La Conner isn't only rural library that struggles to meet state certification

When the La Conner ­Swinomish Library Board of Directors named Jean Markert the library’s director in 2022, it did so despite Markert’s lack of a library science degree and required state certification.

La Conner is not alone in operating a library without a trained librarian.

“Unfortunately, it is not unusual for rural libraries in ­Washington (and nationwide) to have library staff or library directors who are not certified librarians. Rural areas are notoriously challenged to recruit and retain certified librarians,” Washington Library Association Director Brianna Hoffman wrote in an email....