Meeting Of Staff And Library Board Answers Immediate Questions

By Nancy K. Crevier

A meeting of C.H. Booth Library staff and three members of the library Board of Trustees, Martha Robilotti, Moira Rodgers, and John Trentacosta, took place Tuesday afternoon, September 18, said senior reference librarian Beryl Harrison, who was officially named assistant library director at the regular meeting of the trustees last week, following the announcement by library director Janet Woycik of her retirement, effective June 30, 2013.

“It was really just an announcement to the staff [of Ms Woycik’s retirement] and naming me the point person during this transition time, and to answer any staff questions,” said Ms Harrison, after the 2 pm meeting.

The board members addressed any concerns the staff had about who would be in charge from now until Ms Woycik’s scheduled retirement, and briefly discussed thoughts on beginning a search for a new library director, she said. Ms Harrison has served unofficially in the capacity of assistant library director since 1997, but has now been formally recognized as such.

“As far as I can see, there will be no major changes immediately,” Ms Harrison said. “We are not reorganizing the staff or hiring or firing anyone. It will be business as usual, and we all want the transition to be as smooth as possible,” she said.

Board members did express that Ms Woycik’s retirement announcement on September 11 had taken them a bit by surprise, and that they thought the search for a new library director might begin in late winter or early spring. “The board wants everyone to know that we are proceeding [with the search], dealing within the constraints of our budget,” Ms Harrison said.

Because Ms Woycik has served on search committees for other libraries, Ms Harrison said she expected that the current library director would have input into the search for the right person to fill the position at the C.H. Booth Library.

Ms Harrison said that she looks forward to assisting Ms Woycik over the next several months and “dealing with the little odds and ends that come up.”

The low-key meeting on Tuesday afternoon, she stressed, was to ensure that all library employees were aware of the upcoming change and to assure all that, as in past years whenever Ms Woycik was not there, someone was in charge.

“Frankly,” said Ms Harrison, “I think everyone was more concerned about the prospect of the storms predicted for tonight.”