Deirdre Brennan to Retire November 2022

RAILS Executive Director Deirdre Brennan will retire in November. When Deirdre came to RAILS in January 2013, our member libraries were still reeling from state budget cuts that forced the merger of five separate library systems into one. In her early days, she led efforts to re-establish continuing education and consulting as core system services. Since that time, she continues to lead RAILS staff to make improvements to existing services and to develop new services to meet member library needs and lead them into the future. She is an enthusiastic and tireless advocate for multitype cooperation and resource sharing on a state and national level.

Deirdre has also led the board and staff to maintain a strong financial reserve throughout her time at RAILS. Not only is the system in a much stronger position than when she arrived, in FY 2023, we also anticipate receiving the first increase in statewide funding for library systems in over 25 years.

Watch for further details on plans to celebrate all of Deirdre's many contributions to libraries and resource sharing as the year progresses. We will also keep members informed of RAILS Board efforts to fill the Executive Director position as they develop.