Description:
Leah Dodd led Willard Library just over five years, from 2014 to 2019. Dodd joined the staff in 2007 and became assistant director in 2009. The expansion of digital collections remained a priority, and under Dodd’s direction, the library added several digital applications and services including Hoopla digital media service and the Willard Library app. The library also expanded access to its services through ConnectEd, which granted library card accounts to all public school students in the library district, and added temporary cards for the community’s homeless population. In 2017, the library adopted a new strategic plan and a new mission statement, “We create a community of readers and world of possibilities,” to reflect its renewed commitment to collaborative programming for residents in all life stages. The library added public meeting spaces and a creative services librarian during this period, and it began taking active roles in several community initiatives to improve economic and educational outcomes in greater Battle Creek.
