Member Spotlight - Monica Dombrowski

September 9, 2024

This week's member spotlight is on Monica Dombrowski, Executive Director of the Winnetka-Northfield Public Library District (WNPLD). Monica has served on the ILA Public Policy Committee, and she is a current member of the Advocacy Committee.

We asked Monica to answer a few professional and amusing questions. Continue reading to find out more about Monica.

A little background on Monica:

I spent 17 years working in corporate America managing people, projects, and training design/development before finding my way to libraries in 2012. My first library job was as a solo academic librarian at a small career college where I literally did EVERYTHING, which was a great introduction to the field. While I loved helping people do research and learn, public libraries ended up being a better fit for me because providing services over the span of a lifetime brings lots of new challenges and adventures!  

I credit my family with helping me get where I am today. My husband, Ken, encouraged me to go back to school for my MLIS and supported me while I worked a full-time job, raised a child, and took classes on evenings and weekends. My youngest son, Brodie, did homework with me at the kitchen table so I didn’t have to choose between being a student or being a Mom. My other three kids, parents, and extended family cheered me on and made sure I saw the light at the end of the tunnel when I couldn’t see it for myself. As a library professional, I am the product of many people’s love, faith, and belief and I try to pay that forward in my work as a mentor and a Director.

How did you get your start in libraries?

I went back to school to finish my BA in 2002 and had planned to become a history professor, so I could make a switch out of corporate America. When I found out about the tenure process, I decided that it wasn’t for me and needed to find another path. Maris Cooke, my thesis advisor at Roosevelt University, asked me if I’d ever considered becoming a librarian, to which I replied, “Only every day since I’ve been born!” She told me about an upcoming information session at Dominican University and suggested I go. I went to the session and realized I’d found my calling, so I enrolled and pursued my degree over the next 3 ½ years.

Three years after getting my degree, I was downsized from my software company and started applying for library jobs without luck. I think it was hard for hiring managers to envision how someone with 17 years of management experience and none in libraries would fit into an entry-level librarian position. Seven months later, application #34 led me to my first job and a career that’s been more satisfying than I ever could have imagined.  

Best advice you've received since starting your career in libraries?

Build and leverage your support network! The public service road can be hard at times, but you never have to figure things out alone. Lean on those who helped you get where you are and then pay it forward to others who are following in your footsteps.

Any advice to newcomers working in libraries? 

Find a few mentors and lean into their advice. Pick a few people who are good at different things so they can help YOU become good at different things! Taking them for coffee every 3-6 months is a small—but mighty—investment in your future.

When and why did you become a member of ILA?

I was new to public libraries, had just won an ALA grant, and wanted a bigger mouthpiece for my project. The ILA Annual Conference was coming up and someone suggested my team and I submit a poster session, so I joined for the conference discount. The conference was phenomenal and the experience there led me to realize that I was one of thousands of people in Illinois trying to make sure there is a safe place in the community to learn, explore ideas, and develop critical thinking skills.

Realizing that I was part of a community built around a purpose I believed in solidified a path to involvement. I started with conference presentations, moved to the PPC Committee, did a couple of sessions for DU 2.0, and now sit on the Advocacy Committee, with the occasional conference presentation still thrown in for fun.   

How has being a member of ILA helped you professionally? 

It’s been HUGE for my growth! I attend the Annual Conference every year because I love a chance to learn from my Illinois colleagues and walk away with amazing ideas every time. I’ve attended Director’s University as a new Director to learn more about the many hats I’d be wearing.

I’ve served on two committees to help me learn more about legal issues in libraries and how to demonstrate my library’s value to the community. I’ve attended legislative meetups where I’ve had an opportunity to talk with my representatives about issues that are important to my community.

Most importantly, I have formed deep and lasting friendships with people from all over the state whom I truly love, respect, and admire; I can call on them anytime and they will be there for me!

What is your proudest professional achievement to date?

Hands-down, it’s getting my District to the place it is today. Before I arrived, WNPLD had been through several years of really hard times resulting in bad press; poor morale; excessive turnover; and vocal, unhappy patrons. Beneath all of that, I saw an opportunity to guide a lot of really good people with great ideas to a place where they could do their best work and delight their community.

Nearly 4 years in, we are now at that place, and I’m thankful I had the courage to follow the signs that were leading me here. I have a team of ROCKSTARS with passion for their work and it shows in patron feedback, engagement, and library statistics. I expect you’ll be seeing and hearing more from my amazing team in the future as they contribute to our profession in larger ways.

Hardcover, paperback, e-reader, audiobook, or all?

1000% audiobook! Ever since the pandemic happened, I have had a hard time sitting still and just doing one thing, so audiobooks allow me to workout, clean the house, shop for groceries, and drive (among many other things) while reading. In the words of my favorite band, "I just can’t get enough!"

Favorite authors?

Dan Brown, Emily Henry, Stephen King, Edith Wharton, and Ken Follett are go-to’s for me. I also like Jane Austen for the snark.

If you were stuck on a deserted island, what five books would you want with you to pass the time until being rescued?

Since this is a hypothetical question and I don’t know how long I’d be there, I will take a liberty and say that I would bring 5 series with me! My picks would be:

  • John Matherson by William Forschten
  • Robert Langdon by Dan Brown
  • The Passage by Justin Cronin
  • Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
  • The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Cat or Dog?

Love all the fur babies but currently mom to two beautiful kitties, Robin & Mona.

Favorite film, podcast, or television show? 

Elizabethtown by Cameron Crowe for the movie, Dax Shepard’s Armchair Experts for the podcast, and a tie between Schitt’s Creek & What We Do in the Shadows for tv shows.

One person you would like to meet, dead or alive why?

Thomas Jefferson would be high on my list. I’ve always wondered what the founding fathers would think of how America has evolved compared to what they envisioned when they established our country.

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