North Shelby Library Board appoints interim director, begins search for permanent replacement

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In a special meeting Tuesday night, the North Shelby Library board of trustees selected an interim director to replace Kate Etheredge, who gave her resignation as director of library services on Monday, and voted to search for a permanent replacement. 

The board voted unanimously to appoint Michelyn Reid as interim director. She has spent the last 20 years as the reference librarian at the library. Reid, though, did not wish to be considered a candidate for the permanent replacement for Etheredge.

The board then voted to form a search committee to find Etheredge’s replacement. That committee will be headed by Kasandra Stevens, the president of the board, and Sam Gaston, the Mountain Brook city manager, who sits on the board. The search will take approximately three months to complete. 

Etheredge had led the North Shelby Library during a year of upheaval over a display of LGBTQ+ book. Etheredge accepted a position at the Homewood Public Library. She said her last day at North Shelby Library will be Sept. 6.

Stevens said at the meeting Tuesday she was “very surprised” and “saddened” that Etheredge was leaving her position at the library.

“It’s just been a really hard year,” Etheredge said on Monday, saying she felt like she was no longer able to be effective at her job at the library, where she has been for the last 15 years. 

Etheredge had been caught in the middle of a contentious battle after some residents complained about a display of children’s LGBTQ+ books in the children’s section of the library during Pride month in 2023. But, some residents who supported the display were equal in their support of the library’s decision and the library’s board of trustees at the time.

That board voted against a new policy that would have allowed them to direct the library’s staff on what could be displayed- a move that angered residents who objected to the Pride display. This past legislative session, local legislators passed a bill allowing them to choose who would sit on the board. And, in July, a new board selected by the legislators was seated.

 Etheredge’s resignation comes less than a month after the new board was sworn in.

“To lose someone that professional and that proficient to be basically forced out the door because of a political agenda is a shame,” said Morgan Barnes, president of the board that was replaced. 

Despite the battle between the two sides, both groups were complimentary of Etheredge.

Etheredge for her part says she’s excited about the new opportunity and loves the North Shelby Library.

“I love this library,” Etheredge said on Monday. “And I hope for nothing but the best for it.”