Laura Glesby Photo
Board of Directors President Anderson: The search is on.
The city’s public library has hired a search firm to find a permanent replacement for the late City Librarian John Jessen roughly five months after the beloved city figure died of cancer.
Jessen, who ascended to the role of top city librarian in December 2019, died in May at the age of 56 after nearly two decades of service at the public library. Since then, Maureen Sullivan has filled in as the interim City Librarian.
At Tuesday night’s latest regular meeting of the New Haven Free Public Library (NHFPL) Board of Directors, which was held at the downtown public library hub on Elm Street, Board President Lauren Anderson announced that the city has selected a Colorado-based library consultant named June Garcia to conduct the search for a new library leader.
Garcia will work with former city librarian Sari Feldman to manage the search.
After Tuesday’s meeting, the Independent asked Anderson about the timeline for the search for the next top city librarian.
“We would like the job posting available as soon as possible,” Anderson replied. “We want a process that is thorough.”
She said she hopes that a candidate can be chosen for the job by the “early part of 2023.” But, she added, “searches can be unpredictable.”
The $19,800 in funding for the consultant will come from the NHFPL Foundation, which allocates a certain amount of money each year to be used at library leaders’ discretion.
Also on Tuesday, the NHFPL board voted unanimously to appoint four board members — including Anderson — as well as one NHPFL Foundation board member to a city librarian search committee.
Sunday Hours Still Being Negotiated
At Tuesday's library Board of Directors meeting.
Later on in Tuesday’s meeting, Interim City Librarian Maureen Sullivan updated the board on the latest with the Elicker Administration’s plans to open all five public library buildings on Sundays.
The Board of Alders approved $140,000 in this fiscal year’s budget to make the library’s planned new Sunday hours a reality. Nearly three months into the fiscal year, all of the city’s public libraries remain closed on Sundays, largely because of staffing shortages.
Sullivan told the board members that “we’re waiting for the negotiation agreement” between the city and the public-sector union that includes library staffers.
She said that she has submitted a proposal to the city calling for a four-week planning period to take place after city-union negotiations wrap up. After those negotiations conclude and after the succeeding four weeks of planning, she said, she’d like to have the public libraries open for Sunday hours.
Sullivan added during Tuesday’s meeting that city Chief Administrative Officer Regina Rush-Kittle, who was present at the board meeting, has pressed her to come up with a speedier timeline than the four-weeks-after-union-negotiations plan she’s put forward.