I am a thirty-year-plus resident of Durham. As a professional educator for most of my career, I have supported innovation in teaching and learning that benefits all students. I worked as an administrator of non-profit education organizations in New York City, an administrator in centers for teaching and learning at UNC-Chapel Hill and NC State, and an independent educational development consultant to institutions of higher education in the U.S. and abroad. Now retired my primary area of interest is successful public high school completion, post-secondary access and succees for first generation college students. I view libraries as an essential component of a vigorous public commons that extends a range of accessible educational opportunties to a highly diverse public.