BusinessReport.com

It’s hard to imagine anyone better suited to the job of state librarian than Rebecca Hamilton.

It started with the Bookmobile, navigating the rural roads of West Baton Rouge Parish with its precious cache, all the way out to the farm where Hamilton spent her childhood.

“They would honk, and I can remember running from the field and kicking off my rubber boots—because you didn’t want to bring muddy boots on the Bookmobile—and checking out books,” she says.

In high school, Hamilton landed a part-time job on the Bookmobile. Delivering books to those who were bed-ridden or otherwise unable to get to the library made a deep impression on the young bookworm.

“It fundamentally changed the way I saw service to people,” she says.

That led to jobs at the library itself, a master’s degree in library science from LSU in 1995, posts at various libraries around the state and, eventually, the top job, which she took over in 2005. Hamilton, whose official title is assistant secretary of the Office of State Library, is the fourth state librarian in Louisiana history and the youngest state librarian in the country.

She considers it a dream job, even if it puts a dent in her reading time. Among other things, she’s responsible for gauging the funding needs of each of the state’s 336 library branches, and monitoring state and national legislation that impacts libraries, among other duties. Hamilton, who oversees a budget of $12.7 million, led the creation of a statewide Internet and database network for libraries—saving the state millions of dollars in the process. The spark she first felt on the Bookmobile hasn’t gone away.

“Later as I moved on and moved up, the higher up you go and the more power you get, the more ability you have to impact people’s lives,” Hamilton says. “My father used to say, ‘If you have the ability to make a difference it’s your responsibility to do that.’ That’s always been with me.”

Who do you most admire in the business community and why?

“I admire our public librarians in the state of Louisiana. Their work levels the playing field for all citizens to get the information that they need for their success no matter what their economic means.”