Board of Directors

Susan Toscano is a retired educator. She is a graduate of the University of California Riverside, receiving a B.A. in English Literature and an M.A. in Educational Administration. She worked for Riverside Unified School District for twenty six years as a teacher, principal and Director of State and Federal Programs. She spent the next 16 years as an Education Consultant working with Riverside County Office of Education and school districts throughout the state of California to improve student achievement, particularly in literacy. Susan is a Southern California native.  She moved to Riverside in 1967 with her family.  An active member of the Riverside community she has been a member of Panhellenic, Junior League of Riverside and the Arlington Rotary. For several years she has served on the Pencils and Dreams charity Board. This organization builds and supports classrooms for children in Tanzania. Her past times include jewelry making and reading.  She looks forward to supporting the Riverside Public Libraries as a valuable resource in our community. Susan invites you to join her and the Riverside Public Library Foundation in contributing to the city’s libraries through this website, during our Annual Campaign, or the Foundations yearly fundraiser.

Brian Federici
Brian is a retired professor of entomology and molecular biology still active in research at UC Riverside. He joined UCR in 1974, and throughout his career has focused on developing environmentally safe methods for controlling mosquitoes and major caterpillar pests of agricultural crops. Brian hails from New Jersey and received his undergraduate BS at Rutgers University, New Brunswick, and MS and PhD at the University of Florida, Gainesville.

During his career, Brian has been a consultant on mosquito vectors of disease for the World Health Organization, and for the USDA and US EPA on the safety of genetically engineered crops. At UCR he served on many academic senate committees, including being chair of the Committee on Educational Policy, where he emphasized the importance of all undergraduates having a broad general education in science and the humanities regardless of their major. Related to this, he advocated strongly for the expansion of library services at UCR.

Brian is married to Claire Thomas Federici, PhD, a research associate at UCR working to improve various citrus varieties. They have two children, Valery, a Wall Street attorney living in Brooklyn, and Christopher, a software engineer for a subsidiary of Airbus, living in Escondido with their grandson, Nicolas. Brian and Claire’s hobbies include reading, gardening, and travel, the latter often with members of their extended family and friends, and especially enjoy the food and wines of France, Italy, and of course, California.

Shannon Kane
Shannon is the Finance Manager at Habitat for Humanity Riverside. Over the last 25 years, her positions have ranged from Bookkeeper, Tax Preparer, Finance Manager, Controller and Director of Administration. After completing her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from University of California Riverside, she moved to Taos, New Mexico for 12 years. Shortly after her son was born, she and the family returned home to Riverside. She was thrilled to join the Riverside Art Museum as Finance Manager. After leaving RAM, she accepted a position as Controller and later Director of Administration, at a large private corporation. Shannon is proud to have been involved with the Law Enforcement Appreciation Committee (LEAC) since her return to Riverside in 2011. She is a 2023 graduate of the Leadership Riverside program. She currently lives in Arlington Heights with her husband and 2 children, both of whom are students in the Dual Language Immersion program at RUSD.

Shannon has been a reader from the beginning and was blessed to grow up in a home with an actual library containing shelves and shelves of books. As all readers know, you have to train your family as to what living with a reader means. For her parents it meant a booklight was always at the top of her Christmas list so she could read after they turned the lights off. Her husband learned early on that packing 6 books for vacation was indeed the norm and there was a good chance she’d need to buy one at the airport on the way home. Her daughter Rebecca is named after one of her favorite books and both kids know that there is never a “quick” trip to the bookstore.

Ai Kelly

Ai started at the Riverside Art Museum in 2010 and currently oversees communications and marketing strategy, planning, and implementation for the Riverside Art Museum and The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture of the Riverside Art Museum, which is scheduled to open May 8, 2022. Born in Kobe, Japan, she grew up in Rialto, CA. A love of reading bloomed early, resulting in reading every book in her elementary school library; regular trips to the local public library soon followed. She received her degree in English Literature with a minor in Race and Ethnic Studies from the University of Redlands in 2000, and was inducted that same year into their Phi Beta Kappa chapter; “love of learning is the guide of life.” She previously worked as the managing editor for a real estate contract law publisher for nine years. In her “spare” time, she continues to read, indulges in her deep love of music, animals, and food, and is also currently the Marketing Committee Chair for the Inlandia Institute.

Eric LaNier
Eric is a Financial Advisor with Edward Jones who specializes in working with small business owners and individuals who are on the verge of retirement. Eric was born and raised in San Diego, CA, and moved up to Riverside to attend California Baptist University, where he received his B.A. in English. Eric and his wife have created deep roots in Riverside by being very involved members of their church, Orangecrest Community Church, and purchasing their first home in 2020. Eric and his wife have two young children which keep them very busy! Eric is also an active and proud member of the PICK Group where he serves by sitting on the Social Committee. He also keeps busy with the Greater Riverside Chambers of Commerce where he sits on the La Sierra Business Council and the Ambassador Committee. He is a people person who is an avid coffee drinker and reader, and loves a good book or audiobook! He has a passion for people to reignite their love for reading as it is such a key component of personal and professional development. A quote that often comes to Eric's mind from a wise mentor is "Leaders are Readers," and he hopes to share this impactful perspective with many in our community.

Linda L. Itzen
Linda L. Itzen is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and founded Itzen Wealth Management in 1989. She has two children and three amazing grandchildren.   

Barbara is an Army brat whose family moved to Riverside upon her father’s retirement. She holds a BA from the University of California, Riverside; an MA from the University of Washington in Seattle; and her Juris Doctorate from George Washington Law School in Washington DC. Barbara was an attorney with the Riverside City Attorney’s office for more than 25 years. She has been on the boards of various nonprofit organization including the Inland Counties Legal Services; the League of Women Voters of Riverside; the YWCA of Riverside County; Inlandia Institute; Habitat for Humanity, Riverside; and the Mary S. Roberts Pet Adoption Center.  She is currently on the boards of the Riverside Chapter of AARP; Altura Credit Union; Friends of the Riverside Public Library; and the Riverside Branch of the American Association of University Women. Barbara has also been appointed to serve on the Riverside County Assessment Appeals Board No. 2, where she currently serves as Chair. While growing up in Riverside, she was a regular patron of the Arlington Branch Library.

Georgia Renne
As a native Riversider the city libraries played an important role in my life. I remember as a Ramona High School senior I visited the old Downtown Carnegie Library to find books, magazines, and microfiche to research city history for a US Government class report. My mom drove the Bookmobile and was the Children’s Librarian for the Marcy Branch. As a UCR student I loved watching the changes taking place in the Rivera Library and weekly used its resources even after my graduation. My secondary teaching credential earned at UCR in English certified me to teach at both Sierra Junior High and Poly High Schools. Later I would become a Counselor and Assistant Principal at John W. North High School prior to taking on the principal role at Chemawa Middle School. Interestingly I remembered visiting Chemawa as a child when my aunts participated in music performances. Chemawa Junior High was the Alma Mater of my mother and uncle, too. After accepting an Assistant Superintendent position in Visalia, I enjoyed how much that smaller city with its agriculture reminded me of the Riverside where I grew up. After doing an early retirement there, I returned to my hometown and family to spend many years working as an educational consultant helping schools and districts in difficulty, often teaming with Riverside County Office of Education. I spend my current retirement life supporting Riverside Public Library Foundation along with other nonprofits, UCCE Riverside Master Gardeners, UCR Botanic Gardens, and Pencils and Dreams for Tanzanian Schools, in addition to gardening and, of course, reading!