After a motion to table the vote failed, Daviess County Fiscal Court unanimously approved appointing Kathi Mattas as the newest member of the Daviess County Public Library Board of Directors. Two commissioners spoke at length about the dissatisfaction with how the process played out.
Commissioner Chris Castlen requested to table the vote, but the motion failed 2-2. Commissioners Castlen and Larry Conder voted in favor of postponing the vote while Judge-Executive Charlie Castlen and Commissioner Janie Marksberry opposed.
The primary reason for wanting to delay the vote was only having about 48 hours to learn about the candidate. However, once the motion failed, Chris Castlen and Conder both said that while they were disappointed with how the process played out they were in favor of the appointment.
Watch the special called meeting here.
Mattas replaces Harry Pedigo, Jr, and will serve until September 2025.
“I just want to help. I’d like to see our library be the best library it can be for our community,” Mattas said previously.
Charlie Castlen said he proposed Mattas’ name to the Fiscal Court to give homeschooled parents some representation on the board.
“Those families use the library all the time. They’re in there frequently with their kids because they don’t have the resources of brick-and-mortar schools because they’re homeschooled. And so they probably use the libraries more than traditional school families,” Castlen said previously.
Commissioner Chris Castlen
Speaking to OT before the meeting, Chris Castlen said that he was sorting through information and opinions to inform him to “make the best decision by the time necessary.”
He reiterated those thoughts during the meeting before the vote.
One factor he was considering is the length of time Mattas would be holding the seat for along with the long-term repercussions for the Library and board appointments.
“Although a year and a half is can be a long time if things are bad, it’s also it’s a good time to have a good understanding of somebody’s abilities and to make sure that they’re a good fit for that position too,” Castlen said.
He noted he didn’t want to make a wrong nor rash decision going into the vote, yet since the time constraints, he said he will ultimately have to.
Going into the vote he said he was looking for the following in a candidate fit to receive his vote:
“The library is there to serve everyone and I want to make sure that whoever the person is that has that board appointment has the mentality that the library serves our community and everybody and that there’s something for everyone that uses it when they go there. If someone feels that there’s something that they want, they are able to make those requests and be heard for things that are reasonable and what the library can do and that’s what I want to make sure happens,” Castlen said.
Ultimately, Castlen said that he found Mattas to be a very qualified candidate for the position.
“What I have learned is that she is a very qualified candidate for this position and that she, although doesn’t have any experience on a library board, she has a lot of experience with more being in a library and the things that she’s done, been a part of, and about education,” Castlen said.
Commissioner Larry Conder
Similar to Castlen, Conder also considered the long term repercussions that come with the vote. Nonetheless, he is opting to look at the appointment as more “probationary.”
“We can view this being maybe a probationary period. We watch and we see how those meetings go. Are they being done correctly? Are we representing all the customers of the library? And we can do that because that appointment will come up very soon again. So we have that opportunity to be able to potentially correct whatever needs to be done,” Conder said.
Conder requested the law should be amended to allow some more clarity for other counties that may undergo this process.
He also noted this vote is going to set a tone for the future of board appointments.
“It is a sad day when we are setting a tone for the rest of board appointments within this community, and that it is difficult. It was difficult before it is even more difficult now for anybody to serve, when they’re going to be chastised or talked down to. You’ve got to have some thick skin now, and that’s not just this dioces, but to serve on a board,” Conder said.
Ultimately, his personal view of the vote came down to the following:
“I wish for this person to be able to have wisdom and discernation in issues that may arise that is addressed compassionately,” Conder said. “Whenever decisions are made that might be viewed as controversial, [we ask] that you recognize that you are in a position of authority, to a lesser extent power, to influence all of our people, not just a select group, but all of our people.”
Commissioner Janie Marksberry
Marksberry was not able to be reached before the meeting began Wednesday.
Her complete statement from during the meeting is as follows:
“The library board is just one of many boards that our county government is responsible to fill. Citizens of all walks of life are asked to serve, and only a few accept the responsibility. Well, I will say thank you to Mrs. Mattas for agreeing to serve on our library. A law regarding how library board members are selected has changed. The new law gives the opportunity for the Judge-Executive to choose his candidate and final authority to Fiscal Court, who is elected and accountable to the people. The new process is in fact more democratic than the old system. Not everyone will agree with the Fiscal Court’s decision on this issue and other issues, and that’s okay. We are elected to represent our county; We must take into account our individual perspectives on the will of the people who voted us into office,” Marksberry said.
About Mattas
Mattas is the 5th nominee to come before the Fiscal Court after Castlen denied this first two sets of nominees from the library board and the Kentucky Department of Libraries and Archives.
Mattas grew up moving often before finishing high school in Daviess County. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Speech Communication from Murray State University and returned to Owensboro. While at MSU, she worked in the library on campus.
She and her husband moved away for a year and have homeschooled their children since 1994. Mattas said that before homeschooling her children, she taught in a private school for a couple of years.
“We have a lot of books from the library in our home. My family, my children, and my grandson visit, and we greatly use the public library. I think most of the folks who work there have probably seen me for years,” she said.
Coming to the board, Mattas said she has experience as a homeschool mom of 30 years. While she isn’t familiar with the library board’s operations, she is open to joining the board if she is voted in at tomorrow’s meeting.
