About Us
Kate Hall
Kate Hall is the Executive Director of the Northbrook Public Library, a Library Journal 5 Star Library located in northern Illinois, after serving as a teen librarian, youth services manager, and director at various Chicagoland libraries for over 20 years. Kate graduated with her MLIS from Dominican University in 2002 and received her MBA from Marylhurst University in 2010.
In her dozen years as a library director, Kate has been in leadership positions in state and national library groups including the American Library Association, Illinois Library Association, and Reaching Across Illinois Library System. She has served on the committee and chaired Director’s University, an intensive training that has trained over 300 new Illinois Public Library Directors.
Kate is the recipient of the 2021 Illinois Library Association Librarian of the Year Award and has just launched Illinois Libraries Present, a new statewide joint programming cooperative.
Kathy Parker
Kathy Parker was the director of the Glenwood-Lynwood (IL) Public Library District from 2002-2018 after serving as Assistant Director at the Harvey (IL) Public Library.
She has worked in public and private libraries for over 40 years in nearly every department and co-founded Director’s University, an intensive training program that has trained over 300 new Illinois Public Library Directors.
She has served on numerous state committees including the Illinois Library Association and has served as library trustee for her local library and the regional library system, Reaching Across Illinois Library System. She was the 2016 recipient of American Library Associations Trustee Citation award.
After retiring in 2018, Kathy launched the kathyparker consulting firm which provides training to trustees and new directors.