Santa Monica has selected Erica Cuyugan as its Interim City Librarian, a 15-year veteran in the library department.
On August 2, Interim City Manager John Jalili selected Erica Cuyugan as Interim City Librarian from September 5, 2021 when Patty Wong is leaving the Santa Monica Public Library (SMPL). Cuyugan, a 15-year veteran of the department, has been the Assistant City Librarian since 2017. In this role, she manages the system-wide library operations for the main library and four branches.
“Erica is someone who has proven herself time and again as a committed library manager and who took over the helm on an interim basis in 2016,” said interim city manager John Jalili. “She is exactly the person who is accompanying us through this transition and our library team continues to offer services in new ways.”
Cuyugan began working as a teenage librarian for the city in 2006. She rose through the ranks to become the Fairview Branch Manager before joining the executive team in 2015. As the city’s assistant librarian, Cuyugan currently oversees the library’s budget, staffing, and capital projects. She also represents the library at the city’s emergency call center.
“Cuyugan has been an integral part of our efforts to safely occupy and reopen our library branches,” the city wrote in a press release announcing its selection.
Before the pandemic, Cuyugan helped lead a collaborative pilot project at SMPL libraries to solve problems with the homeless, including running pop-up clinics with service providers.
“I am very committed and committed to this community and our talented employees. I look forward to the role and to helping our organization recover and continue to provide high quality library services to Santa Monica, ”said Cuyugan.
Cuyugan will manage 47 employees with an annual operating budget of $ 8,470,145.
An executive search for our next city librarian will begin this summer and more information will be provided once the details are confirmed.
Comments are closed.