Transition complete for new library board

ASHEBORO — The Randolph County Board of Commissioners have approved nine community members for the Library Board of Trustees. Their vote at their July 6 meeting fills the vacant seats seven months after they dismissed the previous entire board.

The commissioners’ nominees represent all seven districts and will each serve a term between one and three years.

They are:

■ Donna Brown, Asheboro (3 years). 

■ Jennifer Cole, Asheboro (1 year). 

■ Alvin Battle, Archdale (3 years). 

■ Richard Callahan, Archdale (1 year). 

■ Cindy Garrett, Liberty (2 years).

■ Steven Watson, Randleman (3 years).

■ Cynthia Rogers, Seagrove (2 years). 

■ Mimi Cooper, Ramseur (2 years).

■ Michael Johnston, Franklinville (1 year).

The different terms are to spread out elections over the coming years.

Originally, Starr Ayers was nominated for Asheboro, but Commissioner Chair Darrell Frye said they made a mistake with which district she could represent. They nominated Brown in her place.

Last year’s dismissal of the trustees followed disagreement over keeping the book “Call Me Max,” a story about transgender issues, in the children’s section.

Public comments

Before commissioners voted to approve the board en masse on its consent agenda, 11 people spoke about the library board during the public comment period. Most of them have spoken against the original board dismissal at meetings this year.

Virginia Wall, one recurring speaker, said, “I spent about a month now trying to understand those names that you put on your agenda. I wanted to know who they were. I wanted to understand what their possibilities of what they might think about the library. I wanted to understand if they even had a library card. I couldn’t find most of that information.”

Charles White said, “Were any nominees recruited by individual commissioners or staff? What personal, financial, or political relationships, if any, exist between any of the nominees and commissioners? What experience does each nominee have with libraries, education, nonprofit governance, or public service? We, the public, have no answers to these basic questions, and that is unacceptable.” 

Judith West said, “I feel for new library board members who have decided to enter this dictatorial quagmire. I hope that they will take it upon themselves to learn about and follow the [American Library Association], the North Carolina Public Library trustee manual.”

Former Asheboro Mayor David Smith was one of the new speakers on this topic. He said he would be speaking in his capacity as a citizen, but that Asheboro had invested a lot in its library. He disagreed with putting the vote on the commissioners’ consent agenda. “As we’ve heard tonight from these speakers, there’s no information about the qualifications of the people that are being appointed,” he said.

Pat Miller said, “A public library belongs to everyone. Its governing board should reflect the needs of the entire community, not the preferences of a select few.”

Franklin Suggs said, “I’ve read a lot of books about things I knew absolutely nothing about, but it didn’t make me want to be like the things I read in those books. It’s good to learn about people who are different.”

Harriett Moulder said, “Our history is tragically full of intolerance and persecution. But we continue to repair, to heal, to move towards our long-held ideals and make them a reality. And that is what makes our country so great. May we not slide back against any group of citizenry through imposing intolerance anywhere, including our treasured public libraries.”

At the end of public comment period, Frye spoke before the vote. He said, “Some of y’all sat here and put down people you don’t know. One of them happens to be the vice president of the Randolph County Community College…We have a long-serving former director of the Randolph County Public Health Department. We have a public school teacher. We have a local library board member in here. We have a parent. And yes, there’s a minister, because Mr. Battle also was just recently elected the senior pastor at [South Plainfield Friends Meeting]. That’s who’s on this board.”

While the new board does not include RCC’s vice president, the county public information officer clarified to the Hub that Frye was referring to Battle, an RCC trustee.

After approving the board, commissioners selected their commissioner liaison. Kenny Kidd nominated Lester Rivenbark. Hope Haywood nominated Frye. They voted to make Frye the liaison for one year.

Library Board of Trustees dismissal timeline

In 2025, a resident petitioned against the book “Call Me Max,” which depicts a male-to-female transgender child. Some people argued the book should be removed or moved to the adult section so that parents could have greater control over discussing the content with their children. Others argued it should remain on the shelves and that it gave children a broader perspective on people different from them.

On Oct. 8, the Library Board of Trustees voted 5-2 to keep the book where it was. Commissioners voted 3-2 to dissolve the board after a public hearing on Dec. 8.

At their March 2 meeting, County Manager Zeb Holden announced the process for choosing a new board, including the number of representatives, terms, and plans for an application process.

Haywood talks about Randleman appointee

On July 7, Commissioner Haywood posted on Facebook about her trustee choice, Steve Watson. She said he applied on March 20. She highlighted his master’s degree in education and his teaching career in Burlington and Asheboro City Schools, where he was named Teacher of the Year.

Haywood said she waited for more applications through April before nominating Watson. Then three people submitted applications in late May. She wrote, “All three of them would have served conscientiously, but I had already submitted my nomination. None of the other three applicants currently teach in the public schools.”

Haywood wrote at the end, “In retrospect, our board should have announced a timeframe for when applications would be taken. However, we do not do anything like this for any of our other boards and we just did not think about it. Regardless, I feel like Steve Watson will serve well. It is time to go forward.”