Facility Design Panel of Public Library Directors​
Regional Conference.
July 30, 2020
Public Library Directors, Ray Baker of Miami Dade Public Library, Doug Crane of Palm Beach County Library, and Craig Clark of Boynton Beach City Library will discuss their planning process for designing new facilities. They will share their successes and their issues with the conference. Jennifer Pratt will facilitate this panel.
Presenters:
Jennifer returned to her home state of Florida in September 2015 to become the Executive Director of SEFLIN . She began her career at the Haywood County Public Library in Waynesville, NC and was promoted to Library director in 2000. Her focus changed to include the state of North Carolina when she accepted the position of Chief of Library Development for the State Library of North Carolina. She was responsible for her section's staff recruitment and development, budgeting and finance, and the management of the state's Aid to Public Libraries fund and the federal Library Services Technology Act (LSTA) program. She holds degrees from the University of Florida and the University of South Florida.
Ray Baker has been with Miami-Dade County government for over 27 years, including 5 years with the Miami-Dade Public Library System. Mr. Baker has been the Library Director for over three years, previously serving as Interim Director and Assistant Director. He is responsible for oversight of a library system with 50 service locations and a service area that includes approximately 2.5 million residents. Mr. Baker serves as the Past President on the Board of Directors for the Southeast Florida Library and Information Network and as a member of the Florida Library Associations's Advocacy & Legislative Committee. He holds a master’s degree in Library and Information Science from the University of South Florida, a master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Miami, and a bachelor’s degree from Florida State University.
Doug Crane began his career with the Palm Beach County Library System as a children’s librarian in 1998 and subsequently served as the Electronic Resources Coordinator, a Branch Manager, and the Director of Branch Services. He was appointed Library Director in 2014 and under his direction the System has won numerous awards including an Urban Library Council Innovation Award. He currently serves on the State Library Council of Florida as Past Chair and is Past President of the Southeast Florida Library Information Network (SEFLIN). In his spare time, he blogs about office productivity and efficiency practices at www.efficientlibrarian.com, admires his collection of Doctor Who sonic screwdrivers, and relaxes at home with his wife, daughter, dog and cat. Doug holds a Masters of Information Studies degree from the University of Toronto.
Craig Clark is the Director of the Boynton Beach City Library, a municipal public library serving a population of 72,000 located in Palm Beach County, Florida. He started working at the Boynton Beach City Library in 2004 as the Assistant Library Director. Craig was then promoted to Library Director in 2006. He previously held positions with the St. Louis Public Library in St. Louis, Missouri and the Macomb County Library in Clinton Township, Michigan. Craig completed MLIS at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, and earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Northwood University in Midland, Michigan. Craig has served on the SEFLIN Board of Directors since 2006, served as SEFLIN’s President five years ago, and currently holds the office of Treasurer.