Minutes – February 13, 2026
Welcome and Call to Order
The two hundred ninth meeting of the Ohio Public Library Information Network (OPLIN) Board of Trustees was called to order at 10:00 ᴀ.ᴍ. on Friday, February 13, 2026 by Board Chair Ben Bolbach.
Attending virtually via Zoom: OPLIN Board members Ben Bolbach, Michael Butler, Jenny Eyink, Bill Lane, Mohamed Ragheb, Andrea Ralston, Jennifer Reynard, Brad Stephens, CJ Stephens, and Shawn Walsh; Jessica Dooley, Christine Morris, Don Yarman, and Derek Zoladz (OPLIN); John Stewart, Mandy Knapp, and Jamie Pardee (State Library); Jay Smith (Ohio Library Council).
Approval of the Agenda
Jennifer Reynard moved to approve the agenda as presented; Andrea Ralston seconded. There was no discussion, so the Chair asked if there were any objections or abstentions. Hearing none, the motion passed unanimously.
Public Participation
The Chair called for public participation.
SEO Director John Stewart discussed the potential move of the State Library to two potential new locations and the possibility of taking on administration of SearchOhio. SEO chose five locations to participate in a cybersecurity pilot project, partnering with DataServ to conduct network assessments, and contracting with Lorrie Germann to file E-Rate funding requests for necessary upgrades. Mandy Knapp discussed her involvement in a steering committee tasked with planning the future of the cultural heritage metadata aggregation project started by DPLA, now hosted by Cleveland Public Library.
Jay Smith noted that OLC is tracking progress on several bills relevant to public libraries. Library Legislative Day will be held March 18th, and the IT Division will host their Rackside Chat on March 6th.
Approval of the Minutes
Michael Butler moved to approve the minutes of the December 12, 2025 meeting as presented; CJ Stephens seconded. There was no discussion, so the Chair asked if there were any objections or abstentions. Hearing none, the motion passed unanimously.
Acceptance of the Financial Reports
Jamie Pardee reviewed the financial reports as of the end of January. The projected cash balance for the end of the fiscal year remains flat from the beginning of the year, so no major increases or decreases are expected. Almost $700,000 in E-Rate refunds have been deposited. Disbursements remain in line with estimates, with $570,000 dispersed in admin expenses, and the remaining $500,000 commitment for databases has been paid.
Andrea Ralston moved to accept the financial reports; Jenny Eyink seconded. There was no discussion, so the Chair asked if there were any objections or abstentions. Hearing none, the motion passed unanimously.
Unfinished Business
Spectrum Settlement
Yarman discussed progress on Spectrum's proposed settlement to resolve retroactive pricing changes for past contracts. With the help of Broadband Legal Strategies, Spectrum has agreed to return relevant E-Rate refunds to directly to USAC, and provide OPLIN with the undiscounted portion of the refund (about 30%). Yarman provided Spectrum with details of all E-Rate reimbursements dating back to 2018. Spectrum is reviewing that to identify other accounts that were eligible for the retroactive rate adjustment.
Gongwer State Affairs Platform
As previously discussed, the Gongwer news service has moved to a new platform which requires an individual login to access most of the content. OPLIN continues to provide the daily newsletter to library admin subscribers who access content without this individual login requirement. Yarman asked the Board for permission to provide additional Gongwer updates through the listserv, including breaking news, periodic polling results, and the daily Tip Sheet with links to other news sources. To avoid confusion, these additional mailings will be edited to remove individual account login links.
Mohamed Ragheb moved to approve editing the additional Gongwer mailings for listserv distribution; Shawn Walsh seconded. There was no further discussion, so the Chair asked if there were any objections or abstentions. Hearing none, the motion passed unanimously.
New Business
Webkit Calendar Platform
Yarman explained that the State Library had decided to discontinue statewide access to WhoFi, including the Community Calendar tool used by over 60 OPLIN Webkit libraries. Rather than tell libraries they must now pay for something they'd been using for free, Yarman began looking for a comparable platform that OPLIN could offer, and posted an RFP to OhioBuys. Yarman requested permission to use unencumbered funds to provide a new event management platform for Webkit customers. Mohamed Ragheb asked whether the company that the CLEVNET consortium works with for their members submitted a bid; Yarman confirmed that they had. Jennifer Reynard asked whether this was just a transition phase before requiring libraries to pay for their own software; Yarman said his intention was for OPLIN to continue to provide a calendar management platform for Webkit customers. It is possible that in a future year, OPLIN may raise the annual hosting fee to help cover the costs of the event management software. Brad Stephens asked for clarification whether OPLIN's solution would be for Webkit customers only (Yarman affirmed that was the case), and Ben Bolbach asked for clarification on the pricing structure with the vendor. Yarman said he required "per unit" pricing from vendors so that he could make cost forecasts, and the vendors have proposed various solutions for implementation.
Andrea Ralston moved to approve the use of unencumbered funds to subscribe to online event management software for Webkits; Michael Butler seconded. There was no discussion, so the Chair called for a roll call vote on the motion.
Recorded vote: Ben Bolbach, aye; Michael Butler, aye; Jenny Eyink, aye; Bill Lane, aye; Mohamed Ragheb, aye; Andrea Ralston, aye; Jennifer Reynard, aye; Brad Stephens, aye; CJ Stephens, aye; and Shawn Walsh, aye.
OPLIN Staff Reports
OPLIN Director's Report
Don Yarman reported on his appearance before the Controlling Board to answer their questions about the State Library's request to waive competitive bidding for Lorrie Germann's E-Rate services (OPLIN's general contract with Lorrie is competitively bid, but the State Library's add-on contract for the cybersecurity pilot was not). Yarman also told the Board that the state now reviews boards and commissions every two years for possible elimination, and he will be testifying about OPLIN to the Sunset Review Committee the following week.
Digital Resources Manager’s Report
Christine Morris provided an update on E-rate initiatives, highlighting upcoming advocacy efforts in Washington and the need to address Universal Service Fund reform. She also discussed her work helping libraries navigate the E-Rate funding application process, including helping them with appeals. She continues to work closely with Broadband Ohio and Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction on their digital literacy project using Northstar.
Library Services Manager’s Report
Yarman announced that in the week since Laura wrote her report, three libraries have contacted her about moving their current, inaccessible websites to a Webkit.
Technology Projects Manager’s Report
Jessica Dooley reported significant progress on circuit renewals and upgrades for the coming year. Upgrades to the core routing engines have been delayed while the state sorts out an issue with Juniper maintenance; Dooley and OIT engineer Mike Horsley will soon begin a careful progress of upgrading the routing engine firmware, and only a single service-impacting event is expected (to be announced well in advance). Dooley has been implementing 802.1Q Tunneling for CLC libraries to replace end-of-life firewall devices, saving those libraries thousands of dollars in equipment replacement costs. Dooley praised Derek's long-term project redesigning OPLIN's datasets, noting the much improved data management and accessibility. Seventy libraries plan to participate in OPLIN's CyberOhio grant application for YubiKey security keys.
Adjournment
With no other business pending, Bill Lane moved to adjourn; Michael Butler seconded. Hearing no objections, the Chair adjourned the meeting at 11:09 ᴀ.ᴍ.