Michelle Arbuckle Appointed Next Executive Director of the Ontario Library Association

August 15, 2023

The Ontario Library Association (OLA) today announced the appointment of Michelle Arbuckle as OLA’s next Executive Director. Currently the Association’s Director of Member Engagement and Education, Michelle begins in her new role on September 5, 2023. She succeeds Shelagh Patterson who announced her intention to step down from the role earlier this year.

OLA Board of Directors Unanimously Approves the Appointment of Its Next Executive Director, Michelle Arbuckle

TORONTO, ON (August 15, 2023): On behalf of the Ontario Library Association’s Executive and Board of Directors, it gives us great pleasure to announce Michelle Arbuckle as OLA’s next Executive Director. Michelle will begin in her new role with the Association on September 5th, 2023.

After a nationwide search which solicited wide interest and a pool of highly qualified and well prepared non-profit executive leaders, both from within and beyond the library sector, the OLA Executive Director Selection Committee identified Michelle as the candidate for the Executive Director role.

Michelle brings demonstrated knowledge of the Ontario Library Association and of the Executive Director portfolio, combined with a passion for and commitment to the Association and to Ontario’s libraries and their communities. Michelle’s deep knowledge of and direct experience supporting the various and diverse sectors that comprise the OLA and her thorough grasp of the distinct challenges and opportunities that each face at this time, truly distinguish her. The OLA ED Selection Committee, the OLA Board Executive, and the OLA Board of Directors have absolute confidence that Michelle will thrive in this role and the Association will flourish under her capable care and proven leadership.

As anyone involved in the OLA for the past decade knows, Michelle is an enthusiastic and productive non-profit leader, librarian, and community champion. She is an established and trusted colleague, manager, and administrator; her communication, project management, and organizational skills are the envy of everyone fortunate enough to have worked with her. These skills are matched only by Michelle’s sense of humour and her capacity to ensure that the work, projects, and teams she leads are not only productive, but rich, rewarding, and fun! As the Director, Member Engagement and Education with the OLA, Michelle has cultivated meaningful and enriching experiences for OLA members, volunteers, vendors, and partners, which have resulted not only in membership growth under her tenure, but in lasting partnerships that keep members and volunteers returning to the OLA year after year.

It is the sum total of Michelle’s proven capacities, deep commitment, and unmatched passion for the OLA that set her apart in the OLA Executive Director search process. We look forward, with enthusiasm, to all that is to come for the OLA with Michelle Arbuckle as its next Executive Director.

We invite you to share your congratulations @ONLibraryAssoc

Sincerely,
OLA Executive Director Selection Committee

Melanie Mills, 2023 OLA President (Chair)
Dr. Sabrina Saunders, 2023 OLA Past-President
Lori Hallahan, 2023 OLA Board Treasurer
Rina Hadziev, BCLA Executive Director
Stephanie Pimentel, OLA Director of Operations

(Via Ontario Library Association)