Naperville Library director announces retirement

Naperville Public Library's longtime executive director will step down next June after 15 years at the helm.

“This is a positive, personal decision,” Donna Dziedzic said Wednesday. “Working with the board and staff of the Naperville Public Library has been an exceptional joy in my career.”

Dziedzic, 63, said she shared her decision with the library board last week.

Board Vice President Jerry Feldott said the board will conduct a national search for Dziedzic's replacement. He said six months is a “reasonable time” for a national search to find someone with the knowledge of library science and the people skills to manage the staff of the system that includes three libraries.

He praised Dziedzic for her management skills and ability to keep Naperville “at the forefront of being the finest library system in the United States.”

“Sometimes you find those employees or management people in life who are a perfect fit,” he said. “Donna was a perfect fit.”

Dziedzic was named executive director in April 1996 after coming to the library as a consultant following the resignation of Roger Pearson. She spent four months as interim director before the library board selected her to take the helm full time.

When she first came to Naperville to help with the transition, she said she had no intention of seeking the job but later said she fell in love with the library and its staff.

During her tenure, the library added a third facility along 95th Street, renovated both the Nichols Library downtown and the Naper Boulevard Library, continued to expand its offerings to the public and was named the best library of its size in the country 10 years in a row by the Hennen's American Public Library Ratings system.

Dziedzic said she stressed, and the staff adopted, a customer-centered approach and came to hold a “tighter, closer finger on the pulse” of what the community wanted from its libraries.

She said the library pursues “continuous quality control” and staff members “always look at everything to make sure it's being done the right way.”

Dziedzic says she's not sure where her career will take her next, but she intends to continue residing in Naperville.

She said she plans a “jeans and Ts summer” next year, relaxing in her garden and taking time for personal reflection.

By fall of 2011, she said, she will be ready to take her next professional step.

In the meantime, she will continue to work with the staff and board at the Naperville Library to make it the best possible system.

If the board is unable to find a replacement by next June, Dziedzic said she has offered to stay on a contractual basis to fill the gap.

“I care about this library and this community,” she said.