Marlborough Library welcomes new director
By Angela Greiner Contributing Writer

Salvatore Genovese, the new director of the Marlborough Public Library PHOTO/ANGELA GREINER

Marlborough - The interview process is over, and the town now welcomes Natick resident Salvatore Genovese as the new director of the Marlborough Public Library. Genovese began in the position July 2.

"I am personally excited for the opportunity," he said.

Originally from outside of Detroit, Mich., and a graduate of University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Genovese relocated to the central Massachusetts area after college.

"When I graduated, there were not a lot of jobs in Michigan," Genovese explained. "I had several friends from Boston, and so I moved out."

After a few years of working in the customer service field, Genovese stumbled into a job at Northeastern University library in the inter-library loan department.

Genovese worked his way into a reference job and then realized that in order to progress he needed to obtain a master's degree. While juggling part-time work, parenthood and full-time student status, he completed a master's degree in library science at Simmons College.

He then became the director of the library at the Massachusetts Prevention Center, a health education and public health organization. After budget cuts and down-sizing, he became the director of the one-room Bacon Free Library in South Natick. During his time there he also worked part-time in the municipal Natick library, the Morse Institute Library, where he became the assistant director.

Genovese explained that when he moved to the Morse Library as the full-time assistant director it was an easy adjustment, because he knew the community and the library. After some time there he wanted the challenge of becoming a library director.

The Marlborough Public Library is a bit smaller in staff size and square footage and with about a third fewer volumes than the Natick library.

"The job at the Massachusetts Prevention Center was the best job in shaping my career," Genovese said.

As a librarian, he explained, he was responsible for knowing a bit about prevention, public health and various techniques if people asked about them.

When he began working outside the prevention center he found himself going back to the techniques he learned about public health and prevention work such as collaboration, working with groups and getting community input. The library, like the prevention center, is a service organization, with diff erent service, issues and outcomes, but the same techniques to provide the best results for the community, Genovese explained.

"I don't live in the community, so I am in the learning phase," he said. "I feel the responsibility of the library is to respond to what the community needs. Every place has its own flavor and it takes time to make meaningful change."

As he has done in the past, Genovese plans to work as a supervisor on a rotating shift similar to the other librarians.

"I think it is important to work a regular rotation like the staff to understand what the needs are as the library day progresses," he said.