Pilar Martinez, Dwight Smith take seats on OCLC Board of Trustees
15-member board includes nine librarians from four countries
DUBLIN, Ohio, 7 November 2022—Pilar Martinez, Chief Executive Officer, Edmonton Public Library, and Dwight Smith, President and CEO, Sophisticated Systems Inc., took their seats on the OCLC Board of Trustees today during the board's regular November meeting.
The two new board members serve in place of two retiring members. There are nine librarians from four countries serving on the 15-member OCLC Board of Trustees.
Pilar Martinez is Chief Executive Officer of the award-winning Edmonton Public Library, where she is responsible for leading 650 staff and managing a $69M operating budget. Never settling for the status-quo, Martinez is passionate about service excellence and is continually striving for improvement. She has championed numerous innovative services, including community-led and digital initiatives, such as 3-D printing. She has a broad base of experience in executive leadership including advocacy, strategic planning and change leadership. She holds an MLIS from the University of Alberta, a Bachelor of Arts with Honors in English from Acadia University and is a Certified Corporate Director (ICD.D).
Martinez is highly engaged with the community, serving on several boards nationwide, including the Urban Libraries Council Executive Board, the Public Lending Rights Commission, and as an Adjunct Professor for the University of Alberta's School of Library and Information Studies. She has served on the Working Group of the Centre for Free Expression for several years and is passionate about advocating for the fundamental value of intellectual freedom.
Martinez has received several honors including the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal, the CLA/Ken Haycock Award for promoting librarianship, the Library Association of Alberta's President's Award in 2016 for her contributions to the library field, and the Distinguished Alumni Award by the Library and Information Studies Alumni Association in 2018.
Martinez was elected to the board by OCLC Global Council earlier this year.
Dwight Smith is President and CEO of Sophisticated Systems Inc. since 1990. Sophisticated Systems, based in Columbus, Ohio, provides businesses with a comprehensive set of information technology solutions ranging from technology deployments and assessments to fully outsourced managed services in areas including cloud computing and cyber security. The company's management services business supports companies in a wide range of industries. Smith is a recipient of the prestigious E&Y Entrepreneur of the Year Award.
Smith currently serves as Board Chair of The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland and is a Board member of Nationwide Children's Hospital and the Highlights Foundation. His past board experience includes The Columbus Foundation, Columbus State Community College, Rev1 Ventures, State Auto Mutual Company, and several organizations focused on our youth. In 2015 Smith co-founded My Special Word, a non-profit focused on empowering children around the world and the importance and impact of positive words. He is an active investor and mentor for a number of entrepreneurial ventures.
Smith is a committed philanthropist. He is very active in his community and believes that it is an honor to be able to contribute to enhancing the lives of others. He has served as an Adjunct Professor in the MBA Program at Franklin University and is a guest lecturer at The Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University. Smith was awarded an Honorary Doctorate Degree from Franklin University in 2021. He graduated from The Ohio State University with a BS in Marketing and an MBA in Finance.
Smith was appointed by the Board in September.
Retiring from the OCLC Board are Craig Anderson, University Librarian (retired) at Deakin University in Geelong and Melbourne, Australia, and Kathleen Keane, Director (retired), Johns Hopkins University Press.
The OCLC Global Council is elected by OCLC members to represent the global library community. They provide reflection and insights regarding the needs and issues facing libraries. They also elect members to the OCLC Board of Trustees.
About OCLC
OCLC is a nonprofit global library organization that provides shared technology services, original research and community programs so that libraries can better fuel learning, research and innovation. Through OCLC, member libraries cooperatively produce and maintain WorldCat, the most comprehensive global network of data about library collections and services. Libraries gain efficiencies through OCLC’s WorldShare, a complete set of library management applications and services built on an open, cloud-based platform. It is through collaboration and sharing of the world’s collected knowledge that libraries can help people find answers they need to solve problems. Together as OCLC, member libraries, staff and partners make breakthroughs possible.
OCLC, WorldCat, WorldCat.org and WorldShare are trademarks and/or service marks of OCLC, Inc. Third-party product, service and business names are trademarks and/or service marks of their respective owners.
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