Des Moines Public Library Director Susan A. Woody has announced she is retiring. Her last day will be June 30.

Woody, from Des Moines, has served as library director since June 2018. During that time, she has overseen several projects, including:

• Eliminating late fines on accounts
• Creating and implementing a four-year strategic plan
• Steering the library through COVID-19, including the creation of new services to help patrons use the library
• Increasing library hours, including more nights at every branch and additional Sunday hours at Franklin Avenue Library and Central Library
• Improving social services through partnerships and programs like the Outreach Project and the library’s community fridges
• Modernizing the library’s services with the introduction of the Library of Things and Tech Central

“Sue has ensured we all have access [to] a diverse collection of physical and digital materials and has expanded the programming available across all of the branches,” said Tim Hickman, Des Moines Public Library board of trustees president, in a news release. “Sue led the library through the challenges of the pandemic and the system became stronger in the process. We can never adequately thank her for her vision, passion and leadership as director of the libraries.”

Woody began her career at DMPL in 2004 as a library assistant in youth services. She eventually became the Rosie Outreach coordinator, delivering library books and services to children across Des Moines. Before being named director in 2018, Woody also spent time as the branch manager at two branches and as the community outreach librarian, where she, among other duties, oversaw the Authors Visiting in Des Moines (AViD) series.

“The library means something different to everyone who walks through our doors,” Woody said in a news release. “It has been an honor to meet the needs of our ever-changing community and provide them with what they need, when they need it.”

Hickman said the board of trustees will conduct a nationwide search to find the next library director.