County approves three library board appointments — Anne Engar, Jessica Strong, Lindsay Vargo

The Salt Lake County Council unanimously approved the appointment of Anne Engar, Jessica Strong and Lindsay Vargo to the county library board on March 18.

Joey McTee, director of the county library, introduced the candidates. Anne Engar, a District 4 resident and recently retired University of Utah humanities professor, told the council she had reviewed library policy and would study how policies are implemented across branches. "The board has a website that already has the policy listed. I've read it a number of times and think that it's a very well written document," Engar said.

Jessica Strong, who works in philanthropy and holds a master’s in public health, said she sought to learn more about county library policy and processes. "I look forward to learning more about that process to understand how it's currently being implemented and what the outcomes have been," Strong said.

Lindsay Vargo, who has experience with university libraries and communications, said she supports public access to books and believes the system’s labeling and review processes function appropriately while she learns more about implementation. "I think that they are well written as well…there is a really great process if books…there's a request for books to be reshelved or replaced or even removed, and it goes through quite a rigorous process," Vargo said.

A motion to approve the three appointments passed by voice vote with unanimous support. The new members were congratulated and will join the county library board to assist oversight and policy implementation.

Background: the library board reviews library policy and provides governance advice for county library branches across Salt Lake County.

Next steps: Appointees will be seated per the library board’s schedule and begin participating in board activities; the council did not alter board policy at this meeting.