People, Places and Things: Rick Ashton

On the eighth day of Rick Ashton’s tenure as director of the , he reported that he has the best job in town. Earlier this month, Ashton replaced Christopher Bowen, who retired after 22 years on the job.

With a long history in the library world, Ashton is passionate about his work.

“Public libraries touch peoples’ lives in a very significant way," he said. "Often we don't even know what it is that's having an effect on them, from young children on up. I love the open door, the array of possible experiences, the learning opportunities, the supportive environment."

Although following in Bowen’s footsteps as library director, he actually preceded him in retirement. In 2006, Ashton, who will be 66 next week, retired from his position as the director of the Denver Public Library.  

“I retired from that but certainly didn’t intend to retire from working and being involved in the library world forever,” he said.

After a short break from working, Ashton worked in a couple of different capacities.

"Several months ago I thought 'maybe it’s time to get back into the library world,' and so here I am," Ashton said. "I didn’t really have a specific plan, but this opportunity came along. I certainly feel that I have a lot to contribute."

“I like working and I like the interaction with people and the community. And I like the impact that great public libraries can have on their community. I like being a part of that.”

Ashton, who has lived in Oak Park the last four years, confessed that when he first learned about the Downers Grove job opening, he was completely unfamiliar with the community and had to research it.  In investigating the library, he said, he learned that it is healthy, and much beloved in the community.

As he was pursuing the job, Ashton familiarized himself a bit with the town, and hung out anonymously in the library, observing the action, programming and staff. Everything appeared to be very positive, he said.  One of the major factors that attracted him to the position was the fact that the library is in good shape. 

“It’s not a rescue situation or bail out or emergency. Occasionally, new directors will encounter that.  There’s no need to do something drastic here,” he said.  “I have views and opinions and hopes and aspirations about what can be accomplished.  Every organization, no matter how good, can get better.”

Ashton said that one challenge facing libraries everywhere is the changing world of publishing.

“We don’t really know how things are going to go," he said. "It shows no signs of shaking out, but we do know that electronic publishing is growing and will continue to grow. In order to do our mission of providing an excellent array of materials of all kinds to people, that has to be part of our repertoire in an effective way. We’re always looking at what’s next.”

Ashton said another major challenge that all libraries share is the fact that the demand for service has increased almost vertically for the last five years. More than a million items are checked out from the Downers Grove Public Library annually. However, library budgets are flat at best, and most in fact are decreasing dramatically if they haven’t already “fallen off the cliff,” said Ashton. While Downers Grove’s income is stable, he said it remains challenging to support services for increasing usage.

Former library director Christopher Bowen received strong support as well as vocal criticism regarding the fact he .  When asked what his position will be on this issue, Ashton answered, “The library is open to the public. That’s all I have to say about that.”

Ashton said he has found that the library board of trustees takes its work very seriously and is engaged with their jobs as “citizen governors of the library."

"They want to see the library continue to be useful and valuable and effective in serving the community. That’s what I think my charge is. To find ways to address that in general terms. And I’m sure we’ll find some interesting things to do that we haven’t done before.”

Ashton concluded, “I want to emphasize the fact that I’m very excited about this job. I’m glad to be here in a setting where the library and the community seem very well attuned to each other. I hope to contribute to the continued success of that.”

The Downers Grove Public Library will host a Meet and Greet to welcome Ashton to his new position on Sunday from 1-2 p.m.  The event is open to the public.