Cuesta College

Mark Stengel retires:

At the end of May, I will complete the California portion of my career in librarianship when I retire as director of libraries and distance education at Cuesta College.

The long and winding road has taken me to public libraries in Missouri and California, and to academic libraries in Washington, Tennessee, Idaho, and California.  In California, after a brief stint at Santa Barbara and Lompoc public libraries, I began working my way up through the ranks of public higher education, from the UC (Santa Barbara) to the CSU (San Luis Obispo and San Marcos), and finally to the community colleges (Cuesta.) All along the way I have been fortunate to work with smart and interesting people who made me a better librarian.  In the community college world I was honored to serve on the CCL board, whose members’ knowledge and experience were invaluable in helping me navigate, if not understand, this strange new (to me) world of community colleges.  I will miss them, as I will miss my colleagues from around the state.  I have always treasured the annual opportunity to hobnob with fellow wizards at the Deans and Directors meeting, and I appreciate the good work this organization does for us all and for our students.

In June it’s out to pasture for me, as I join my wife Anne and the animals in our new home in the hills just a bit south of Fayetteville, Arkansas.

PS:  Cuesta will fill the position.  We tweaked the job description, which is now awaiting approval.  Expect to see an announcement, possibly in April, more likely in May.