Beaufort County Library Announces New Director
The Beaufort County Library Board of Trustees is pleased to announce that Amanda Brewer Dickman has been named as the new library director. Mrs. Dickman has been with Beaufort County Library since 2007 and most recently served as the Deputy Director for our library system. Following the October 2020 retirement of our previous library director, Ray McBride, Amanda has been serving as interim library director while the board conducted a national search.
Anna Maria Tabernik, Chair of the Library Board of Trustees points out that: "Amanda eagerly accepts any challenge and creatively implements solutions, always with the goal of providing library patrons with exceptional customer service. She has proven to be instrumental in leading our library staff in providing our community with a lifeline to mind-expanding services during a year of COVID-19!"
Amanda is no stranger to library services in Beaufort County. She began her career as a reference librarian at the Beaufort Branch Library in 2007 where she introduced special library programs like couponing workshops, Summer Reading for Adults, and “New Harmonies” traveling Smithsonian museum exhibit. In 2012, she was reassigned to the Bluffton Branch Library to serve as Reference Manager before a brief appointment as manager of the Lobeco Branch Library in 2013. In 2016, Amanda was selected to steer the revival of Bookmobile service in Beaufort County with the acquisition of Bookmobile North. After a successful first year of Bookmobile service, she welcomed an additional Bookmobile in 2018 further broadening the reach of library outreach services across Beaufort County.
In December 2019, she became the Deputy Director of the Beaufort County Library where she assisted the previous Library Director Ray McBride in managing library operations, strategic planning, and capital improvement projects such as the Bluffton Branch Library renovation.
“Working for the Beaufort County Library over the last 14 years to serve the community has been a joy, and I’m excited to take on this new role,” Mrs. Dickman says. “Learning under the guidance of former Library Director Ray McBride prepared me to take this next step. He taught me everything he learned throughout his career and I intend to build upon the foundation he laid to continue providing excellent collections and exceptional service.”
Dr. Tabernik notes that: "The Board of Trustees is very excited to have Amanda at the helm of our Library System. Her vision of what the Beaufort County library system can and should offer to the community, are totally in sync with our Strategic Plan. She has established solid relationships with county staff and sees this as an incredible opportunity going forward.
Amanda holds a Bachelor of Arts in Speech Communication (Summa Cum Laude) from Charleston Southern University and a Masters Degree of Library and Information Science from the University of South Carolina. She was selected by the Public Library Association to participate in American Library Association’s Emerging Leaders mentorship program and was awarded Beaufort County Librarian of the Year in 2016.
“Now more than ever”, says Mrs. Dickman, “ it’s important that Beaufort County Library continue to offer access to critical print and digital resources that serve our community for learning, for leisure, for life.”
Each of the five branch libraries of the Beaufort County Library will host Meet and Greet sessions in the upcoming months when it is advisable to host in-person gatherings.
