Rod Wagner
- Photo courtesy of Nebraska Library Commission Archives
Rod Wagner is the 11th, and current, director of the Nebraska Library Commission. He began work at the Commission in 1972. A newly minted master's degree in political science from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in his hand and a desire to find gainful employment led him to apply for a newly created position at the Commission. Jobs were scarce at the time, so the prospect was an inviting one.
He did not get that job, but they were interested in his degree in political science. The Commission had received funding through the federal Public Employment Program (PEP) and Wagner was hired as a Research Coordinator. Even though he "had no idea what the Library Commission was or involved with" he was intrigued with the job. He began work in February of 1972 under Dr. Bob Kemper.
A number of people were hired at that time with PEP funding as network consultants. A period of training followed for the first six months. One of the first jobs they did was to go to the Library for the Blind and Physically handicapped to help shelve materials.
Wagner did research for Dr. Kemper on the Bellevue Library project. He was given the assignment of supervising the move from the Capitol building to 1420 P Street. There he designed the office space, purchased shelving and supervised the installation of it.
A leave of absence in the mid 70s permitted Wagner to attend library school in Missouri and receive his MLS. He returned to the Commission in the fall of 1976 about the time that John Kopischke became director.
Jane Geske appointed Rod Deputy Director about 1974-75. He was responsible for the development of the agency budget and activity planning. He had a number of different assignments in that capacity.
Wagner was named director of the Commission February 5th, 1987. Commission chair Sandra Riley said, "Wagner's excellent credentials merited his selection following a national search by the board." He had been acting director since John Kopischke's resignation in 1987.
Rod's long history with the Commission gives him a lot of background to events that are important to the history of the Commission. The Panhandle systems demonstration stands out as a memorable event. It was to be the prototype upon which the other systems would be built.
Since becoming director, Wagner has encouraged staff members to develop a great many programs. The colloquiums for library directors were up-scale programs to encourage librarians to read about library trends and to listen to experts in their fields talk about innovation and moving forward.
The Wilson Symposium for Rural Libraries was a national seminar that involved bringing in librarians from all parts of the United States to learn about the problems those libraries in rural areas face.
Legislative issues have become increasingly important to the life of the Commission in these later years of the Commission's history. Funding has become scarcer and the needs have grown. Rod has helped to spearhead the drive for innovative ways to fund crucial programs. Statewide contracting is one method to address those needs.
Continuing education is available for all librarians to upgrade their level of expertise, which in turn results in better service for the customer. Trustees, Friends and Foundations are becoming more proactive in the search of funds for the improvement of information dissemination due to the number of advocacy programs that have been developed for use across the state.
Coalition building by partnering with groups outside the library world is the new wave of the future. Rod's vision of the future in the 21st century includes the opportunities to create the Nebraska Library which will be electronic web based. He hopes this will pull together the disparate parts into a more cohesive whole.
His ultimate goal is to make electronic collections more accessible. He wants to be able to have more training available in a sustained way so that people in libraries are not over-whelmed by all the technology. Most of all, he wants to see the Nebraska Library Commission at the forefront of progress in library service that reaches all Nebraskans in an equitable manner.
Files of the Nebraska Library Commission Archives
Interview 2/17/2000