Meetings

MPLD generally meets twice a year in June and December to give directors the opportunity to network and discuss pertinent topics concerning Missouri public libraries.  Directors from all size libraries are encouraged to attend, and you can also send or bring your assistant director or a director-in-waiting.

FUTURE MEETING DATES AND LOCATIONS

December 5-6, 2024 Columbia, MO @ Stoney Creek Hotel & Conference Center

June 5-6, 2025 Branson, MO/Stone County @ TENTATIVE

December 4-5, 2025 Columbia, MO @ TENTATIVE

June 4-5, 2026 Location Not Yet Selected

Registration for meetings is done online at the EZregister site: https://ezregister.com/promoters/2168/ 

A message will be sent out 6 to 8 weeks before the meeting. A draft agenda is also listed at this site.  Fees, including annual dues, can be paid online or an invoice can printed to pay by check.  If your library is a member, you and any other attendees (usually an assistant director or other management) from your library pay the member rate for registration.  If the assistant director is the only person who attends from your library and the director designates them as the representative, they can attend the MPLD Business Meeting on Friday morning. Otherwise, only the director attends this meeting, i.e., only one person from each library attends the business meeting.

Meeting Minutes

Meeting minutes are archived on the organization's Google Drive.

 How to Plan an MPLD Meeting

This guide is meant for MPLD officers and local arrangements members who are tasked with finding a hotel/location for our meetings.

Meetings are first consecutive Thursday and Friday in June and December.  June meeting moves around the state, December meeting is usually held centrally.

It is good to begin planning as far in advance as possible.  Locations for meetings are usually planned two years in advance at MPLD meetings.  Your local chamber of commerce or convention and visitors bureau can help solicit proposals from hotels, or you can contact any hotel directly.  Some hotels will reduce the fees for meeting rooms based on a commitment for a certain number of sleeping rooms or a minimum purchase of food and drink.

Number of Attendees: 60-80, Number of Sleeping Rooms: 20-40, Sleeping Room Nights: 1-2, most will stay only one night.

Number of Meeting Rooms: 2, 1 large meeting room for sessions and 1 room for meals, should be large enough for 100 people at tables.  We prefer not to eat at any built-in lobby restaurant with vouchers.  If 2 rooms are not available we can eat and meet in the same room, but this is not preferable.

Networking Room: 1 room for Thursday evening, normally 12-30 people attending, preference is for a room with multiple tables and chairs, not a sleeping room.  One of the MPLD officers or members may reserve a suite and host the networking room instead of arranging this with the hotel. *Note: Networking room has gone down in attendance and may not be needed at every meeting.  Many members network during meals or go out to dinner together.

MPLD will not arrange a room for Missouri Evergreen or for MoLib2Go or any other group that wishes to meet during these days.  Any other group is welcome to contact the hotel directly and arrange and pay for their own meeting room.  Recent activity has included meetings of groups like this early Thursday morning before lunch.  MPLD subgroups, such as DOLLS or DOTS, may arrange a separate meeting off-site on the Wednesday afternoon of this same meeting week, usually at a local library or other free meeting place.

Meeting arranger must secure the facility and is authorized to sign a contract in the absence of an MPLD officer.

Meals to be arranged are as follows:

Buffet meals are fine and usually cheaper.  Be sure to include vegetables/salad or a non-meat part of the meal for vegetarians.  We do not usually take special meal requests.  Include tea and coffee.  Dessert is nice at lunch but not required since we usually have something sweet at break time.  Facility will need to know approximate meal counts in the two weeks before the meeting.

Meeting and meal times are as follows:

Thursday

Friday

Edited May 2023