The Town of Wellesley depends on the active participation of its citizens in governance of the Town. Wellesley has 11 Boards and Committees on the ballot at the Annual Town election each year in March. The 2022 election will be held on Tuesday, March 1.
There are three candidates running for two open 3-year seats on the Board of Library Trustees, a six-member board of local residents. The Library Trustees candidates, 3-year term, are Ann Howley; Marla Robinson; and Stephen Maire.
The Swellesley Report invited the candidates to answer a few questions about their priorities for the Town of Wellesley.
The candidate interviews appear in this post in the order in which their names appear on the ballot.
Ann Howley, candidate for Board of Library Trustees, 3-year term
The Swellesley Report: Please introduce yourself to The Swellesley Report‘s readers.
Ann Howley: I am Ann Howley, candidate for re-election to the WFL Board of Library Trustees (3-year term). Our family has lived in Wellesley since 1993 when we moved here from Maryland. My husband, Peter, and I have three daughters and four granddaughters and currently one standard poodle, Charlie. Two of our granddaughters attend WMS.
I am a graduate of Vassar College. My professional career has been in fundraising at the preK-grade 12 levels. Empowering women has always been important to me, both in my education and career, and is even more relevant as a mother and grandmother of terrific woman and girls. Volunteer service is a significant part of my life, especially helping communities of which I am a part. I served on the Advisory Committee from 2002-2005. I have been a Town Meeting member from Precinct C since 2003 and a Library Trustee since 2008. Through these experiences, I have come to appreciate Wellesley’s unique government structure, how all the parts fit, and the need for them to work together to make a successful government.
Beyond town service, I am a member of the Hills Garden Club of Wellesley and the Wellesley Club, serve on the Board of the Wellesley Kiwanis Club, am a former president of Harvard Neighbors and have volunteered at several schools in the Boston area.
TSR: If elected, what do you hope to accomplish in your tenure as a Library Trustee?
Ann Howley: I hope to:
- Continue to support our outstanding Director and staff as they work to meet the needs of Wellesley residents and to keep the WFL a “best in class” library
- Work on WFL efforts that support Town’s Climate Action Plan
- Continue outreach to all segments of Wellesley’s increasingly diverse community
- Work with our outstanding supporting organizations (Wellesley Free Library Foundation and the Friends of the Wellesley Free Libraries) to maximize our successful partnerships
- Look at opportunities that develop as the result of the newly renovated Main library spaces
- Review successful patron service models that were developed during the pandemic to see which might remain
TSR: The library this year will put together its next five-year strategic plan. What do you think should be the plan’s top priorities?
Ann Howley: The Wellesley Free Library creates a strategic plan every five years under the direction of the Library Director, working with the Trustees. The top priority of this effort is to ensure that the WFL is meeting the needs of our patrons—to look at what patrons like and find helpful, what they would consider changing and what new services and opportunities they would potentially want to see.
The Trustees and staff set the goals and direction of the WFL for the next five years primarily through patron feedback and input. This information, gathered through community outreach, is acquired directly through surveys, focus groups, observational studies as well as informal and formal discussions. We then look at all this information through a broader lens which includes reviewing Town demographics to see what changes have occurred since the last plan, including age and diversity of population; general trends in the broader library world such as emerging technologies, new service models, community outreach opportunities and circulation trends.
Further considerations involve looking at Town-wide initiatives like the Unified Plan, the Climate Action Plan and the WPS Strategic Plan in an effort to have the WFL plan align with them. We give special attention to challenges that the WFL may face in the coming years that could present obstacles to the success of the plan. We also consider opportunities that the plan may present to strengthen the partnership with our supporting organizations, the WFL Foundation and the Friends of the WFL.
TSR: Is there anything else you’d like to say that the above questions did not cover?
Ann Howley: The WFL has become so much more than just a repository for books—it is the heart of our community for programs, information, and gatherings—and is a welcoming place for all. As a Trustee, it has been my privilege to play a small part in the Library’s success—including overseeing the budget, backing new programs like ESL, reimagining the branch libraries, applying sustainable ideas to the library, and participating directly in the design and renovation of the Main Library. The WFL is a vibrant, forward-looking place—changing to meet the times—and our recent renovation is the latest and best example of this. I hope my town government experience and strong track record as a Trustee will earn your vote so that I may continue to serve the WFL and our community.
TSR: How should voters reach you if they want more information?
Ann Howley: townbusinessah@gmail.com
Marla Robinson, candidate for Board of Library Trustees, 3-year term
TSR: Please introduce yourself to The Swellesley Report‘s readers.
Marla Robinson: It has been an honor and a pleasure to serve the Wellesley community over the last 18 years as a Library Trustee and Chair of the Trustees for over ten of these years. I am a long-time Wellesley resident and have been a Town Meeting Member in Precinct E since 1996. I’m seeking re-election because in actively supporting and ensuring that WFL continues to play a vital role in the community, I have successfully learned how to evaluate, articulate, and champion both residents’ and staff’s needs.
I am incredibly proud of the Library’s many accomplishments over these last years. During my early years on the Board, the Library was able to significantly increase the number of programs for young and old, present new types of materials, expand our computer and technology class offerings and manage the administration functions of the Library in a more efficient way.
In the past fifteen years, I have overseen the reopening of the Branch Libraries, worked on creating the Wellesley Free Library Foundation (one of our key fundraising organizations) and participated with the Town’s HR and Executive Directors as a member of the Town’s bargaining team to negotiate several Library union contracts. I chaired the Search Committee to hire our current outstanding Library Director, supported the development of a successful ESL program, advocated for timesaving technologies such as the automated materials handler, and worked on the redesign of the Fells Library and Garden as early-learning spaces.
Last winter I secured a temporary downtown location for the Main Library to use during the recent construction. Most recently I served on the Design Committee for the renovation of the Main Library. The new meeting rooms, reimagined Children’s room and Commons space have already had an impact on how the Library meets Wellesley’s needs, and have exceeded residents’ expectations.
TSR: If elected, what do you hope to accomplish in your tenure as a Library Trustee?
Marla Robinson: Serving for so many years gives me a unique historical perspective and institutional knowledge of our past practices, how the town operates and the way that the Library interacts and collaborates with other departments and town boards.
The Library constantly evolves but my priorities remain the same—to tirelessly advocate for the WFL so that outstanding library services and exceptional resources are available to residents in a fiscally responsible manner. The Library’s budget is quite tight, and understanding each line item along with the ramifications of making adjustments and being able to articulate these fine points to both Advisory and Town Meeting is crucial.
Technology and technology needs continue to grow. This has been made even more evident by the pandemic. The need for virtual support tools, evolving software platforms and models for everything from patron databases to eBooks requires increased staff support. Priorities include staying ahead of technology curves, meeting the increased costs of vendor service models and anticipating and meeting needs of patrons.
TSR: The library this year will put together its next five-year strategic plan. What do you think should be the plan’s top priorities?
Marla Robinson: In developing WFL’s strategic plan, we have a responsibility to listen to the community to determine our top priorities. While one can guess that technology, staffing, community connection and fiscal constraints will be discussed, it is paramount that the process is collaborative, transparent and objective as the results will guide and inform the Library’s direction and future goals. My top priority is to work with as many stakeholders as possible. It is important that the Library gathers data using a variety of methods including surveys, focus groups and observation studies on how patrons use different areas of the Library.
The Library is very data driven. We report statistics yearly to the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) on a large number of areas including types of materials that circulate, numbers of programs, how many visitors come to the Library, and financial data on what we spend on staff and materials as well as other expenses. As part of the Library’s certification process, the MBLC requires that all libraries submit a strategic plan every five years. Each year we submit an action plan that describes the concrete steps we will take that year to meet specific goals in the strategic plan.
TSR: Is there anything else you’d like to say that the above questions did not cover?
Marla Robinson: The vision of the Wellesley Free Library is to become the cultural intellectual, and virtual crossroads of the community, to provide exceptional library services, to make connections and to be a leader among public libraries. As Trustees, this is what we continue to strive for—and while by most metrics we have been incredibly successful, it is important that the Library continues to evolve as needs of the community change.
I’m seeking re-election because this is an exciting time to be part of the expansion of the role of libraries. The renovation allows the Library to move forward with new offerings and new opportunities. As COVID restrictions are lifted, many things at the Library will go back to normal and yet the WFL will take what it has learned in terms of our incredibly successful virtual programming to complement in-person programming.
My experience, leadership and institutional knowledge, and commitment to library excellence make me uniquely qualified to be a Library Trustee, and I welcome the opportunity to serve the Town for the next three years.
TSR: How should voters reach you if they want more information?
Marla Robinson: mrobinson@wellesleyma.gov
Stephen Maire, candidate for Board of Library Trustees, 3-year term
The Swellesley Report: Please introduce yourself to The Swellesley Report‘s readers.
Stephen Maire: I am Stephen Maire and am running for the position of Library Trustee. I have been a Wellesley resident since 2008. I am active in the community with Wellesley Scout troop 185 and have also worked with the HBS Alumni Association Community Action Partners providing pro bono consulting services to Boston-area non-profits. In this capacity I have worked with social service organizations, universities and museums on their strategic plans.
As befits a candidate for Library Trustee I am a reader and patron of the Library. As a high school student I worked in my town’s library shelving books.
TSR: If elected, what do you hope to accomplish in your tenure as a Library Trustee?
Maire: The Library is a gem and aspires to be a center for the town culturally and intellectually. A popular measure of the role of the Library is to cite it as the State’s 7th busiest. This is true, but when looked at in terms of Wellesley’s population, the Library is only as active as that of Williamsburg, MA and lags behind Dover and Weston. Moreover, we achieve this at relatively high cost.
In short, it is not that the Library is not very good, but that to realize its aspiration to be a center of the town it needs to be doing more.
TSR: The library this year will put together its next five-year strategic plan. What do you think should be the plan’s top priorities?
Maire: The strategic plan is an opportunity to define a focus for the Library for the coming years. The past two Strategic Plans have both included “Communication” as their second strategic initiative. That communication has been a strategic initiative in both plans highlights its importance as well as the struggles that the Library has had in addressing the need.
Yet, there seems little discussion of communication at Trustee meetings and little in the Strategic Plans of what would constitute “good” or “improved” communication. Clearly, a new approach is needed in this area. While communication will always be a challenge, more initiative is needed.
TSR: Is there anything else you’d like to say that the above questions did not cover?
Maire: In the same way that ebooks, audiobooks, videos and other electronic materials have changed what it means to “read”, they have also changed what it means to be a library. Moreover, as the last two years under COVID have demonstrated, video-conferencing and internet services offer the Library a reach that extends well beyond the physical building.
As a service to town residents, the Library now needs to figure out how these new media and services can enable the Library to allow all Wellesley residents to participate in the intellectual, cultural and recreational life of the town that the Library aspires to.
TSR: How should voters reach you if they want more information?
Maire: To contact me, please email me at smaire@arrantdesigns.com.
