Trustee FYI Ramapo Catskill Library System

Summer Serving Public Libraries in Orange, Rockland, Sullivan and southern Ulster Counties since 1959 2017 RCLS Legislative Breakfast and Annual Meeting What’s Inside Register now! The 30th RCLS Legislative Breakfast and 58th Annual Meeting will be held on Friday, September 15 at the Bear Mountain Inn & Conference Center, a 1915 hotel and restaurant owned by the Palisades Interstate Park 2 Mark Your Commission. The Inn is located on Route 9W at the northern end of Seven Lakes Calendar Drive, just south of the Bear Mountain Bridge. Registration begins at 8:00 a.m. and a 2 Media 101: lip-smacking hot breakfast buffet will be served at 8:30 a.m. Truth or Introductions of the breakfast sponsors, the RCLS Board of Trustees and other Consensus dignitaries will begin at 9:00 a.m. followed by remarks from the RCLS Executive Survival Tools Director. Prior to the legislators speaking, three Library Champions will give in the Age of testimonials for libraries. Library Champions are members of the public (patrons) Fake News that are unaffiliated with the operation of libraries who are willing to express support for libraries. In addition, presentations will be made for the Member Library Adult 2 Can You Program of the Year Award, Member Library Youth Program of the Year Award Answer These and Anthony J. Knipp Library Trustee Award. Questions? County legislators from Orange, Rockland, Sullivan and Ulster counties as well as RCLS area State legislators are invited to attend the event. The breakfast is an 2 Trustee FYI excellent opportunity to show the legislators how vital State funding and support are to your library and RCLS. Library staff, trustees, and Friends are encouraged to 3 Spotlight on attend and participate. RCLS Trustee During the Annual Meeting, a presentation of the 2018 RCLS Budget will be Eleanor made followed by Kassner the election of three RCLS Trus- 4 SonicWall tees; one from Protects RCLS’ Orange and two Network from from Rockland counties. Invitations have 5 Trustee been mailed to all Training trustees. No fee is Opportunities charged for this event as it is 6 Nomination of partially under- Bear Mountain Inn & Conference Center RCLS Trustees written by spon- Memo sors. Register by visiting the RCLS Event Calendar at rcls.evanced.info/signup/ calendar. Go to the event date (September 15) and click on the event title. Scroll down and click on “View More.” Complete the “Register For Event” form. Click on “Submit.” A confirmation e-mail will be sent to you if you have correctly entered your e-mail address. If you do not receive a confirmation e-mail, contact Ruth Daubenspeck at RCLS (845.243.3747, ext. 222). See YOU at the breakfast!

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Mark Your Calendar Media 101: Truth or Consensus Monday, September 4 Survival Tools in the Age of Fake News Labor Day On Sunday, October 1, Bethel Woods Center for the Arts RCLS CLOSED is hosting a two-hour entertaining and interactive roundtable Friday, September 15 that will focus on the perplexing RCLS Legislative Breakfast issue of factual reporting, the role and Annual Meeting of satire, the influence of 1960s Bear Mountain Inn 8:00 a.m. newsmakers and satirists and how to be an informed citizen. The Thursday, September 21 event envisions a nationally well- Professional Development Day known keynote speaker and expert RCLS CLOSED panelists, accompanied by a Sunday, October 1 college student who developed a FB news verifying app, a Media 101: Truth or Consensus member of our local press and a representative from our 47- Survival Tools in the Age of Fake member regional library system. News RCLS purchased tickets for member library Trustees and Bethel Woods Center for the Arts staff to attend the event for FREE. Register via the RCLS 4:30 p.m. calendar, not the Bethel Woods website and the tickets will be Wednesday, October 4 delivered to your library one week before the event.

Open Meetings Law RCLS 5:30 p.m. Can You Answer These Questions? Thursday, October 5 Trustee Orientation 101 • My library wants to start a Friends group. Whom do I RCLS 5:30 p.m. contact at RCLS for help? • The library’s circulation computer’s screen goes blank. Monday, October 9 Columbus Day Observed Whom do I call? RCLS CLOSED • In filling out the State Annual Report, who at RCLS will supply my library’s circulation figures? Wednesday, October 11 • Who at RCLS provides professional development for System Orientation library staff and trustees? RCLS 10:00 a.m. • My library has extra materials that need to go through the Monday, October 16 RCLS delivery system. Whom do I contact? RCLS Board Meeting • My library needs more library cards. Who at RCLS 6:30 p.m. RCLS handles these? Wednesday, October 25 • What is SEAL2? Trustee Education Session 102 • I have an article about my library for Pearl River Public Library 5:30 p.m. inclusion in the RCLS Weekly Memo. Whom do I send it to? Friday, November 10 If you were unable to answer any or all of Veterans Day Observed the questions above, you will want to join us for RCLS CLOSED the RCLS System Orientation on Wednesday, October 11 at Monday, November 20 10 a.m. Register using the RCLS online calendar at RCLS Board Meeting rcls.evanced.info/signup/calendar. RCLS 6:30 p.m.

Thursday, November 23 and Friday, November 24 Tr u s t e e F Y I Thanksgiving Holiday The current edition of the RCLS Trustee FYI as well as RCLS CLOSED archived issues can be viewed on the RCLS website www.rcls.org under the dropdown menu “Publications.”

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Spotlight on RCLS Trustee Ellie Kassner Daniel B. Hulse, RCLS Development Officer Rockland County native and Tomkins Cove resident since 2012, Ellie Kass- ner is the newest member to the RCLS Board of Trustees. She was appointed to the Board in February 2017 to fill a vacant Rockland County seat. Growing up as a neighbor of the Tomkins Cove Library created her interest in libraries and Ellie has valued the library since she was old enough to read. A member of the Tomkins Cove Library Board of Trustees since 2013, Ellie presently serves as Board presi- dent. In praising her home library, Ellie explains that she enjoys the role that the library plays in the community and loves the chil- dren’s programs that Tomkins Cove Library provides. An avid reader, Ellie shares that her favorite authors include Roald Dahl, Toni Morrison, Albert Camus and Zakes Mda. Ellie earned her undergraduate degree from Skidmore College, double majoring in English Literature and Feminist Theory, with a minor in Business Administration and her Master in Business Ad- ministration with a concentration in Ethical Leadership from Marist College through a partnership program with Ramapo Catskill Li- brary System. She wrote her undergraduate thesis on Feminist Lit- erature Under Apartheid while attending the University of Cape Town in South Africa for a semester. Ellie explains that “the inter- sectionality of voices” always interested her. During 2009 in Cape Town, while writing policy for a shelter for homeless girls, Ellie met her future husband, Charles James. They were married in 2013 at the Stony Point Battlefield. Then in 2015, the couple had a traditional Xhosa ceremony performed in South Africa. Ellie is the President of W.H. Kassner, Inc., a third-generation Ellie Kassner, RCLS Trustee custom architectural iron working company that specializes in the fabrication and installation of stairs, railings, platforms and cano- pies on commercial construction projects. The business, currently run by Ellie and her business partner and brother, Dirk Kassner is located in Tomkins Cove. Her two can also be found on-site serving as office dogs: standard poodle , Kafka is an intern and shepherd mutt, Orion, is sleepy and makes daily executive decisions about which commands to follow. Active in public and community endeavors, Ellie also serves on the Advisory Board for the Palisades Institute and as a mentor for New York City Small Busi- ness Services’ Women Entrepreneurs New York City (WENYC) initiative. In her time on the Tomkins Cove Library Board, the library has updated its policy manual, dramatically increased its adult and children's’ programming and moved forward with major construction. Ellie’s leisure passions include the restoration of an 18½’ sailboat, home brewing sparkling apple wine and restoring vintage British sports cars. She is currently working on a 1960 Austin-Healey 3000. Ellie Kassner’s joining the RCLS Board is a positive match as she enjoys working with the other members of the RCLS Board of Trustees, in her appoint- ed committee roles and with the Board as a whole. She looks forward to contrib- uting her experience and knowledge in all actions and matters reviewed by this governing body.

3 Trustee FYI SonicWall Protects RCLS’ Network from Ransomware John Schneider, RCLS ANSER Manager & Network Administrator Wannacry! ! These are names of and ransomware that have been in the news the last few months, and with good reason. Both of these types of malicious code are designed to encrypt victims’ files making them unusable, and demand payment to have the data “unlocked.” This type of malware is known as ransomware. The only way to recover from this type of attack is to ei- ther pay the demand or restore the files from a recent backup. In early January 2017, the St. Louis Public Library (SLPL) computer system suffered a ransomware attack that impacted access to machines and data at all of their 17 branches. Library management refused to pay the $35,000 demanded as ransom, and IT staff wiped affected servers and restored them from available backups. St. Louis Public Library has been working with the FBI to identify how criminals broke into the system, where the infection began and how it spread through the library network. “The real victims of this criminal attack are the Library’s patrons. SLPL has worked hard to open a secure but widely available digital world to the people of St. Louis, and I am sorry it was interrupted,” said SLPL Executive Director Wal- ler McGuire in a letter to library patrons. “An attempt to hold information and access to the world for ransom is deeply frightening and offensive to any public library, and we will make every effort to keep that world available to our pa- trons.” The Ramapo Catskill Library System shares this philosophy. Most ransomware infections occur when malware is spread in spam or phish- ing e-mails enticing the victim to open a malicious e-mail attachment or click on a link in the message that downloads the malware. In the St. Louis situation, pa- trons’ personal and financial information were not stored on SLPL’s servers and none of that data was impacted by the attack. Wi-Fi services at the respective branches were not interrupted and the library’s website and databases offering books, movies and music downloads were also not impacted. Like RCLS, we should all be doing regularly scheduled backups of data. The best defense against these types of attacks is to avoid opening suspect e- mail attachments, replying to “phishing” e-mails (the ones that are fakes, posing as legitimate sources usually trying to gain your personal information) and to use multiple layers of protection; including firewall and anti-virus software. Regular- ly backing up your data is extremely helpful in the event of a malware attack on your computer system. Should any or all of your stored information be lost in an attack, the backup is the best method to restore encrypted data. RCLS works hard and is dedicated to maintaining the SonicWall protection systems that guard the Wide Area Network. Every computer, in every member library, within the RCLS network is sitting behind a SonicWall Firewall. During the last year alone, SonicWall Capture Labs products effectively blocked Wannacry and Petya Ransomware attacks directed at RCLS member libraries through the RCLS Wide Area Network. All known versions of these malware exploits were blocked via active next-generation firewall security services. And this protection continues to safeguard the RCLS network daily. RCLS’s protec- tion systems and software are sophisticated and kept up-to-date. Balancing a de- mand for open access against the need for protection takes a great deal of staff work and expense.

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SonicWall Protects RCLS’ Network from Ransomware Continued from page 4

The St. Louis library is the latest in a growing list of high-profile businesses and public services falling victim to ransomware. Less than a year has passed since the Hollywood Presbyterian attack, in which a $17,000 ransom was paid, and the Kentucky Methodist Hospital attack, in which officials reportedly refused to pay. The University of Calgary also fell victim as have other colleges, univer- sities, local law enforcement and government agencies, and entertainment organi- zations. No device or program is a security “silver bullet”; but the RCLS ANSER team remains dedicated to watching for anomalies, testing for vulnerabilities and im- plementing the best security measures available to protect the system.

Above is an example of a phishing email, and a few tips on how to spot a fake.

5 Trustee FYI Tr u s t e e Tr a i n i n g O p p o r t u n i t i e s Open Meetings Law Workshop Wednesday, October 4 | RCLS Headquarters Buffet Dinner will be served at 5:30 p.m. Session will start promptly at 6:00 p.m. and end at 8:00 p.m. Every library board of trustees in New York State is required to follow Open Meetings Law. Trustees have many duties and responsibilities, among them following the Law as they conduct business. It is much easier to comply with the Law if one can understand what is required. CE Credits: 2 – Administration Presenter: Robert Freeman, Executive Director of the Committee on Open Government Trustee Orientation 101 Thursday, October 5, 2017 | Cornwall Public Library Buffet Dinner will be served at 5:30 p.m. Session starts promptly at 6:00 p.m. and ends at 8:00 p.m. This session will provide trustees with information on Trustees’ duties and responsibilities, an understanding of the fiduciary, policy and personnel aspects of a library and review the best practices. As the items covered in this session are limited, it is essential that you familiarize yourself with the 2015 Trustee Handbook, which will be distributed to each attendee. Presenter: Grace Riario, RCLS Assistant Director Trustee Education Session 102 Wednesday, October 25 | Pearl River Public Library - Rockland County Thursday, November 2 | Chester Public Library - Orange County Buffet Dinner will be served at 5:30 p.m. Session starts promptly at 6:00 p.m. and ends at 8:30 p.m. If you have served as a Board member of a library for more than three years, you are encouraged to attend this session. This is not an introductory course. A basic knowledge of the role and responsibilities of a library trustee in the State of New York is required. This session will cover the different laws that libraries must comply with, financial reports, warrants, motions and fiscal issues you need to be aware of as a Board member and a review of the best practices of running an effective Board meeting including the role of a Board President. Presenter: Grace Riario, RCLS Assistant Director To r e g i s t e r To register for any training event, go online to rcls.evanced.info/signup/Calendar • Go to the event date • Click on the event title • Scroll down and click on “View More” • Complete the “Register For Event” form • Click on “Submit” • If you do NOT receive a confirmation e-mail, contact Ruth Daubenspeck at RCLS (845.243.3747, ext. 222)

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Ramapo Catskill Library System 619 Route 17M Middletown, NY 10940-4395 845.243.3747 · FAX 845.243.3739 www.rcls.org

RCLS Board of Trustees Carla Randazzo Amthor Martha Anderson, President Anita Baumann Carl S. Berkowitz Roslyn Applebaum Hurwitz Jain Jacob Bernard Marone Helen Rados Lynn Skolnick William R. Troy Matt Pfisterer (non-voting representative of the RCLS Directors’ Association) (non-voting representative of the RCLS Directors’ Association) Executive Director Robert Hubsher

RCLS Mission We deliver high-quality, cost-effective consolidated and cooperative services to support member libraries in meeting the needs of their communities. RCLS Goals 1. Coordinated Services - Offer a clearly defined set of cost effective consolidated and coordinated services designed to enhance local library achievement and maximize the value of local funds expended. 2. Technology - Enhance and maintain existing automation services and assist member libraries in implementing emerging technologies to improve library service and cooperation. 3. Resource Sharing - Coordinate Central Library and System activities to provide a broad range of services and online resources to support equity of access for all residents. 4. Training - Provide opportunities to member libraries’ staff, directors and trustees for the training and skills development needed to support excellent library service and encourage participation in training opportunities to the fullest extent. 5. Advocacy - Actively work to increase awareness about the value and importance of library services and help strengthen member libraries in their advocacy efforts. 6. Communication - Maintain and promote effective means of communications with and among member libraries to ensure accountability and cooperation. 7. Organizational Environment - Maintain an organizational environment that allows RCLS to be responsive and accountable to member libraries.

Desktop Publishing Printing by Ramapo Catskill Library System 8