Wesson librarian builds key community institutions

By Bob Arnold

In an age when nearly everything seems large, fast and impersonal, small public libraries, says Kathleen Hutchison, quietly stand as some of the most meaningful institutions in our communities.

In Copiah and Jefferson Counties, Hutchison is working to make sure they are doing just that.

At age 75, Hutchison came out of retirement this past year to become Director of the Copiah-Jefferson Library System (CJLS), which encompasses the small Wesson Public Library and its similarly small sister facilities at Hazlehurst, Crystal Springs, Georgetown and Fayette.  She is culminating her career where she started it, bringing the lessons she has learned over more than five decades as a multi-faceted librarian to the local libraries and the communities they serve.

“Small libraries are far more than buildings with books,” she says.  “They are where a child hears stories read aloud, where a teen discovers a passion, where an adult learns a new skill, and where an elder finds companionship and relevance.  They are places where people can come together – regardless of income, background or age – and be welcomed without question and without cost. They remind us of something vital: access to knowledge is a cornerstone of democracy and dignity.  They keep hope, learning and opportunity within reach – especially in places where resources are limited, but the desire to grow is strong.”

Born in 1950 at Conway in rural Arkansas and growing up in small towns throughout Mississippi where her father was a foreman on road construction projects, Hutchison gravitated to a career in which she could give back to the rural and small town life and culture that nurtured her.  She found she could do that through libraries after graduating from high school when she was 17 years old at Starkville, Mississippi, earning a BA Degree in Library Science and English from Mississippi University for Women (formerly Mississippi State College for Women) at Columbus, Mississippi, in 1971 and receiving an MS in Library Science at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in 1972.

In 1973, Hutchison started her career in the same job in which she is ending it – Public Library Director at CJLS.  She interrupted her career journey in 1979 to start a family, but resumed it in 1985 as a reference librarian for the Mississippi Library Commission.  Before returning to CJLS this year, she made other career stops at the Mississippi Department of Archives (Mississippi Newspaper Project cataloger from 1986-1988 and reference services director from 1988-1990), Copiah Academy (school librarian from 1990-1992) and Co-Lin (assistant librarian from 1992-2003).  For 16 years from 2003 until her retirement in 2019, Hutchinson served as systems librarian (2003-2006) and Academic Library Director (2006-2019) at Mississippi College, and returned for another five years as a part-time librarian (2020-2025).

On returning to work again in her first job, she notes the role of libraries has changed over the course of her career.  Most significantly, she says, they’re no longer primarily about books.  People come to libraries to print, photocopy and fax documents, and read email.  In addition to working with CJLS branches to provide picture books,, biographies, fiction and non-fiction, DVDs, audiobooks and genealogy resources, Hutchison is now working with them to provide:

• Free services to all ages.  Library cards, internet access, Wi-Fi and accessible educational information at no cost. Books, large print titles, children’s programs, computers, printing, local history resources, meeting space and more.

• Statewide MAGNOLIA databases.  Free access to thousands of magazines, journals, newspapers, research tools, online learning resources, including Britannica Online for K-12 students.

• Technology help you can trust.  Public computers, printing and scanning plus staff assistance with email setup, forms, applications and online services.

• A place to connect and belong.  Story times, programs, community events, book displays, after-school learning and friendly faces ready to help. 

Hutchison’s first major project since joining CJLS anew has been upgrading computer hardware and software at its libraries.  They were outdated.  Software and hardware were not compatible.  Computer users were frustrated by programs starting and stopping.  Manufacturers no longer supported products.  “The Boards of Supervisors in Copiah and Jefferson Counties agreed to my request to fund new computers in all the branch libraries,” she says appreciatively.

“From Hazlehurst to Crystal Springs, Georgetown, Wesson and Fayette, each branch reflects the personality and needs of its community,” says Hutchison.  “Story times spark curiosity in young minds.  Seniors find assistance navigating technology.  Families attend programs together.  Countless patrons use our services to print forms, study, research genealogy or simply find companionship.  These libraries offer not only books, but dignity, belonging and chances to grow – all close to home.  The measure of a small library is not its square footage, but its impact.  Every story hour, community meeting, homework help session, tax form printed and simple conversation over the circulation desk represents a thread in the fabric of community life.”

Hutchison lives in Hazlehurst, where she has resided since first coming to CJLS in 1973, meeting her now deceased husband there and rearing three sons with him – Micahel, 48, a partner in a medical cannabis (Noble Labs), Braedon, 46, owner of a milk delivery business in Conway, Arkansas, and Justin, 44, who is an operations analyst in the Mississippi courts system.

What are your hobbies?

Working has always been my choice, but I am a voracious reader.  I also watch television a lot.

What do you read?

Everything.  Fiction and non-fiction.  Murder mysteries, true crime and histories (I enjoy David McCullough).

How about music?

I am a listener.  A Country and rock music fan.  I like Elvis,  Patsy  Cline, James Taylor.

Movies, theater, television?

My favorite theater is the Saenger in New Orleans, where I attend Broadway plays.  On television, I liked the British show, Mid-Summer Murders, and Law and Order.

If you won a lot of money in the lottery, how would you spend it?

I’d help my family, travel to Paris to see the Louvre and the Grand Canyon, and buy a beach house in Florida.

How would you change the world?

We need a kinder, gentler culture with people more civil in their relationships.