Meet Your 2023 YSS Board Candidates - Chair-Elect

WLA elections are coming up and YSS has a strong slate of wonderful candidate-members. Today we introduce our candidates for the three year position of Chair (Chair-elect, Chair and Past-Chair). Watch for your ballot in the next month or so. And don't forget to vote!!

Susie Menk

Youth Librarian, Manitowoc Public Library

Hi!  My name is Susie Menk and I am a youth librarian at Manitowoc Public Library in beautiful Manitowoc, WI on the shores of Lake Michigan.  I have worked in Manitowoc for over 10 years and have been part of the YSS group for over 5 years.  I previously served on the YSS board as a Director-at-Large (two different terms) and am currently serving as secretary.  I love being a part of YSS!  Librarians love to share and YSS is an excellent example of that.  There are many times that I have seen or heard an idea through YSS and used it in my library work.  Our YSS group does so many great things for librarians and I am excited to continue serving in whatever capacity I can. 

Cathy Pescinski

Teen Librarian, Shawano City-County Library

I am Cathy Pescinski. I have been the teen librarian at Shawano County Library for 11 years. I am in charge of purchasing and processing young adult fiction and graphic novels for the main library and three branches. I also plan and administer the teen summer reading program for all libraries in the county. I develop and run all teen programming, weeding, displays, and outreach at the main branch.  I have a BS in park administration and have been a Jill of all trades for most of my career, mostly in service-oriented positions. I began my library career by volunteering at my daughter's school library and fell in love with it. I then took my position as a teen librarian when my family moved to Shawano. Since I came to the library world later in my career, I don't have an MLS but have taken advantage of many continuing education opportunities through the WI DPI, ALA, and the UW-Madison Information School among others. These have included Project READY: Reimagining Equity & Access for Diverse Youth, Wisconsin Libraries Talk About Race, ALA's Ask Listen Empower book discussion series on community outreach, and courses on children's literature and teen librarianship. I also have presented a session on programming for teens at WAPL, as well as co-facilitating a Wisconsin Libraries Talk About Race session, and will be presenting the programming session at the upcoming Association of Rural and Small Libraries conference. 

 

I would like to be part of the YSS board to help the board continue to offer networking and resource-sharing opportunities for youth librarians around the state. I believe that we are each other's best resource for ideas, information, and inspiration and I would like to be part of helping share that around the state! I would appreciate your vote for the Chair-Elect position on the YSS board.