I am happy to take this opportunity to do something a bit different from the usual review in this space. This week, I will take the occasion to give everyone a little introduction to our new library director, Jacque Gage, who begins her directorship tomorrow!
Jacque comes to us directly from the Barton County Library, a three-branch system (Lamar, Golden City, and Liberal) headquartered in Lamar. She was hired as the system’s director in 2000, and during her tenure there she earned her master’s in information science and learning technologies (her library degree) from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Her bachelor’s degree in Christian education was granted by Ozark Christian College in 1978. She is also a candidate for Certified Public Library Administrator certification through the American Library Association, which she joined in 2002. Certification is a voluntary post-graduate program and requires completion of coursework in seven standards, including budget and finance, management of technology, organization and personnel administration, and planning and management of buildings, plus three additional areas selected from five electives.
Jacque was awarded not one, but three, scholarships for library school: one each from the Missouri Library Association, the Missouri State Library, and the University of Missouri-Columbia itself. She completed her degree, including an 80-hour practicum at Missouri Southern State University, while working full-time as the director of the Barton County Library.
She has served on various Missouri State Library committees, including the Continuing Education Committee and the Secretary of State’s Council on Libraries. She is a member of the Missouri Public Library Directors Association, serving as president from 2006-2007.
During her tenure in Lamar, she wrote many grant applications, receiving 36 in nine years, for a total of over $200,000 in grants. We look forward to Jacque applying her grant skills for the Joplin Public Library in the future.
Before entering the library world, Jacque worked as support staff at the Lamar High School counseling center, creating the master class schedule, tracking graduation requirements, administering the applications for local scholarships, and working with college/military recruiters. She was also in charge of the gifted seminar class along with many other responsibilities. Prior to that, she was the coordinator/director of Parents as Teachers for the Lockwood School District.
Jacque likes to travel and spent a summer during college behind the Iron Curtain. She went back to Europe (specifically, Austria) last summer to complete a voluntary service in the town of Heiligenkreuz, investigating and field testing a library automation system that could deal with multiple alphabetic systems and diacritics (important issues in European librarianship). Her dream vacation is Washington, D.C., and the historic East Coast sites (preferably without work thrown in!).
Her three children are athletic: her son, Aaron, playing football from junior high through college; one daughter, Elisabeth, cheering from junior high through high school; and the other, Katie, playing volleyball through college at MSSU and now coaching club volleyball. Jacque is musical herself, playing piano since second grade. She plays for church regularly, and for her own (and others’) pleasure. It may come as no surprise that she likes to read, although (as is often the case with busy librarians) she doesn’t read as much as she might wish to.
By the way, “Jacque” (pronounced like “Jackie”) is short for “Jacqueline.” Her father joked that, since she was born on Halloween, Jacqueline was as close as they should/could get to “Jack-o-lantern.”
Now that you know a little about Jacque, we hope you’ll come by for our upcoming “Meet and Greet” session. It will be held from noon to 2 p.m. on Feb. 15 in the Large Meeting Room at the library. Light refreshments will be served, so come meet Jacque and have a cookie!
Linda Cannon is the circulation and collection development librarian at Joplin Public Library.
Globe Life
Related Photos
Discussion
Review: New library director to begin on Monday
- Globe Life
-
-
Prototype of a drying rack for Stars of Hope earns award, emotional response
Michael Moritz, Travis Coffee and Kenneth Paylor had no idea that an assignment for their senior design class at Missouri Southern State University would win an award or the emotional gratitude from a service organization.
-
Ryan Richardson: Groups give tips for preventing dog bites
When I was a teenager in the '90s I had an unfortunate incident with my neighbor's dog, a Brittany, that I had grown up with. It took a chunk out of my thigh when I went into the neighbors' yard to retrieve a ball.
-
Frankie Meyer: Information is only as good as its source
Those details later become crucial as contradictory information is found, which it will be. How can one decide which detail is correct if the sources of the details are unknown?
-
Jeana Gockley: Library lines up reading club books
The Joplin Public Library's annual Summer Reading Club kicks off on Tuesday, May 28, so in preparation for a great summer of reading, I have been digging for titles that fit with this year's "Dig Into Reading" theme.
-
Frankie Meyer: Prepare for holiday visits to cemeteries
Memorial Day weekend is the ideal time to not only decorate the graves of loved ones, but also learn the location of unmarked graves -- and learn about relatives who are buried nearby. That weekend is also a great time to contact living relatives.
-
Patty Crane: Mystery series should appeal to Reacher fans
In the novel "Taken" by Robert Crais, a bajadores is a predator that kidnaps people being smuggled into the country. The bajadores, the Syrian, demands ransom from families of the people he kidnaps. His ransom demands are low, and as long as the families pay, the demands continue.
-
Ryan Richardson: Harness works better than a leash
This is the time of year to take your dog outside to enjoy the weather. You both get exercise, you bond more, and it gives you an opportunity to work together as a team. I take my dog out as much as I can, and my dog is happy to see other dogs when we go on walks.
-
Mutual admiration: Academic Team members thank teachers for inspiration, drive
Members of The Joplin Globe's All-Area Academic Excellence Team thanked teachers for inspiring them to push themselves during a recognition banquet Monday at Missouri Southern State University.
-
Linda Cannon: Book covers subtleties' effects on humans
I'm always a sucker for books on what makes people tick, so I grabbed "Drunk Tank Pink: And Other Unexpected Forces that Shape How We Think, Feel, and Behave" by Adam Alter as soon as I saw it. Alter holds a Ph.D. in applied psychology from Princeton and is an assistant professor at NYU.
-
Frankie Meyer: Old home sites treasures to discover
We genealogists do a similar activity as part of our research. The treasures that we seek are old home sites. Instead of using GPS coordinates, we use clues such as the presence of rusted metal, cellar holes and vintage plants.
- More Globe Life Headlines
-
Raw: Trucker Bumps I-5 Bridge Before Collapse
Raw: Texas Deputy Shot by Colo. Suspect Honored
Major Detours Following Wash. Bridge Collapse
American Held in Grisly Czech Murders
Raw: Jersey Shore Reopens for Summer
UK-bound Pakistan Plane Diverted, 2 Men Arrested
Officials: Tsarnaev Friend Linked to Slaying
Obama:Sexual Assault Threatens Trust in Military
Bridge Collapse Survivor: 'Rough Day'
Jersey Shore Open for Business
Raw: Memorial Day Flags Placed at Arlington
New Wheelchair Lift Promises More Access
First Person: Mom Discusses Famous Tornado Photo
Raw Video: Washington State Bridge Collapse
Boy Scouts Approve Plan to Accept Gay Boys
