Friday, August 22, 2003
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Friday, August 22, 2003 |
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Library staffer earns master's degree Rebecca Watts, reference specialist at the Peachtree City Library, received her master's degree in information science from Florida State University Aug. 2. She is the third staff member at the Peachtree City Library to hold a master's degree accredited by the American Library Association. As such, Watts is now eligible to apply for Georgia State Librarian certification. Watts has worked in the book business for over 25 years, beginning with a job at Mickler's Floridiana, a mail-order book house and small publisher in the town where she grew up. After she married and moved to Atlanta in the 1970s, she worked in the book department at Davison's department store at Lenox Mall. One of the more memorable author events was a book signing with California gubernatorial candidate Arnold Schwarzenegger and his then newly published "Education of a Bodybuilder." His admirers formed long lines to get his autograph. Watts did not get a signed copy; had she done so, the book would have been worth over $200 today. After the couple moved back to Florida, Watts earned her undergraduate degree in English from the University of Central Florida while working part-time at a Waldenbooks in the Orlando area. After her husband was hired by NCR in Peachtree City, Watts returned to the Atlanta area and accepted a job at the national office of the Arthritis Foundation where she worked in the Information Systems department. Watts' public library experience began with a part-time position at the Clayton County Headquarters Library. Because she had so loved the work at the public library, after her husband was transferred to St. Louis she started library school at the University of Missouri-Columbia. The skills she had picked up while at Clayton County, plus her computer savvy, enabled her to get a job in the library of Bryan Cave, one of the largest law firms in Missouri. After her husband was transferred back to Peachtree City, Watts worked part-time for Omega Books while maintaining a part-time position at the Clayton County Library. Eventually, she left both positions to try her hand at online bookselling and created the virtual store Skyberry Books. Watts obtained a part-time position at the Peachtree City Library in 1999. Soon after, she returned to school to finish the library degree she had desired for so long. Halfway through her second semester at Florida State in 2001, she was offered a full-time position with Peachtree City as a reference specialist. Her hard work at the Library has brought about several new programs including the International Film Series, Writer's Circle, and the ever popular Rhythm and Rhyme event held during National Poetry Month.
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