THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, August 29, 1996 TAG: 9608290393
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY IDA KAY JORDAN, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PORTSMOUTH LENGTH: 52 lines
Susan H. Burton, 49, has been selected to succeed her boss, Dean Burgess, as head of the Portsmouth Public Library system.
Burgess will retire at the end of September after heading the citywide system since 1974. Under his leadership, the Portsmouth library has expanded to four locations and was one of the first in the state to use computers and other new technology.
Burton, who has worked with Burgess for 26 years, was instrumental in implementing the technology and has served as systems administrator while holding the job of manager of the Main Library on Court Street since 1985.
Burton, whose salary now will be about $51,000, is perhaps best-known in the community for her expertise as a reference librarian.
She was chosen for the job after a nationwide search and in competition with finalists from five states.
``She will have a tough act to follow in Dean Burgess, but she has worked with him for many years and knows the library system and the community,'' City Manager Ronald W. Massie said Tuesday in announcing Burton's appointment. ``We are fortunate we can replace one of our most experienced department heads with one of our most experienced librarians.''
Burgess said he is ``delighted that Sue will follow me in this job. We've worked together for many years. She knows this system.''
But, Burton said, ``I'll probably be calling him all the time until I get things right.''
Burton emerged as a leading in-house candidate for the director's job after former City Manager V. Wayne Orton's downsizing eliminated the job of assistant librarian in late 1994.
Bill Brown, who held the job when it was eliminated, had been considered a logical successor to Burgess.
Last year Brown became director of Walter Cecil Rawls Library, a regional system that includes much of Western Tidewater. He moved from Portsmouth to Courtland.
Burton has a bachelor's degree from the University of Missouri and a master's degree from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. She also has studied at Catholic University, the University of Maryland, the University of Denver and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
She has been active in regional and state library organizations and has received a number of honors in the city.
The Portsmouth Public Library has 29 employees and a $1.5 million annual budget. The book collection exceeds 300,000. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Susan H. Burton, 49, is perhaps best-known in the community for her
expertise as a reference librarian.
KEYWORDS: APPOINTMENT PORTSMOUTH LIBRARY DIRECTOR by CNB