Naperville Library Board of Trustees has three new members
By David Sharos For The Sun November 7, 2012 2:22PM
Updated: December 10, 2012 6:15AM
The Naperville Library Board of Trustees has three new members.
Each of the new members has been appointed to serve three-year terms and began serving this month.
The three new members replace former board members Sun Kwok, Regina Johnson and Jerry Feldott. Kwok and Johnson reached the limits of their terms, while Feldott stepped down from the board after being accused of stealing money from a Naperville homeowners association. Feldott pleaded guilty to the charge on Wednesday.
Arvind Aggarwal, Brian Moore and Madhu Uppal were appointed by Naperville Mayor A. George Pradel with the consent of the City Council. Executive Director for the Library John Spears said Pradel also conferred with him about the appointments.
“The mayor was very good about soliciting opinions, and we feel we have a board now that will provide a useful perspective,” Spears said. “The board has already asked a lot of questions and challenged us to rethink things or reaffirm the direction we are going in.”
Moore, 51, is an attorney who now has his own practice here in Naperville after working for other companies for nearly 20 years. Moore said beyond doing some local coaching, he was looking for a way to give back to the community.
“I’m a big user of the library, and this is the first ‘public’ office I’ve held,” Moore said. “I feel that despite all the smart phones and other technology that the library is still very relevant. Our circulation numbers prove that. Libraries today have a lot of other resources including entertainment options and other learning resources, including computer skills. I feel like they will always be relevant.”
Moore says like any governmental body, the library will likely face economic challenges, but he believes the fiscal issues governing the Naperville library “are currently under control.”
“We heard from the City council recently that property tax revenue should be going up slightly but we’ll have to continue to be fiscally responsible,” he said.
Aggarwal, 51, moved to Naperville late in 1999 and is currently the Principal for Consultant-Infrastructure Transformation Services at Infosys Ltd. He earned his MBA at the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business, DePaul University, and a master’s degree from the University of Mumbai, India.
“As I’ve gotten closer to retirement, I’ve been looking for ways to get involved in the community and I believe strongly in education as being one of the best ways to help people, whether it’s learning about finances or their health or other ways they can make their lives better,” he said. “I’ve used the library here for 13 years, and it’s a great tool most people don’t use enough.”
Aggarwal said one of his goals is to make the public aware of the wealth of information in the library’s databases.
“People today are looking for work, and there is a lot of information here in the library about hundreds of companies that people don’t know about that could help them get hired,” he said. “I’m looking forward to working with John Spears and getting the community to start using these tools.”
Uppal, 63, is an educator with a doctor of education degree from Aurora University and a master’s degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago. A former director of science and health at Schaumburg School District 54 as well as a general science teacher at Lincoln Junior High School in Naperville, Uppal said she feels very qualified to serve on the Library Board.
“I’ve lived here 24 years and raised my three daughters in the community, and we always were frequent guests of the library here,” Uppal said. “I feel I have these analytical skills that allow me to look at a problem and resolve issues. I’m an experienced problem solver and project manager.”
Uppal also serves on the board for a domestic abuse agency in Chicago which she said will help her bring some “management skills to the table.”
“During my term here, I want to learn more about the operations and see if we can find ways to boost circulation as the numbers are slightly dropping and figure out what we can do to make this wonderful resource even more relevant to the community,” she said.
