The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County has filled two key leadership positions. Brett Bonfield was named Chief Operating Officer (COO), and Holbrook Sample was named Chief Technology and Logistics Officer (CTLO).
Bonfield begins in his role April 22. He comes from the Princeton Public Library in Princeton, N.J., where he has served as executive director since January 2016. He also has served as director at the Collingswood Public Library in New Jersey as well as worked in libraries at the University of Pennsylvania, St. Joseph’s University and Temple University. Bonfield founded the library-related journal In the Library with the Lead Pipe and is one of the founding advisory board members and a former co-chair of Library Pipeline, a nonprofit that provides opportunities, funding, and services for libraries and library professionals. He has been vice president of the New Jersey Council for Humanities and serves on the American Library Association’s Committee on Organization. Bonfield earned his undergraduate degree at Rutgers University and a Master of Library & Information Sciences at Drexel University. He was named a Mover & Shaker in 2012 by Library Journal.
Sample begins his role as Chief Technology and Logistics Officer February 24. He has been employed by the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County since February 2002, where he has served in several management positions as well as a reference and children’s librarian. Most recently, Sample was a regional manager with oversight of several library branches and system-wide service departments including collection development, sorting, and delivery logistics. In mid-2018 he was given interim responsibility for the Information Technology Department. Sample received his undergraduate degree from Columbia University in New York and his Master of Library Science from the State University of New York at Albany.
“As we begin building the next generation library, it’s important to have the right leadership team in place. Brett brings an outside perspective and is a well-respected innovator, communicator, and community builder in the library industry,” said Paula Brehm-Heeger, the Eva Jane Romaine Coombe Director of the Library.
“When we created the CTLO, we knew we were looking for someone with experience in logistics who had the technology knowledge and library experience to lead these critical areas for library service. In the final interviews it was clear Holbrook possesses all of these skills along with a passion for moving us into the future,” she said.
Both were selected from a pool of national candidates. Interviews took place over two days where the finalists met with staff, potential direct reports, and library leadership.
