Library District

On May 20, 2014, the voters of Jackson County approved the formation of a Special Library District, breathing new life into our 15-branch public library system. With dedicated funding, Jackson County’s public libraries have a promising future and so do our patrons!

The Jackson County Library District (JCLD) is an independent unit of local government dedicated to library operations in Jackson County. The library system operates as Jackson County Library Services.

The District is governed by an independent, unpaid Board of Directors elected by the local community.

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Board Personnel

Board of Directors

Name	Contact	Term
Kevin Keating	KKeating@jcls.org	Position 5 (Term Ends: June 2027)
Viki Brown, President	VBrown@jcls.org	Position 1 (Term Ends: June 2025)
Marissa Barrientos Shepherd	MShepherd@jcls.org	Position 4 (Term Ends: June 2027)
Susan Kiefer	SKiefer@jcls.org	Position 3 (Term Ends: June 2027)
Kim Young, Vice President	KYoung@jcls.org	Position 2 (Term Ends: June 2025)

Staff

Name	Email	Phone
Kari May, Library Director	KMay@jcls.org	(541) 774-6401
Val Nowak, Executive Assistant	VNowak@jcls.org	(541) 774-6406

Mailing Address

Jackson County Library District
205 S. Central Ave
Medford, OR 97501

Board Meetings

Please note that the Jackson County Library District Board will be meeting on the second Monday of each month through February 2024 to accommodate federal holidays.

The Jackson County Library District Board meets regularly on the third Monday of each month at the Medford Branch Library, 205 S Central Avenue. (Due to COVID-19 precautions, Board Meetings may be held via online video conferencing.) The agenda for the upcoming meeting is typically posted the Friday before the meeting. Occasionally, the Board may have special meetings to discuss specific topics or public hearings as required by law.

Agendas for those meetings, as well as the packet of supplementary information prepared for each meeting, will also be posted below with the associated meeting. Once meeting minutes are approved by the Board, those will be posted below.

Budget Committee

The Jackson County Library District’s Budget Committee consists of the five members of the local governing body and an equal number of citizens at large. The citizens are appointed by the governing body and serve terms of three years. Terms are staggered so that one-third of the appointed terms end each year.

The date, time, location and agenda of Budget Committee meetings are posted online in the JCLD Calendar.

Citizen Members

Name	Term
David Mathieu, Medford	Term Ends: December 31, 2023
-Vacant-	Term Ends: December 31, 2026
Arti Kirch, Medford	Term Ends: December 31, 2025
Cathy de Wolfe, Medford	Term Ends: December 31, 2026
Echo Fields, Ashland	Term Ends: December 31, 2025

Resources for Budget Committee Members

Forms and publications about Local Budget Law can be found online in the Oregon Department of Revenue’s Forms and Publications Library.

Included below are links to publications for Budget Committee members and anyone interested in learning more about local budgeting in Oregon.

• Local Budgeting in Oregon – a 17-page booklet that provides an overview of Oregon’s local budgeting process. A must-read for new Budget Committee members.
• Local Budgeting Manual – a 115-page manual that provides an in depth review of Oregon’s local budgeting process. A comprehensive training and reference guide for individuals responsible for ensuring compliance with Oregon’s local budgeting laws. Also helpful for Board members, Budget Committee members, and citizens interested in exploring the finer details of the local budgeting process.

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2022–2026 JCLS Strategic Plan

MESSAGE FROM THE LIBRARY DIRECTOR

I am pleased to present to you the 2022-2026 Strategic Plan for Jackson County Library Services. The past two years have been abnormal in so many ways, with our lives – and library services – disrupted by COVID-19 and by the devastating wildfires that impacted Jackson County in 2020. It’s nice to be able to look towards the future and envision where library services can best meet the needs of our communities over the next five years.

The strategic planning process included community engagement in a variety of ways from participation on the steering committee to a community survey and several focus groups. While we were unable to meet in person to gather information, we enjoyed connecting with people via Zoom for the focus groups, and hearing your voices in the comments left on the community survey. The planning process also generated organic conversations and connections with potential community partners that demonstrate, once again, how much our libraries are valued.

Our mission is to connect everyone to ideas, information, and each other, a mission I hold dear to my heart. I look forward to implementing the strategies put forth on the following pages, which reflect the direction our community asked us to take.

Sincerely,
Kari May, Library Director

INTRODUCTION

In September 2021, the Jackson County Library District engaged Library Strategies to help facilitate
a strategic planning process. The District’s previous plan was set to expire at the end of 2021.
During the previous 5-year planning framework, the District had undergone numerous changes,
as well as experiencing the challenges and difficulties of providing service during the COVID-19
pandemic. The new strategic planning process, in cooperation between the District and Library
Strategies, was designed to foster extensive community engagement and input to ensure that the
changing library needs of residents continue to be met in the future. Presented here is an overview
of the process, major findings, and the high-level goals and strategies of the new plan.