Our Organization

For more than 100 years, The Salt Lake City Public Library has been expanding your world--providing the information you need for school, work, and personal fulfillment.

The Free Public Library of Salt Lake City first opened on February 14, 1898. Today, the library system consists of the Main Library and five branches. The system is under the direction of a library board and circulates more than three million items each year. In the last decade, each location has been remodeled, expanded, or rebuilt in order to meet the growing needs of our city.

Library Administration
Beth Elder, Director
Deborah Ehrman, Associate Director for Library Experiences, Main
Patty Steed, Associate Director for Library Experiences, Branches
Mike Beckstead, Associate Director of Finance and Operations
Kerri Harris, Assistant Director of Human Resources

Library Board
The Salt Lake City Public Library System is governed by a nine-member volunteer Board of Directors, all of whom must be residents of Salt Lake City. The mayor recommends potential board members to the City Council for their consideration. An individual is appointed to the Library Board only after being approved by a vote of the City Council.

Board members are appointed for a term of three years. At the end of the first term, the City Council may reappoint the member to a second term. An individual may serve no more than two consecutive three-year terms. At the end of two consecutive terms, the member must go off the library board for at least one year before serving again.

Every effort is made to appoint individuals from all areas of the city who represent the range of cultures and backgrounds that make up Salt Lake City.

Board Members 2010-2011
Hugh Gillilan, President
Ella Olsen, Vice President
Mark Alvarez, Secretary
Emilie Charles
Luana Chilelli
Ila Rose Fife
Elizabeth Gupta
Kevin Werner