Katherine G. “Kit” Hadley, attorney and outgoing commissioner of the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, has been named executive director of the Minneapolis Public Library. The library board announced two finalists February 19, interviewed them the next day, and revealed February 21 that Hadley had been selected over librarian William R. Gordon, who retired last year as executive director of the American Library Association.
The job has been open since March 2002 after the board dismissed Mary Lawson amid charges of board micromanagement. Two previous finalists withdrew from consideration in October, and the board then raised the annual salary figure for the position to $130,000 in an effort to attract candidates.
“The library board is looking forward to working with a new director who can lead this essential institution in these critical times,” said board President Laura Waterman Wittstock. “As one of only a handful of public libraries nationwide having an elected board, we believe strongly in the power of representation and the value of public involvement. The new director brings an important set of leadership skills to carrying out the library’s unique and valued mission.”
Hadley said she sees the director role as “a great opportunity to contribute to the city of Minneapolis and to make the Minneapolis Public Library among the best in the country.”
Gordon, whose candidacy surprised many colleagues, told American Libraries that “after five months of retirement I’ve concluded that I would like to come back to work. I believe I could have made a contribution in the face of the construction of a new facility and the budget crises facing Minneapolis and virtually every city and state.” However, he admitted that Hadley is “someone who is local and acquainted with the elected officials in Minneapolis and Minnesota, and for the board, that is a comfortable choice.”
Posted February 24, 2003.