[nfbwatlk] new State Librarian

[Marci Carpenter]

WTBBL is part of the Washington State Library so Ms. Aden is Danielle Miller’s new boss. I look forward to meeting her.

wtbbl] New State Librarian 

Dear Friends of WTBBL - 

I'm excited to let you know that Secretary Wyman has appointed a new State Librarian to take over the helm of the Washington State Library. Cindy Aden will start in July and I'm sure she will be excited to get to know much more about WTBBL, and meet many of you. 

The official press release is below for your information. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions and I will do my best to get you answers. 

All the very best, Danielle 
Director & Regional Librarian 
206.615.1588 / danielle.miller at sos.wa.gov <mailto:danielle.miller at sos.wa.gov> 

News 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
June 13, 2016 

Washington State Library has a new director: Cindy Aden 

Secretary of State Kim Wyman today announced appointment of Cindy Altick Aden as director of the Washington State Library. 

Aden will take the helm next month of the state’s oldest cultural institutions, dating back more than 160 years when it was created by the state’s first territorial governor, Isaac Stevens, with a $5,000 congressional appropriation for a collection of books he purchased and sent around the Horn. 

Aden has an extensive background in public libraries and the private sector, including stints at Amazon, Corbis, and community newspapers. She is a graduate of Stanford University and the University of Washington School of Library and Information Science. 

“I am delighted to appoint Cindy to provide new leadership at one of the library community’s most important jobs,” Wyman said. “I am excited about the creativity and passion she brings to the table. She has the skills and the vision to help pivot the Library to new levels of relevance, technology advances and user-friendliness in this challenging and exciting new century.” 

Aden said she is “honored and excited” to take the new post and eager to join a staff of experienced professionals. She praised the Legislature and Secretary Wyman for working hard to put the Library on a solid financial footing. 

“It will be rewarding to once again put the State Library squarely in everyone’s line of sight,” she said. “I look forward to reaching out to all of the libraries in the state for dialogue on what we can do together to make to make library services stronger for everyone in Washington.” 

Wyman said the selection of the new State Librarian reflects her vision for a Library that responds to the public’s need for solid information across platforms that are convenient and easy to use. 

“Libraries are no longer just brick-and-mortar facilities,” Wyman said. “More and more people, including my own son and daughter, access information online. We also want to partner closely with the State Archives to provide documents, books, images, maps, records and other materials in a way that is convenient to our thousands of in-person and online customers.” 

The Washington State Library offers a wide variety of services, including print and digital collections, genealogy resources, photo collections, historic newspapers, help for researchers, assistance to the Legislature and other policy-makers, and crucial assistance and resources for the state’s community, college and tribal libraries. 

The Library, a service of the Office of Secretary of State, operates the Washington Talking Book & Braille Library in Seattle and libraries in the state prisons and mental hospitals. Partnering with Microsoft, the Library and over 400 community libraries offer hundreds of free online computer and IT courses through the Imagine Academy. 

“The Washington State Library has amazing resources for school kids, businesses and regular folks who want to expand their literacy and job skills,” Wyman said. “It’s very hands-on. 

“The Library also is the official conduit of federal library dollars that are a real lifeline to our community libraries. So literally the reach of the Washington State Library extends to every community and legislative district.” 

Aden is a seasoned professional with background in management, strategic leadership, librarianship, metadata, project management and more. She has worked at the Library of Congress, the University of Washington Libraries, and Kitsap Regional Library. She was the first professional librarian hired by Amazon and also worked with Corbis and OCLC. 
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