Public speakers accuse outside groups of influencing St. Tammany library board nominations; council schedules one‑month layover

The St. Tammany Parish Council heard extended public comment on nominations to the Library Board of Control, with speakers urging the council to avoid appointments made through back‑channel political influence and to choose qualified candidates who would prioritize library services.

Why it matters: Library board appointments set local policy on materials, programming and library operations; public trust in the appointment process was a central concern for several speakers.

What speakers said - Jamie Segura (public commenter) alleged partisan influence in the LBOC appointment process and said, “Could it be the Slidell Ministers Association has undue influence over members of the council and the LBOC.” Segura urged the council to consider broader public interests and to avoid what she described as targeted influence.

- Penny Petri, a nominee and retired librarian, described her 30 years in Mandeville schools and experience opening and staffing a school library. She told the council she had “the privilege of collaborating effectively with many people” and outlined responsibilities including selecting age‑appropriate books, managing budgets and building volunteer support.

- Other public commenters expressed a range of concerns: Iris Gatlin urged the council to appoint a conservative candidate to reflect parish voting patterns; Devin McGee said the board “deserves someone who won’t snidely prevent the public from having the board hear out concerns” and criticized efforts to limit public discussion of content policy; Lisa Rustemeyer called the current LBOC environment “dysfunction and toxicity” and urged appointment of an independent, qualified member who would support librarians’ professional judgment.

Council action and process Councilmembers opened the floor to nominations and received several: Penny Petri (nominated by Mr. Phillips), Cheryl Godwin (nominated by Mr. Burke), La Rae Kitchen (nominated by Mr. Strickland), Al Hamway (nominated by Mr. Corbin) and others. The council closed nominations and agreed to a one‑month layover to allow further vetting and to discourage attacks on nominees’ religion, as requested by a council member.

Ending No appointment was finalized at the meeting; nominees will be considered after the one‑month layover so the council can conduct interviews and further review.