West Florida Libraries Board Names Top Choices For New Library System Director

February 26, 2026

The West Florida Libraries Board of Governance (BOG) has recommended a new director for the library system.

The board recommended Bradley Vincent as its first choice for library director, and Chris Hare as its second choice. Vincent is the current coordinator of media services for the Escambia County School District.

The BOG acts only in an advisory capacity, and the recommendation goes to Escambia County for a final decision.

According to the county, personnel decisions fall with Administrator Wes Moreno, but he is not bound by the WFPL BOG recommendation. The administrator’s choices for county department head positions such as the library director are approved by the Board of County Commissioners, which can vote them up or down.

There were nine applicants for the position, which was left vacant after the November 18, 2025, retirement of Todd Humble.

The BOG recommended seven of the applicants to the county. The BOG and the county collectively moved six to phone interviews, but two of those declined. Four phone interviews were conducted, followed by in-person interviews.

The four finalists were:

Bradley Vincent — coordinator of media services for the Escambia County School District since June 2023. She previously worked for the West Florida Public Libraries in various capacities from January 2024 until February 2019, including children’s services coordinator. She was a media specialist at West Pensacola Elementary School from August 2014 until 2023, and she served on the West Florida Public Libraries Board of Governance for four years from 2019 until 2023.

Chris Hare — division manager for WFPL since December 2022. He previously worked as a branch manager for the WFPL Southwest, Genealogy, and Molino libraries between 2016 and 2022. He worked for a year as a branch manager in the Birmingham, Alabama, library system.

Christal Bell-Rivera — current interim director for WFPL, where she served as deputy director from March 2023 until her August 2025 appointment as interim director. She previously worked as the WFPL director’s aide from June 2022 until March 2023. She worked as a senior highway safety specialist for the State of Florida for nearly 14 years.

Michael Jenkins — regional branch manager for the Indianapolis (Indiana) Public Library since November 2024, and previously a library branch manager in North Carolina. He has previous library experience in Florida and South Carolina.

Pictured: Bradley Vincent, the West Florida Library Board of Governance recommendation for library director. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under FRONT TOP