East Haven Public Library Inc

What it reported doing in 2024

One of the most vital services the library offers is access to free programming. The Library provided a total of 623 in-person, on-site programs this year with attendance of 5,439. In addition to on-site programs, library staff partnered with other organizations in the community throughout the year to provide off-site programming and outreach; these off-site partnerships were further increased during the building closure. In total, the library provided 101 off-site programs, interacting with 1,635 members of the community. This represents a 201 percent increase over our outreach interactions in the previous fiscal year, and represents strong and growing relationships with our community partners, who provided vital support during this difficult time. The library also continued to offer virtual programs this year. This included 31 live viewing events and 20 prerecorded events. Total participation in these programs was 3,374. Finally, the library also offered opportunities for members of the community to participate in asynchronous programsself-directed activities available on your own schedule. The library offered 51 of these self-directed events during the year, with participation of 1,631. Total program participation for the year was 12,079.In addition to the multitude of library sponsored events above, the library also offered a community meeting space for 512 meetings of outside organizations, with outside group attendance of 6,181. Highlights for Library Programming: 1. Children's Programming: a. One highlight this fiscal year was the addition of a new Youth Services Librarian to our team, revitalizing programs with new ideas and a new skillset. b. Our strong early literacy program continued to thrive and grow under this new leadership. New programs for toddlers are in development, with additional musical events provided by Rob Messore and new innovations, like our "Toddler & Tots Bubble Ball" drawing in new families. We saw an increase in attendance for this age group during our new Toddler Tuesday programs. Similarly, our weekly Craft and Storytime program also saw an increase in attendance.c. The last quarter of the fiscal year saw significant changes following the closure of the building, as we adapted the majority of our youth programming to proceed off-site. Flexibility and fast thinking are key requirements to running youth events, and this was a chance to implement these skills.d. Collaboration withand outreach withinthe community were also essential to the library's success this year, particularly during youth services events. Many groups within the community, such as the town's Family Resource Center, local churches and schools, and the town's Community Dining Room provided us with venues for hosting programs. They also offered additional support during programs, providing an opportunity to collaborate in new ways. Many of these outreach opportunities were highly successful, and saw great attendance numbers. For more information on Children's Services, see the page at: https://www.hagamanlibrary.org/category/kids/2. Teen Programming: a. We saw significant success with recurring programs for teen audiences, which drew teens to return to the library month after month. These recurring programs included our Tabletop Club, which provides teens an opportunity to learn and play games that require creativity, writing, fast thinking, and social deduction; Anime Club; and Teen Crafternoon, which focused on a different skill each month. Tabletop Club especially has continued to see a regular group of attendees, even after a change in venue due to the closure of the building from April through the end of the fiscal year.b. Another highlight is our ongoing success with asynchronous programs. Offering take-and-make kits and other programs that can be completed on teen's own schedules has shown to be an excellent way to reach them and provide activities for this age group, especially those who may otherwise be unable to attend p

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 82.2%; rating input score 82
• Program expense ratio: 84.7%; rating input score 85
• Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 88.9%; rating input score 89; 4th percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: Limited
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: Limited
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Fail
  • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
  • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Missing
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 3%; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.82; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 7.4%; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: -0.5% per year; rating input score 0; 16th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: -2.1% per year; rating input score 0; 9th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 1.3% per year; rating input score 100; 22nd percentile among comparable filings