Just months into her new job, this is what York County’s top librarian is doing

Just months into her job, the new director of the York County Library remembers reaching a crossroads in life when she had to decide whether to become a teacher or a librarian.

After losing her job in a corporate shuffle at a nonprofit charter school company in Boston, Julie Ward decided to follow a new career path.

Following graduation with an English degree from Wittenburg University, she held a series of administrative or sales positions, mostly with financial or marketing firms in the Boston area.

“I was burnt out,” said Ward, who replaced former YCL Director Jason Hyatt late last year.

After nine years as head of YCL, Hyatt assumed the top job in the Buncombe County, N.C., Library. Asheville is in Buncombe County.

“I took an aptitude test, which indicated I was best suited either to be a teacher or a librarian,” Julie said.

While she wanted to work with children, the thought of standing in front of a classroom all day appealed to her less than the programming aspects of being a children’s librarian.

The scales may have been tipped by childhood memories. She recalled the excitement she felt upon receiving her first library card. She was in the first grade in East Aurora, N.Y., where her father was an executive with Fisher Price.

“I loved even the smell of books,” she said.

She credits her parents for her love of reading. She still owns one of her first books, a tale of Uncle Wiggily, the principal character in a series of books by Howard R. Garis. Her father had a knack for mimicking voices of Uncle Wiggily and other characters.

Her first position as a professional librarian, after obtaining a master’s degree in library science from Simmons College in Boston, was as children’s librarian at the South County branch of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library.

She would spend 13 years with Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, moving up the ladder before taking the assistant director’s job with York County in January 2017.

She already knew Hyatt. He had been her boss at ImaginOn, the collaborative venture between CML and the Children’s Theatre of Charlotte.

She said she treasures her 13 years with Charlotte Mecklenburg Library. Julie credits a mentor, Irish McNair, manager of the Beatties Ford branch for opening her mind to what it means to be a librarian.

“She showed me how to take on a facility, how to deal with conflict, how to handle racial tension…,” Ward said.

Both Beatties Ford and the West Boulevard branch, where she would serve as branch manager, serve largely minority communities. Those experiences taught her what libraries mean to a neighborhood.

As York County’s director, Ward oversees five libraries, the central administration and various departments, including Outreach, which operates the bookmobile. Altogether,there are 111 employees.

Since assuming the reins, Julie’s plate has been full. From having to complete evaluations on 18 direct reports to introducing a new circulation/cataloging system, she has not had much opportunity to spend time in the branches.

She said she wants to meet with the four school superintendents in York County to discuss how the library might better assist them in their mission.

And then there’s the ongoing campaign focused on placement of children’s books dealing with human sexuality. Julie ardently has defended the way the library selects materials and makes them available.

“A public library must represent the entire community it serves,” she said. “It is up to parents to decide what they allow their children to read.”