Special to the Leader Herald
The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) is pleased to welcome Stacy DeBole of Swampscott, who has been appointed by Governor Charles D. Baker to serve on the nine-member board.
“I am excited to serve as a Commissioner to continue my work with libraries statewide” said Mrs. DeBole. “Having worked directly with the board as a public library director, I know the challenges facing libraries and the great work that is done by the MBLC and I am excited to get started.”
Commissioner DeBole has had an extensive library career that spans public, academic and special libraries, including the Suffolk University Library, the New England School of Law Library, and the Salem State University Library. Most recently she was director of the Everett Public Library where she actively participated in grant opportunities offered by the MBLC, including Library Services and Technology Act grants for Teens and Tweens and Preservation, and State Aid to Public Libraries grants. She called these grants “game changers for the community.”
She also served as Everett’s reference librarian and head of youth services, has been a volunteer at the Swampscott Public Library, and is a recipient of the Massachusetts Library Association’s Public Relations award giving her a well-rounded perspective on twenty-first century library services.
Mrs. DeBole began her career in public service with the City of Boston managing employment training programs under the Job Training Partnership Act administered by the Neighborhood Development and Employment Agency, the City of Boston’s anti-poverty, job training and development agency. She later became the Special Projects Manager for the Office of Consumer Affairs and Licensing, the agency responsible for all liquor and entertainment licensing in the City of Boston.
Commissioner DeBole is a graduate of Suffolk University and earned her Master’s in Library and Information Science degree from Simmons College.
Established in 1890, the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners was the first state library commission in the United States. The nine- member volunteer commission is appointed by the current governor. The MBLC supports statewide programming and innovation in libraries to ensure equal access to library services for every resident in the Commonwealth.