal 2023 funding for the county’s public library was $1.675 million, with Yavapai County 2nd District Superintendent James Gregory representing Camp Verde and parts of Cornville and Cottonwood, Sedona and Clarkdale , Yavapai County No. 3 Superintendent Donna Michaels, representing Jerome, said that Oak Creek Village and other areas of Cornville, along with other members of the Board, unanimously agreed to provide $475,000 in library funding for fiscal year 2024. It was decided to reduce
Here are Verde Valley’s municipal library cuts:
Sedona Public Library: $76,826
Cottonwood Public Library: $47,065
Camp Verde Community Library: $25,570
Clarke Memorial Library, Clarkdale: $11,538
Jerome Public Library: $7,133
Half of that will be cut this year, and the other half will be cut next year.
The Yavapai County Library District shares boundaries with the county government, but has its own independent governing body that is both a political taxing district of Arizona and the Yavapai County Board of Supervisors. The Board formally votes and is reconvened as the Library Board to vote on library issues.
Christians expressed hope that the county would restore funds in two years, but that would depend in part on the amount of new construction taking place in the county, which would increase county revenues. Become. Another option is to raise the housing tax, but this will not be discussed until 2026 budget talks.
Sedona Public Library
camp verde
“With town leaders and the town council supporting the library 100 percent, we didn’t have to change our operations,” said Camp Verde Regional Library Director Cathy Hellmann. “That’s not to say that future budgets won’t change that. This year, Camp Verde had a stronger budget than usual. The big changes for me are:[that] We were unable to fund the 2024 AmeriCorps VISTA staff. “
However, CVCL has an AmeriCorps position to be funded in fiscal year 2023, which was recently filled and is expected to continue through fiscal year 2024.
AmeriCorps employees will expand CVCL’s mobile STEM lab, build a volunteer base to deliver education, and collaborate with Verde Valley’s Science Vortex to deliver educational programs.
CVCL hopes to bring STEM labs to schools and other libraries to provide hands-on experiences for children and families across the county and Verde Valley.
“I think about what my children experience when they go to school. [Arizona] chemistry [Center] It’s a museum in Phoenix,” Hermann said. “A place where you can actually experience” [educational programming]. There are many things that are inaccessible in our rural communities. So bringing her STEM experience to the community at a higher level will get kids excited about the possibilities. [not]I’ve heard of some areas of science before. “
Hellman cited CVCL’s partnership with Arizona State University to inform students about advances in kinesiology as an example of getting students interested in a job in STEM. Students were able to observe how scientists are using computers to track body movements to better study human morphology.
“[Students] We were able to use the software to see how the muscles work,” Hermann said. “One of the kids said, ‘Can you get a degree in athletics and help people?'” I was. We introduce children to the possibilities out there and help them connect and pursue that education as a career in whatever field interests them. “
Hermann, who has worked in the town of Camp Verde for the past 11 years, said that for most of his tenure, CCVL received no cost-of-living adjustments, no new hires, and no budget increases.
“But in the last few years the town is in a better position financially,” Hermann said.
Jerome Public Library
Kathleen Jarvis, director of Jerome Public Libraries, said the county’s budget cuts are based on a percentage of a given area’s contribution to the library district, so smaller libraries are less affected than cities like Sedona and Prescott. pointed out.
“It didn’t hurt my budget as much as it hurt a large library,” Jarvis said. “The city of Jerome just gave me extra money and didn’t have to cut staff. Nothing changed.”
Cottonwood Public Library
According to Director Ryan Bigelow, Cottonwood Public Library was unable to fill the new full-time Library Public Service Outreach Coordinator position due to staff reductions.
“The rest of the loss was absorbed within the city’s budget. While disappointing, it will not be catastrophic for our libraries or services,” Bigelow added.
Clark Memorial Library
Clarkdale’s Clark Memorial Library is directly managed by Christians as part of an agreement to keep the facility open after the Clarkdale City Council voted to end funding for the facility in May 2017. The Library District, along with the Friends of Clark Memorial Library, bears the cost of staffing and computers. The organization paid for the materials, and the City of Clarkdale provided utilities and space free of charge to the library district.
“We have some donations available for the chapter, which we plan to use to offset increased costs that our regular budget cannot cover,” said Christians. “The reduction to Clarkdale is about $5,600 and we have plenty of donations.”
