Full Text of HR1163 100th General Assembly
HR1163 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives wish to congratulate Roberta Thomas on the | 4 | | occasion of her retirement as the Grayslake Area Public Library | 5 | | District Director; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Roberta Thomas has held the position of Director | 7 | | since 1994; her legacy encompasses many accomplishments, | 8 | | including the opening of the library's current location; she | 9 | | oversaw the design, construction, and transition of the library | 10 | | from a small storefront in downtown Grayslake to a standalone, | 11 | | multi-story location; the new building was planned, designed, | 12 | | and constructed to meet the increasing needs of the library | 13 | | district's population as it grew; she successfully kept the | 14 | | project on time and under budget; her strong fiscal leadership | 15 | | was exemplified when the construction bond was completely paid | 16 | | on November 30, 2013; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, Roberta Thomas fostered a dynamic service | 18 | | environment during her tenure, which included migrating from a | 19 | | paper card catalog to an online system with a dedicated | 20 | | children's interface, adding a self-checkout station, and | 21 | | installing drive-up book drops; she spearheaded the redesign of | 22 | | various interior spaces, including the creation of the | 23 | | TeenSpace and a community gathering area named Kent's Place; |
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| 1 | | and
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Roberta Thomas also kept up with trends in library | 3 | | services, met the fast-changing technological needs, and | 4 | | connected people to the library's resources; she led the | 5 | | library in offering free computer access and WiFi to the public | 6 | | and in expanding the library's collection by adding digital | 7 | | content, including eBooks, eAudiobooks, eMagazines, and a | 8 | | variety of other online research tools, such as Consumer | 9 | | Reports, Ancestry.com. and Lynda.com; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, Although Roberta Thomas is preparing for | 11 | | retirement, she is not resting on her laurels; building | 12 | | renovations are underway to accommodate new meeting and study | 13 | | rooms, a digital studio, and the library's makerspace, The Hub; | 14 | | and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, Before stepping into the role of director, Roberta | 16 | | Thomas began her library career as a shelver at the Palatine | 17 | | Public Library District before transitioning into the role of | 18 | | Reference Librarian and then Head of the Circulation and Audio | 19 | | Visual Department; she has been one of only three directors to | 20 | | lead the Grayslake Area Public Library since it became a public | 21 | | body; her tenure has seen remarkable growth and construction, | 22 | | and her fiscally conservative leadership has enabled the | 23 | | library to accomplish its core mission, keep current with |
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| 1 | | changing technologies, and financially plan for the future, | 2 | | without increasing taxes; therefore, be it
| 3 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 4 | | HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we | 5 | | congratulate Roberta Thomas on the occasion of her retirement | 6 | | as Grayslake Area Public Library District Director, and we | 7 | | commend her leadership and guidance; and be it further
| 8 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 9 | | presented to Roberta Thomas as an expression of our esteem and | 10 | | respect.
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