CooperGinnie Cooper, the head of D.C.’s Public Library system, will retire later this year, she said today in a news release. Cooper, who took the job as the city’s chief librarian in 2006, will close out a career that spans more than four decades once the library board finds a successor.
Cooper’s tenure running D.C.’s libraries came during a period in which libraries across the country are offering fewer printed materials and increasing their catalogues of electronic books for readers who increasingly prefer tablet computers to hardbound paper. During Cooper’s run, D.C.’s libraries have also introduced music downloads and a special collection devoted to the late Chuck Brown.
But Cooper’s most lasting impacts are twofold. Many of the city’s libraries are adding hours, particularly at the neighborhood branches that saw their schedules cut severely in 2009. Mayor Vince Gray’s budget for the 2014 fiscal year provides funding for all branches to open on Sunday, and for some to operate until 9 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays.
And then there is Cooper’s architectual legacy. Since 2006, she has overseen the renovation or construction of 14 branches throughout D.C., including the Francis A. Gregory Library in Hillcrest, and the Watha T. Daniel branch in Shaw. Cooper also led the two-year project that transformed the Mt. Pleasant Branch Library into a modern facility residing behind a restored classical façade.
For her efforts in overhauling the District’s libraries, Cooper was awarded the American Institute of Architects’ Thomas Jefferson Award for Public Architecture.
“Ginnie has had a tremendous impact on the District, and is one of the finest public servants I’ve worked with,” Gray said in a news release. The D.C. Public Library board plans to conduct a national search for Cooper’s successor.
