Cook Memorial Library Director leaving
By Paul Hall on Wednesday, June 16th, 2021 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
LA GRANDE – A statement from Kip Roberson, Cook Memorial Library Director, has announced he is leaving his position. An explanation of the reasoning of his departure and what direction Roberson will be taking is in the following statement, provided by Roberson.
I’m going to be the next Director of Library Services at the Teton County Library in Jackson, WY. My start date there will be July 6. My last day here with Cook Memorial Library is June 25. What’s most exciting about this new opportunity is that I get to continue living in a beautiful rural community similarly sized to La Grande but leading a library with a much larger budget and staff size; it was an opportunity too good to pass up. I’m extremely proud of the work I’ve accomplished here in La Grande with the help of our small but extremely talented staff and support from the community. I’m particularly proud of how well we rose to the challenges of providing library service during a pandemic; we kept innovating new ways of keeping the library open and relevant.
I’m also thrilled that we now offer a broad array of digital services like streaming movies and TV shows; these services helped our patrons weather the covid storm from home. The library stepped up and helped to bridge the digital divide by adding 20 wifi hotspots and 5 laptops that patrons can borrow given that many in our community don’t have a computer or internet access at home. I’m also pleased that the library secured a budget increase for the next year that will allow the library to hire to part-time employees and reopen on Saturdays…the only day of the week that some families can come to the library (Saturday hours will likely return in mid-July.)
Children’s Librarian Carrie Bushman has been appointed as interim director for the next year. I will certainly miss the staff and patrons but I know they library is well-positioned for continued growth and success. Thanks to everyone who made me feel welcome here and allowed me to serve their library needs; it has been a privilege.
