The Meeting of the Eisenhower Public Library District Board of Trustees Island Within A City Committee August 14, 2025.
CALL TO ORDER
President Braun called the meeting to order at 7:00 P.M.
ROLL CALL
Present: Magnelli, Magnuson, Ringelstein, Krebs, Braun, Massaro, Stam, McPhillips, Parent.
Absent: Blubaugh, Ross.
Also Present: Wittmann, Bacarella, McPhillips, Storelli.
RECOGNITION OF VISITORS
Editor, Jennifer Storelli was in attendance.
PUBLIC COMMENT
There were no public comments.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
There were no minutes to be approved.
Island Within A City
A. Island Within A City Book
i. Progress Report
Director Wittmann has downloaded the complete document that Jennifer began editing. Currently, only chapters one through three were included in the board packets. Trustee Braun will begin addressing the editor’s comments regarding his introductions. Jennifer will send Mark the most recent version of the edited documents. Julie and Dan have just updated several interviews, and Arlene still plans to conduct an interview with Julie. Overall, the project is progressing very well.
ii. Jennifer Storelli- Editor
Jennifer raised a few questions during the editing process:
– In Chapter One, she asked whether citations should be included as footnotes or in a works cited section at the end. She prefers footnotes, as they make more sense contextually, but suggested evaluating this on a case-by-case basis.
– She also asked whether everyone would be reviewing her edits, and whether there would be a final group review after the layout is complete but before the book goes to print. Director Wittmann recommended that the entire committee should read the final version before it goes to print, and the committee agreed.
– Director Wittmann also asked if staff could review Jennifer’s edits and if Mark could make corrections to the introductions he wrote. The committee supported this approach.
The group agreed to collectively review all final edits and respond to any questions Jennifer may have.
Additionally, Jennifer asked whether interview-based essays should be sent back to the original interviewees for approval after they’re drafted. The committee agreed this would be a good idea and recommended setting a clear deadline for responses.
Trustee Ringelstein asked Jennifer about her approach to editing the essays. Jennifer explained that she is editing the document sequentially, from front to back, and is currently working on Chapter Seven.
She noted that, unlike the first book—which had a strong historical focus—this second book contains fewer historical elements. In response, Julie suggested the possibility of including a timeline in the book and adding more historical information to the website instead.
Given that there is no single author for the book, the group agreed that it makes more sense to focus on presenting it as a collection of stories rather than a comprehensive historical narrative.
Trustee Magnelli asked when Jennifer would begin adding photos to the book. Director Wittmann explained that the photos need to be grouped and matched with the corresponding stories. All photos are currently available on Basecamp.
Trustee Braun offered to help by providing additional photos as needed.
Director Wittmann also noted that Jennifer has submitted an addendum to her proposal, which includes writing the interviews into essay format.
iii. Next Steps
Director Wittmann emphasized the importance of continuing to send materials to Jennifer to keep the editing process moving. She also noted that the group can begin discussing the layout of the book as the content comes together.
B. Next Meeting Date
The committee will meet next on October 16, 2025 at 7:00 P.M.
OTHER BUSINESS
There was no report.
ADJOURNMENT
Trustee Parent moved, seconded by Trustee Ringelstein, THAT THE MEETING BE ADJOURNED. A voice vote was taken and the motion carried. The Committee Meeting was adjourned at 7:26 P.M.
