By Mitchell Kirk | Daily Reporter
FORTVILLE — The Fortville-Vernon Township Public Library’s new leader brings experience gained at a nearby library system.
Melissa Dragoo starts as executive director Monday, Jan. 11. She replaces Karyn Millikan, who resigned in October 2020.
Dragoo was the manager of the youth services department at Hamilton East Public Library in Fishers, where she previously worked as a children’s librarian.
She grew up on a farm in the small town of Liberty and graduated from Knox College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English in 2003. She began her career by getting a teaching license and working in schools before earning a master’s degree in library sciences from Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.
After working at the library in Fishers, she worked for a company that does technology training for teachers.
But her heart was in public libraries.
“This came open and it seemed like a perfect fit,” she said of the role in Vernon Township.
Dragoo said she feels her experience as a manager and working with budgets will serve the library well.
“I really believe in the mission of a public library to promote equitable access to resources and that it doesn’t matter who you are or what your background is; you can come into a public library and expect the same level of service that anyone would get,” she said. “This is one of the few places left in the world where you can expect to get help for free and get access to quality information and resources.”
She said she also enjoys working with the public.
“I’m just excited to get to know all the people in the area and see how we can all work together and what the library can do to meet the needs of the community,” Dragoo said.
The way the community is changing drew her to the opportunity as well.
“Fortville and McCordsville are growing a lot and it just seems like an exciting time to be in this area,” she said.
Michael Frischkorn, a member of the library’s board, said several candidates applied for the position.
Frischkorn said he wants to see the library do more outreach and get more people engaged in the library. He thinks Dragoo’s background working in library programming for children will help with that goal.
“You want to figure out ways to engage them and their parents so they become lifelong parts of the library,” Frischkorn said.
He said Dragoo also understands how to work within a budget.
“Obviously, our budget’s not particularly large, so that means doing more with less,” he said. “She recognized that right off the bat.”
Frischkorn said while the board worked to determine whether Dragoo would make a good fit with the library, she also made an effort to determine if the library would be a good fit for her as well.
“That’s very key because it shows, one, a lot about her and that she’s taking this seriously, and then also that she’s not looking at this just as a job, but she’s going to be part of an organization and a community,” he said.
