Katie Fyfe | The Journal Gazette
Mindy Waldron, administrator of the Allen County Department of Health, received extra pandemic pay last year. Previous Next
Sunday, April 04, 2021 1:00 am
Educators lead list on public pay
Pandemic puts health administrator in top 25
JIM CHAPMAN | The Journal Gazette
Mindy Waldron s salary is usually not among the top government-funded salaries in Allen County.
As county health department administrator, Waldron s base pay was $100,917 last year. But because of the coronavirus, the county commissioners and County Council approved extra pandemic pay for Waldron and others.
That pushed her salary to $191,114 in 2020, ranking her 13th on the list of the county s publicly funded earners. The public employee compensation figures are from the Indiana Gateway for Government Units, a state internet portal providing financial information public agencies are required to file.
Mike Moore | The Journal Gazette
Susan Baier, the new director of the Allen County Public Library, sees herself as a connector. Previous Next
Saturday, March 13, 2021 1:00 am People s palace has leader
Baier on job as director of Allen County library system
ROSA SALTER RODRIGUEZ | The Journal Gazette
Susan Baier jokes that taking the Allen County Public Library s top job gives her “the Lincoln trifecta.”
Baier grew up in Illinois, the jumping off point for the political career that launched Abraham Lincoln to the presidency. She went to library school and directed a public library system in Kentucky, where Lincoln grew up.
Library use drops 30% amid COVID
ACPL 2020 report cites reduced hours; digital demand rises
ROSA SALTER RODRIGUEZ | The Journal Gazette
The Allen County Public Library saw COVID-19-related declines in usage averaging 30% in several key areas, partly because of closures and limits on hours, the system s preliminary annual report for 2020 says.
The pandemic closed the main library in downtown Fort Wayne for nine weeks and limited occupancy for 11 weeks, the report found. The branches spent 11 to 15 weeks closed and five to nine weeks with limited hours, depending on the location.
The closures amounted to about 25% of the system s normal service hours. The declines came in circulation, wireless internet usage, computer reservations and visits, the report says.
After conducting a national search, the Allen County Public Library Board of Trustees has announced its choice for the Library’s next Executive Director. In a public meeting held on Thursday, January 7 the Board voted unanimously in favor of hiring Susan Baier (pronounced “buyer”).
Library system hires new director
ROSA SALTER RODRIGUEZ | The Journal Gazette
The Allen County Public Library s new executive director comes from leadership of a public library in Paducah, Kentucky.
The library s board of trustees this afternoon voted 5-0 to hire Susan Baier, executive director of Paducah s McCracken County Public Library. The decision came during a virtual special meeting.
Baier will replace Greta Southard, former executive director, who left suddenly in August, resigning without explanation. Her five-year tenure was marked by controversy over the discarding of library materials and other issues.
The board conducted a nationwide search and earlier announced it had whittled prospects down to four candidates who were interviewed in December.