Candidates announced for 2018 Public Library Association board election

CHICAGO – The Public Library Association (PLA) Nominating Committee has unveiled the slate of candidates for the Association’s 2018 election. In the 2018 PLA election six nominees will stand for three positions on the board of directors: PLA President and two Directors-at-Large. The candidate elected in each race will serve a three-year term from June 2018 through June 2021. The candidate elected to the office of president will serve one year as president-elect (2018–2019), president (2019–2020) and past-president (2020–2021). The candidates are as follows:

President

Nicolle Davies, Executive Director, Charleston County (S.C.) Public Library

Ramiro Salazar, Director, San Antonio (Texas) Public Library

Director-at-Large (Seat A)

John Spears, Pikes Peak (Colo.) Library District

Kelvin Watson, Broward County (Fla.) Library

Director-at-Large (Seat B: Small/Rural Library*)

Susan Considine, Fayetteville (N.Y.) Free Library

Cindy Fesemyer, Columbus (Wisc.) Public Library

*Per an August 2017 board resolution (PDF, 2 pgs.), for PLA to better represent the needs and interests of library staff from public libraries of all sizes, the 2018 slate shall include two candidates from small/rural libraries (those with service area populations less than 25,000 people), who will run opposite each other to ensure one PLA board member represents that constituency.

Candidate profiles will be available on the PLA website in early February. Voting will take place from the first Monday in March through the first Wednesday in April.

PLA sincerely thanks the members of its 2018 Nominating Committee, listed below, for their service:

• Vailey Oehlke, Chair, Multnomah County (Ore.) Library
• Paula Brehm-Heeger, Public Library of Cincinnati & Hamilton County (Ohio)
• Gina J. Millsap, Topeka & Shawnee (Kan.) County Public Library
• Marcellus Turner, Seattle (Wash.) Public Library

Running for the board of directors is just one of several ways for members to become more closely involved with PLA. Click here to learn more.

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The Public Library Association (PLA) is the largest association dedicated to supporting the unique and evolving needs of public library professionals. Founded in 1944, PLA serves nearly 9,000 members in public libraries large and small in communities across the United States and Canada, with a growing presence around the world. PLA strives to help its members shape the essential institution of public libraries by serving as an indispensable ally for public library leaders. For more information about PLA, contact the PLA office at 1 (800) 545-2433, ext. 5PLA, or pla@ala.org.

Related Links

2018 PLA Nominating Committee

2017-18 PLA Board of Directors

Get Involved with PLA