From the Plainfield Public Library:
The Plainfield Public Library Board of Trustees has announced the appointment of Mary Ellen Rogan to the position of Director, following the retirement of Joe Da Rold. Mary Ellen, who has been Plainfield's Assistant Director since 2009, was selected after a widespread recruitment by the Board. From 1991 to 2009 she was employed by the New York Public Library's Performing Arts Library as Senior Archivist, Manager of the Wilson Processing Project, and Assistant Director for Special Formats Processing. She is active in the Daughters of the American Revolution, currently serving as NJ State Vice-Chair of Lineage Research, and is NJ State Registrar of the Daughters of 1812. She will assume the Plainfield Directorship on September 1, 2015.
Joe Da Rold has been Executive Director of Plainfield Public Library since 1996. He began his library career in 1966 with Los Angeles County Public Library System, then became City Librarian of the Santa Fe Springs City Library. He served as the first Executive Director of the Whittier Historical Society & Whittier Museum and the Hathaway Ranch Museum. Prior to returning to New Jersey, where he was raised, he was employed by the Burbank Public Library as Head of the Warner Research Library. He has been the recipient of numerous local and statewide awards, including NJLA's Librarian of the Year, the Susan G. Swartzburg Preservation Award, the Roger McDonough Librarianship Award, and the Gail Stern Award. He has been active in several NJLA Sections, having served as President of Urban Libraries and History & Preservation and is Past President of the LMxAC Board of Directors.