Starrett "Jane" Kreissman
In Memoriam
Dec 13, 2010. Starrett Kreissman, who ran Stanislaus County's library
system for six years and worked in it for nearly three decades, died Thursday in
Southern California after a lengthy battle with lung cancer. She was 64 (and a
lifelong nonsmoker).
Kreissman became Stanislaus County librarian in 1993, after starting as a
staff member in 1971. In 1999, she left to become director of the Ventura
County Library District. She worked there until 2006, when she was diagnosed
with lung cancer.
Through her tenure in Stanislaus County, Kreissman was instrumental in
securing funding for the library. When she started as county librarian, the
reduced budget limited some services and threatened others. In 1995, she led a
successful effort to get a 1/8-cent sales tax increase passed to help support the
county library system. Other counties soon followed her example. The tax,
which is frequently praised by civic leaders, provides 84 percent of the library's
budget. It is projected to bring in $6.2 million for libraries this fiscal year.
Kreissman, who had a degree in library science from Columbia University,
previously worked at the Columbia University Library and the New York City
Library. In 1998, the California Library Association named her librarian of the
year.
When she left Modesto, The Bee editorialized about her impact on area
libraries, and wrote: "The large and loyal patronage Stanislaus libraries have is a
tribute to Kreissman's dedication to public library service." Friends in Modesto
planned a memorial for her in town in early spring.