Tulsa City-County Library CEO Gary Shaffer is taking some time off.
He’ll be gone about three and a half months starting in September so he can complete his doctorate in library and information science. The library commission approved Shaffer’s request for a sabbatical, and Chair Judy Randle said it was a good move.
"We'll be very honored to be one of the few libraries in the country that has a CEO with a Ph.D., so we're looking forward to that," Randle said.
Shaffer will be paid the equivalent of about two months’ salary while he’s gone. He also agreed to pay back the library commission if he leaves within a certain time of completing his sabbatical.
Shaffer is taking advantage of an educational leave policy available to all library employees.
"When he joined us several years ago, he had been working on his doctorate," Randle said. "He kind of put that on hold when we've been through our fundraising and getting Central renewal started."
Shaffer is earning his doctorate from Boston's Simmons College.
