Library of Congress Head to Retire

Library of Congress Head James Billington to Retire After Nearly 30 Years

Amy R. Connolly | June 11, 2015

The head of the Library of Congress will step down Jan. 1 as the world's largest library struggles to stay ahead of technological failures that have hampered efforts to bring its holdings into the digital age.

     Source: http://www.loc.gov/loc/lcib/0710/billington.html     

James H. Billington, 86, will retire after nearly 30 years as the 13th librarian of Congress. Appointed in 1987 by President Ronald Reagan, Billington was a leading Russian scholar who has since been praised for raising an unprecedented half billion dollars in private-sector donations for the library. At the same time, however, Billington has been highly criticized for "widespread weaknesses" in managing the library's technology resources and internal strife throughout the library.

<more at http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2015/06/11/Library-of-Congress-head-James-Billington-to-retire-after-nearly-30-years/8261434024147/; related link: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/11/us/library-of-congress-chief-james-hadley-billington-leaving-after-nearly-3-decades.html>