Thomas A. Shepley has been hired as the new director of the Pamunkey Regional Library, which has branches in the Hanover, Goochland, King and Queen and King William counties.

Shepley, who is a library services administrator for the Chesterfield County Public Library, begins his new duties today. He replaces Fran Freimarck, who retired this month after 32 years as director.

Shepley has more than 13 years of experience in library systems in four states, including experience in library finance and administration. In his current position as a library services administrator for Chesterfield, his responsibilities include developing and strategically managing the library’s services. This includes promoting the library’s services, materials and events and articulating the library’s mission for a busy county library system serving 300,000 residents.

Shepley was selected from four candidates who were interviewed by the Search Committee, said Anne G. Cross, chairman of the Search Committee and also of the Board of Trustees for the Pamunkey Regional Library.

The Search Committee included trustees or former trustees from all four counties; Hanover County Assistant County Administrator Marilyn Blake; and a well-respected director from another regional library system.

“The Search Committee was very impressed with Mr. Shepley’s wide variety of experience working in library systems serving both rural and urban areas,” Cross said. “He is well versed in the latest technology and has served as a library director. He also is excited about the future of all libraries and the Pamunkey Regional Library system especially.  I think he will be an articulate advocate for the libraries in all four of our counties and elsewhere.”

“Pamunkey Regional Library is a system that I’ve been watching for a while,” said Shepley. “It’s been a very good system for a long time. I was happy to have the opportunity to apply.”

Even though libraries face many financial challenges today, Shepley said, “I would characterize Pamunkey as being better able to take advantage of the opportunities that have arisen.”

“Fran and the library staff have had a progressive approach to providing library services,” he explained. “She was successful in using different models, such as the storefront idea. There’s a new service approach as embodied by Mechanicsville; staff and services are more accessible and community support for the Pamunkey Regional Library has been strong.”

“I think we’ll get through the current economic situation and move forward,” he said. “First, I will have to make staff comfortable with the transition – Fran will be a hard act to follow. Then we will take a good look at what we do and position ourselves as best we can for the future.”

Shepley said another appeal of the job was the quality of life in the area. “Jennifer, my wife, is a Lee-Davis graduate and my in-laws live in Mechanicsville,” he said. “We look forward to moving into the area.” The Shepleys have two daughters, AnnaMarie and Audrey.

Shepley has experience in managing regional library systems. Prior to coming to Chesterfield in 2005, Shepley was executive director of the East Albemarle Regional Library in Elizabeth City, N.C. The East Albemarle Regional Library system served more than 90,000 residents in four counties with six branches and a bookmobile.

The Pamunkey Regional Library system serves a population of more than 140,000 in the four counties, about two-thirds of whom live in Hanover County. The library’s collection of more than 300,000 volumes is housed in 10 branch libraries, including six branches in Hanover. Library use has grown by more than 30 percent over the past five years.

Branches of the Pamunkey Regional Library range in size from a 1,750 storefront facility in King and Queen to the new 16,500-square-foot branch in Mechanicsville. The libraries are funded by appropriations from the local governments and state aid. The Pamunkey Regional Library currently has a budget of more than $4.5 million.

The director is the chief administrator and financial officer of the library. The director is hired by and reports to the Library Board of Trustees, a 10-member governing board that is appointed by the Boards of Supervisors from the four localities.

Shepley is a member of the ALA (American Library Association) and PLA (Public Library Association). He received his MLIS in Library Science, as well as an MA in Applied History from the University of South Carolina and his undergraduate degree in History from the State University of New York at Oswego.