Not your grandparent's librarian

Not your grandparent's librarian
By Jennifer Barton
Posted: 12/01/2009 10:04:01 AM PST

Ann Cousineau, director of the Solano County Library for the last 15 years, will retire on Friday. In transforming a library system that was teetering on the brink of a financial abyss into one of the premier libraries in the state, she did this not by "shushing" exuberant voices and library users, but by embracing the need to bring libraries into the 21st century.

Solano County Library's reach is now wide and deep, offering everything from homework tutors, book clubs, poetry open-mic nights and world-renowned author presentations to career help and literacy for adults. Her legacy is a system of eight libraries that are central to lifelong learning in the communities they serve, changing lives every day.

Cousineau's hard work and vision benefit our next generation, as well as generations to come. Three new libraries were built during her tenure, one of which is a downtown jewel, the Vacaville Public Library-Town Square. These new library buildings, along with renovations of the five existing buildings, are part of a 20-year facilities master plan to build and renovate libraries in the cities served by Solano County Library.

In 1999, Ann Cousineau served as co-chair of the statewide initiative for the successful passage of Proposition 14, a $350 million statewide library construction bond act. The Fairfield Cordelia Library, which opened in 2006, is one of 45 libraries throughout California that were built with the help of these funds. In 2000, the California Library Association named her Member of the Year for her achievements in promoting state legislation benefiting libraries.

New and renovated buildings were just the beginning. During her time as director, the library has developed a telephone assistance center and an award-winning Web site with 24/7 reference services. The Solano County Library Foundation was formed to fund special projects and to support Reach Out and Read, a literacy program in which doctors take time during well-baby clinics to talk to parents about the importance of reading to their children. Each child also receives an age-appropriate book.

Streamlined operations, self-service functions and a staff trained to handle everything from storytime to computer class are just a few examples of a "new way of doing business" pioneered by Solano County Library and adopted by other libraries throughout California under Cousineau's watch.

What may be Cousineau's most lasting achievement, however, is the leadership she provided in a Solano County sales tax measure to add an eighth of a penny sales tax entirely dedicated to the county's public libraries. Voters understood a library's central role in creating an informed and educated public and they took action. In 1998, they stepped forward and showed how much they supported their local libraries by passing the tax, known as Measure B, by more than a 68 percent majority. The tax expires in 2014, unless it is renewed.

The transformation brought about by the sales tax has been dramatic. Libraries are open almost twice as many hours as they were before the measure passed, and the budget for books, magazines, best sellers, recorded books, DVD and music purchases has grown from $432,000 to more than $2 million.

As a result, library patronage is up, too. Solano County Library branches recorded 2.2 million visits last year.

Those of us who use our libraries are grateful that the community appreciates Solano County Library as a vital piece of "educational infrastructure," and that Ann Cousineau has been at the helm, directing library operations with a gracious but steely resolve. We welcome the continuity provided Bonnie Katz, Cousineau's "right hand" for 20 years, as she steps up to be the library's new director.

The next few years will be challenging. The downturn in the economy has affected the library's sales tax and property tax revenues. Dollars must be stretched and savings found. But even in tough times, Solano County Library is strong. Thanks to the assistance of the Solano County Library Foundation built by Cousineau and the faithful "Friends of the Library" groups, our libraries will continue to change lives every day.

The author, a Fairfield resident, is president of the Solano County Library Foundation, www.solanolibraryfoundation.org. To reserve your next best seller, volunteer for the literacy program, sign up for homework help, reserve a computer or to find out when the next "Grandparents and Books" program is scheduled, visit www.solanolibrary.com.