Erin Barnard
Erin Barnard is Aloha Community Library's first official director of library services.
(Nuran Alteir/The Oregonian )
Watch out Aloha. There's a new librarian in town.
Coming all the way from the East Coast is Erin Barnard, Aloha Community Library's first official director of library services. She started in her new role Sept. 29.
The community-run library has come a long way since it opened in 2011. The nearly 2,000-square-foot space houses nearly 11,000 books and DVDS, and more than 2,000 of those items are circulated a month, according to the library's 2013 annual report.
Hiring Barnard moves the library one step closer to joining the Washington County Community Library Services (WCCLS), through which the community library can receive county funding and share material with other libraries in the network.
WCCLS has since accepted Aloha Community Library's application to join, but that's contingent on a tax levy vote that goes to Washington County voters in November 2015.
Until then, Barnard is busy getting settled in and creating an agenda of her own. The Beaverton Leader sat down with Barnard to learn more about her and her goals:
Q. Why did you become a librarian?
A. I got an undergrad degree in history, and it was kind of like, "What am I going to do now?" One of my professors had said, "Oh, you should be a librarian." I graduated; I moved home; I found a job. I started looking around for a real career at that point, and I saw a job posting for a library clerk in a college library. So, I thought "Why not try it. I can do that." I got that position and really enjoyed the work and, while I was working there, got my master's in library science from the University of Albany.
While I was going to school, I had been kind of thinking public libraries were more where I fit, so I did an internship at one of the local public libraries. I really enjoyed it because of the fact that public libraries are community centers ... and can really make a difference in people's lives.
Q. What makes college and public libraries different?
A. At the college libraries, you're there helping students write papers, helping faculty do research and doing instruction on how to find things in databases — all of that which is extremely important. I felt like I fit more into the public library where we welcome anybody to come in and really make a difference when somebody comes in and they need help writing their resume to apply for a job or learn how to use Microsoft Word or find a great book to read — whatever their needs are, we can do that. We can provide experiences for the community that they may not be able to afford or get otherwise.
Q. How would you compare the vibe of the libraries in New York to the Aloha Community Library?
A. We would have very small community libraries back in New York, which is similar to what Aloha is now. The libraries in New York, we didn't rely on volunteers. We [at Aloha Community Library] are always looking for volunteers.
Q. What are your goals in regards to building the library's collection?
A. That's on my list of things to do. It's really important to have the popular materials that people are looking for and also have the classics as well and try to keep a balanced collection that interests the community in the space that we have. It's always a work in progress. There's got to be books for all different types of people. Even though you might not think "Twilight" is good, it gets people to read or to start with something and then kind of move on.
Our circulation has been increasing, so it's going well. We have limited space right now, so in order to purchase more books we have to go through and make sure the collection is well built. That's a lot of what I'm going to focus on.
Q. What's next for the Aloha Community Library?
A. The community definitely needs a bigger library. We would be able to provide so much more services in a larger space, have more programs and have more material, more access to technology. So, it's definitely a priority for us to find a new space. There are some options, but it's definitely something that the board is going to start looking into in really deciding where they see the library.
— Nuran Alteir | Twitter