Fayetteville nominating committee unanimously recommends Carla Davis for library board

The Fayetteville nominating committee voted unanimously April 7 to recommend Carla Davis for appointment to the Fayetteville Public Library Board, the committee said after an interview and discussion about social media conduct.

The recommendation matters because the library board helps guide services and outreach at the Fayetteville Public Library. Committee members said the interview was intended both to review Davis’s service during an unexpired term and to clarify concerns raised in public social media posts.

Bob Stafford, a nominating committee member representing Ward 1, opened the meeting and noted the committee’s role of forwarding nominations to the full City Council. Carla Davis said she had served the remainder of another member’s unexpired term and believes she was sworn in about a year ago. “I never represented myself as... on the library board,” Davis said, describing two instances in which she posted on social media as a private citizen and clarified she was not speaking for the board. She said her posts were intended to ask questions after seeing claims about purchases and that an original commenter deleted replies when challenged.

Committee members pressed on how Davis navigates public disagreement online. Sarah Budge, a nominating committee member representing Ward 3, said the committee wanted to understand how Davis would separate personal views from official board representation when tensions arise online. “I would be in support agreeing, you know, I agree with the recommendations and, you know, reappointing her,” Budge said during the motion to recommend appointment. An unnamed committee member seconded the motion.

Staff and committee members acknowledged the city currently lacks a formal rule or policy explicitly covering board members’ behavior on personal social media accounts. Stafford said he would be reluctant to take disciplinary action where “there’s no rule” to enforce and suggested the council may consider bylaws or guidance for board conduct. Davis said she generally avoids engaging in social media disputes and would continue to try to distinguish her personal views from board business.

Davis described her interest in the board as rooted in long-term use of the library and in supporting access to library services amid wider debates about library programming. She noted the library recently had a lawsuit dismissed; she said the board “had not had anything to do with that” decision but expressed pride the library prevailed.

The nominating committee moved and seconded a recommendation to the full council; the committee recorded a unanimous vote in favor. The committee chair said the recommendation will be forwarded to the full City Council at the following Tuesday meeting for final action.

The interview also included brief procedural notes: committee members reminded that library board meetings occur every two months, so a year of service can include relatively few meetings. Committee members said they had received recommendations for Davis from several individuals and from the mayor’s office.