Library board officially launches director search

Dec. 16—After spending the last several months in limbo, the Cullman County Public Library Board has officially launched its search to fill the now vacant library director position.

In its first meeting without a director, the library board announced on Thursday, Dec. 14, that the Cullman County Commission had finalized the library director job description and would begin posting the job the following day, Friday, Dec. 15.

The board first announced it would hold a statewide public search to fill the position after it walked back a vote made during a closed, executive session to appoint former assistant-director Josie Harrington in September. The process of casting such a broad net was a new one for the board — previous directors have been promoted from within for at least the past three decades — and confusion over the exact hiring process and the director's proposed salary have stalled the board's efforts.

Harrington was also named interim-director in September and said she planned to apply for the position until she announced her resignation early in November. While the board planned to enlist former director Max Hand to bridge the gap until a permanent replacement could be found, boardmember Jill Brown said Thursday that Hand had declined the offer due to the uncertainty of how long his services would be needed.

"Everyone we reached out to declined because we couldn't give them a set amount of time they would be needed," Brown said.

The position, along with a list of qualifications and responsibilities, was planned to be posted to the Cullman County Website, Cullman County Public Library Website and the Alabama Public Library System website.

Those interested in the position should email a current resume and cover letter to apply@ccpls.com.

Brown said the board has already identified several local candidates who have expressed an interest in the position.

"We have some local candidates. We're hoping one of them meets all of the qualifications that we have because that would be ideal, to have someone local fill the position," she said.

Brown said one item to be addressed by the future director would be to develop more precise security protocols in the event of an emergency.

Brown said the main branch faced what she described as a "security incident" last week "when an individual came in the library and was self-harming." Brown said the individual had not threatened to harm anyone other than themselves and police arrived quickly after being called by library staff. She said the individual was arrested and taken into custody on prior warrants.

"When we do get a director, something we probably want to put on our agenda is to figure out what other libraries are doing for security. Thankfully, our local authorities are just two blocks away, but we don't want any of our staff or our patrons to ever feel as though they are in danger while they are in this building," she said.

Julie Freeman, representing the non-profit group Friends of the Public Libraries of Cullman County, also updated the board on the groups current finances and fundraising plans for the upcoming year.

Freeman said the group was currently attempting to complete its 2022 990 tax forms, but had not yet been given the receipts for several checks it had presented to the library, including a $10,000 donation earmarked for the library's bookmobile.

She said the group was planning to shift its fundraising strategy for 2024. While the past several years the group has held a murder mystery dinner as its primary fundraising event, Freeman said next year the Friends would instead be holding a Mardi Gras event along with several smaller fundraisers throughout the year.

The board suggested each branch in the county library system develop a "wishlist" of projects which would not be feasible under the current operating budgets to present to the group. Freeman said the group was certainly open to this proposal and could potentially hold specific events to target individual needs of the branches.