Most recently, he served as the director of the Wright Memorial Public Library in Oakwood, a Dayton suburb.
MidPointe's main location is in downtown Middletown, with branch libraries in West Chester Twp. and Trenton. MidPointe Library is in the process of building a fourth branch in Monroe and opening a larger Trenton branch.
He said the MidPointe Library System has a reputation for evolving and developing to fit the needs of its customers and he was eager to “become a part of the organization and to join in this strong tradition.”
He replaces MidPointe Library System Director Anita Carroll, who left in February for a similar position at the Granville Library. Bautz will start Aug. 24.
MidPointe Library System Board of Trustees President Melynda Cook Howard said Bautz’s in-depth experience in libraries and “commitment to community engagement” demonstrates that he will be “an incredible asset to not only our organization, but to the region as well.”
She said the board was confident that Bautz will be “invaluable” to the library system, which serves a population of almost 200,000 in the cities of Middletown, Trenton and Monroe and the townships of West Chester, Liberty, Lemon, Madison and Wayne with a collection of nearly half a million materials.
In May, voters in the MidPointe Library district overwhelmingly approved renewing a five-year, 0.75-mill levy that will help cover operating expenses for the system.
When the levy was passed in 2010, the library system was able to return to full service hours, reinstate programs and develop new programming, and maintain reasonable staffing levels.
Officials said without a levy renewal in 2015, library hours and staffing would have been reduced, new material and technology budgets would have been cut, programming would have been eliminated, and facility growth would have halted.
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