Library Board of Trustees
The Board of Trustees of Washoe County Library System is appointed by the Washoe County Commissioners in accordance with NRS 379.022, and is responsible for governing the operations of Washoe County Library System. The Library Board appoints the Library Director and evaluates his or her performance, helps set Library goals and objectives, approves policies, monitors the Library's finances, evaluates the Library's overall effectiveness, and advocates for the Library in the community.
Wendy Alderman, Chair
Wendy Alderman relocated to Northern Nevada 25 years ago to start-up a manufacturing facility, and she had a library card even before her home had a refrigerator! Wendy has served on the board of the Friends of Washoe County Library and is committed to the library remaining a vibrant and accessible resource for our community. Balancing resources and community needs in areas such as collection development, electronic and digital resources and operating hours are some of the opportunities facing our library system. Wendy has an MBA in Marketing from Northwestern University and a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University. She has over 25 years of experience in product design, manufacturing and business development, in diverse industries. She is married and has three grown children.
Zanny Marsh, Vice Chair
Zanny Marsh is the Executive Director of the American Red Cross of Northern Nevada, where she provides leadership for 4 offices in Elko, Winnemucca, Reno, and Inline Village and works alongside more than 150 volunteers. As an active community volunteer, Zanny is a Trustee for KNPB and she serves on the Board of Directors for Cultural Arts Nevada. She is past Chairman of Seniors in Service, which sponsors Foster Grandparents and Senior Companion Programs, and is a past president of Truckee Meadows Tomorrow (TMT), the only community indicator organization in northern Nevada. Zanny holds a bachelor’s degree in Journalism and a master’s in Justice Management. She was appointed Faculty Emeritus from the University of Nevada, Reno, where she co-developed and teaches a graduate course in UNR’s School of Social Justice and Research Studies.
Wayne Holland
Wayne Holland has family roots in Nevada which inspired his retirement to Reno. With an engineering degree from UCLA and an MBA from California State University at Long Beach, he worked for 35 years in manufacturing with Ford Motor and Kenworth Truck Company. Wayne was a Crisis Center volunteer with the Ross County Mental Health Department and also prepared income taxes for United Way’s Volunteer Income Tax program. He served on the boards of Chillicothe Metropolitan Housing and Habitat For Humanity, and served as Board President for both Red Cross and Big Brothers Big Sisters, and as Vice Chair of Metropolitan Housing. Wayne currently volunteers with Awaken INC, the 360 Blueprint reading program at Robert Mitchell Elementary School, and assists the school librarian at Greenbrae Elementary School. Wayne believes strongly in giving back to his local community, and believes Washoe County Library System can be an effective tool in improving Washoe County school performance.
Ted Parkhill
Ted Parkhill is a founding partner and CEO of systematic macro investment manager Incline Investment Management (IIM). Mr. Parkhill also provides strategic consulting services to hedge funds through Parkhill Financial, LLC and serves as an Adjunct Professor of Business at Sierra Nevada College. Prior to IIM he was the director of a multi-billion dollar quantitative convertible securities manager. He was a senior executive at John W. Henry & Company in Boca Raton, FL. Before joining the alternative investment space in 2001, Mr. Parkhill spent over ten years in various management roles in the mutual fund industry, notably with the Ivy Funds in the U.S. and with Investors Group in Canada. He began his career as an investment analyst with Great-West Life. Mr. Parkhill earned his MBA from Cornell University with concentrations in Finance and Marketing. He received a B.A. in Economics from the University of Manitoba. He holds multiple securities licenses and has earned the Chartered Financial Planning (CFP) designation. He is married with three children and resides in Crystal Bay, Nevada.
Jean Stoess
Jean Stoess became familiar with Washoe County Library System when she and her three pre-school children read their way around the circular room in the Downtown Reno Library. In 1977, Jean became the first woman to serve on the Washoe County Commission. She also served on boards of the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, the Regional Transportation Commission, and the Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority. Jean has a BA in Business Administration from the University of Oregon and an MA in Journalism from UNR. She managed 13 Western states for a national news agency providing election returns to TV networks and wire services, and has co-authored, edited, or indexed over fifteen books.
The Library Board meets regularly on the third Wednesday of each month at 4:00 p.m., usually at one of the library's twelve locations. The public is welcome and encouraged to attend.
2019
- 06/17/2019 - Agenda - Minutes - Northwest Reno Library
- 05/15/2019 - Agenda - Minutes - Sparks Library
- 04/17/2019 - Agenda - Minutes - Sparks Library
- 03/20/2019 - Agenda - Minutes - Spanish Springs Library
- 02/20/2019 - Agenda - Minutes - Spanish Springs Library
- 01/16/2019 - Agenda - Minutes - South Valleys Library
2018
- 12/19/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library
- 11/15/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - North Valleys Library
- 11/07/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - South Valleys Library - RESCHEDULED
- 10/17/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - South Valleys Library - CANCELED
- 10/14/2018 - Notice of Possible Quorum
- 09/19/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - Sierra View Library
- 08/19/2018 - Notice of Possible Quorum
- 08/15/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - Incline Village Library
- 07/18/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - Northwest Reno Library
- 06/20/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - Northwest Reno Library
- 05/16/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library
- 04/18/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - Sparks Library
- 04/18/2018 - Notice of Possible Quorum - Sparks Library
- 03/21/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - Spanish Springs Library
- 02/28/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - Spanish Springs Library - Workshop
- 02/27/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - Joint BCC/LBOT
- 02/21/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - Spanish Springs Library - CANCELED
- 01/24/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library
- 01/17/2018 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library - CANCELED
2017
- 12/20/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - Sierra View Library - (Location Change)
- 11/15/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - North Valleys Library
- 10/18/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - Hard Rock Hotel (South Lake Tahoe) - CANCELED
- 10/16/17-10/18/2017 - Notice of Possible Quorum - Hard Rock Hotel (South Lake Tahoe)
- 09/27/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library (special meeting)
- 09/20/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - Sierra View Library - CANCELED
- 08/16/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - Incline Village Library
- 07/19/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - South Valleys Library
- 06/21/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - South Valleys Library - CANCELED
- 05/17/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - Northwest Reno Library
- 05/03/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library (special meeting)
- 04/19/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - Spanish Springs Library
- 04/19/2017 - Notice of Possible Quorum - Spanish Springs Library
- 03/15/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - Sparks Library
- 02/22/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - Sparks Library
- 02/15/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - Sparks Library - RESCHEDULED
- 01/18/2017 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library
2016
- 12/21/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library - CANCELED
- 12/07/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library
- 11/16/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - North Valleys Library
- 10/25/2016 - Agenda - JOINT BCC - County Complex
- 10/19/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - Northwest Reno Library
- 09/21/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - Incline Village Library
- 08/17/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - Sierra View Library
- 07/20/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - South Valleys Library
- 06/15/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - South Valleys Library
- 06/08/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - Duncan Traner Library
- 05/18/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - Sparks Library
- 04/27/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library
- 04/20/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - Northwest Reno Library - CANCELED
- 03/16/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library
- 02/17/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library
- 01/20/2016 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library
2015
- 12/16/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library
- 11/18/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - North Valleys Library
- 11/04/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - Sparks Library (special meeting)
- 11/03/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - BCC Caucus Room (special meeting)
- 10/21/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - Spanish Springs Library (strategic planning)
- 10/21/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - Spanish Springs Library
- 10/02/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - North Valleys Library (special meeting)
- 09/16/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - Incline Village Library
- 08/19/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - Northwest Reno Library
- 07/15/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - Sierra View Library
- 06/17/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - South Valleys Library
- 05/20/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - Sparks Library
- 04/15/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - Northwest Reno Library
- 03/18/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library
- 02/18/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library
- 01/21/2015 - Agenda - Minutes - Downtown Reno Library
Washoe County Library System Strategic Planning Process for 2018-2020
Download the Complete Strategic Plan (including summary) Download the One-Page Summary
The Nevada State Library, Archives, and Public Records requires each library in the state of Nevada to have a two year strategic plan. For this strategic planning cycle, Washoe County Library System used the Planning for Results process. Planning for Results was developed by the Public Library Association and provides support through training and guidebooks. Our goal was to ensure that we would address the most critical needs of the community while at the same time being good stewards of the public trust.
Washoe County Library System staff are very connected with the community, making staff an ideal pool of experts to inform administration's decision-making process. Each member of the Library's Leadership Team (consisting of Branch Managers and System-level administrators) selected three stakeholders in the community. Team members and library staff then met with these stakeholders for interviews. The purpose of these meetings was to get the community's perspective on critical needs and how the library could help address them.
We asked over 40 community stakeholders the following questions:
- What would our community look like in five years if it solved all of its problems?
- What are the roadblocks?
- What are the opportunities?
- What should the library's role become?
All of the interview information was reviewed for major themes and divided into categories developed by the Planning for Results process. Library staff also connected the major themes from the interview with services already provided. A library is more effective when it decides on a clear direction and focuses on only a few service areas, so part of the intent of this process was to help focus our resources on three to five key service areas.
Download the Complete Strategic Plan (including summary) Download the One-Page Summary
Previous Strategic Plans
Annual Reports
Other Plans & Reports
Click the image to download the Strategic Plan and Summary. See the "Reports & Strategic Planning" Tab for more information about our strategic planning process.
