I am pleased to announce that, following a national search, the Board of Trustees has unanimously chosen Peter Coyl to be the next Director of the Montclair Public Library. Mr. Coyl succeeds David Hinkley, who retired at the end of 2016 after ten years in the position.
Mr. Coyl is currently a Senior Librarian with the Dallas Public Library, which he has served since 2011. His diverse background includes managing an international school library in Taiwan and, prior to his library career, work as a staff member of the Oregon Legislative Assembly. Coyl receive his undergraduate degree from Oakland University in Michigan and his Master of Science in Library and Information Science from Drexel University. His library career began as a bookmobile driver in Rochester Hills, Michigan, ensuring, as he likes to note, that he has had the full range of professional library experiences.
Library trustees were impressed by Mr. Coyl's knowledge of the field and his enthusiasm for libraries, as well as his experience in personnel management, program planning and evaluation, and budgeting and finance. In his personal statement he told us of his “passion for encouraging learning through reading and developing community through outreach and collaborative programs.”
Mr. Coyl is active in the profession, serving as chair of the GLBT Round Table of the American Library Association and as a member of the Intellectual Freedom Committee of the Texas Library Association. He looks forward to becoming a part of Montclair and plans to dedicate his first months to immersing himself in the community, meeting as many local leaders and familiarizing himself with as many local institution as possible.
I am excited about the impact that I know Mr. Coyl will have on our library and our town, and I would like to thank the members of the Director Search Committee for their efforts: Clifford Kulwin, chair, and Diana Lunin, Eve Schaenen, Alison Bauer and Clair Walls.
