Officials and board members from the East Baton Rouge Parish Library System are asking the Metro Council tonight to approve a higher pay scale for the next library director, a move the library system says will make the position more attractive to qualified candidates. The library system has been without a director since David Farrar, who was slated to make $89,000 this year, resigned last December after information became public about a 15-year-old criminal case in Alabama in which he allegedly committed sexual abuse while impersonating a police officer. He was only convicted on the impersonation charge. The current pay range in East Baton Rouge Parish for library director is $72,388 to $100,202. The library board wants the incoming director’s pay to range between $115,588 and $160,000, with $133,998 being the midpoint. Acting library system Co-director Mary Stein says increasing the pay range quickly is imperative to finding qualified candidates since several library systems—large and small—are advertising for similar positions. The pay range proposal went through the Metro Council’s Finance and Executive Committee without a recommendation. Councilwoman Donna Collins-Lewis, a member of that committee, says it’s not unusual for such items to go before the Metro Council without a recommendation when members feel they should be fully discussed by the council as a whole. The Metro Council meets at 4 p.m. on the third floor of City Hall, 222 St. Louis St. Check out the full meeting agenda here. —Adam Pearson Read the full story here.
Editor’s note: This story has been changed since its original publication.
Today’s poll question: Do you support raising the salary range for the next director of the East Baton Rouge Parish Library System?
