Gwendolyn B. Guster Welch
president of the Birmingham (Ala.) Public Library Board of Trustees
About
Welch is president of the Birmingham (Ala.) Public Library Board of Trustees and serves as trustee at large on the ALTAFF board. Welch has served as board president for three out of her nine years on the board, has also served as vice president and parliamentarian and has chaired every committee at some point during her tenure. Welch served as a school media specialist from 1975 to 1996 and has also volunteered at Birmingham Public Libraries. She created a “Board Buddies” program, in which new Trustees were paired with experienced library board members. She also serves as a mentor to the newly-appointed president of the local Bessemer Public Library Board of Trustees. Welch nominated one of the 10 winners (out of 1,700 nominees) of the I Love My Librarian Award, Saundra Ross Forrest of Birmingham Public Library.