One of our greatest joys at WiLS is hearing our members tell the stories of the big and important work they are doing – interesting new projects or initiatives, or even interesting and new approaches to old projects. And, in addition to hearing about it, it makes us even happier when we can share those stories with other members. Each month, WiLS is proud to feature an interview with one of our library members. This month, we interview John Thompson, Director of Indianhead Federated Library System!
Why did you, personally, choose to work in libraries?
Having moved to different areas of the country a few times early in life I always remember my mom taking me to the library. That exploration of books and libraries continued when our family settled in Baraboo.
My working life in libraries began when I was in high school. I started working at the Baraboo Public Library the summer of my freshmen year. As the job responsibilities changed over the years, I found that I really enjoyed helping people find answers or something new to read. This desire to help led me to graduate school and to my career working in libraries.
What is unique about the culture of your library? How do you influence it?
Our 53 libraries are geographically dispersed over 10 counties in northwest Wisconsin. They are a mix of urban, suburban, and rural of varying sizes with vastly different levels of support. While they are all unique, they value access, inclusion, and quality service to their community and region.
IFLS staff continuously seeks ways to help mentor and facilitate library staff and boards to meet their values. Personally, I try to be approachable and maintain an open-door policy for everyone.
What do you think is important to know about the community you work with? What helps you understand their needs?
A library system director’s “community” is diverse. It includes system staff, library staff, library boards, as well as governmental boards. Their service needs vary widely.
Visits to libraries help me to understand each local community and library. While it is not possible for me to personally visit all 53 libraries each year, we strive as an organization to visit them all within a year. A team approach to service is important. In addition to the in-person visits, I try to make virtual visits to the library’s Facebook page, website, and email. New library directors receive visits from a variety of IFLS staff members to share information about our services, to provide training, as well as to answer questions. We also pair new directors, youth service librarians, and others with mentors from other libraries when appropriate.
Sharing a service vision within our staff helps provide consulting assistance and education to the community based on their needs at that moment in time.
What big ideas are being worked on at your library? What problems are being solved?
2018 will be a year of reflection on inclusion and service improvement. Several libraries have become fine-free to help make sure anyone in the community can access materials and services. We are also providing tools to help libraries evaluate policies to further improve access and inclusion.
These interviews are part of a series of interviews with both WiLS library and vendor partners. Your feedback is appreciated. If you have any to offer on this article, or suggestions for upcoming interviews, contact Andrea Coffin at acoffin@wils.org.