Meet Our People

C. Allen Nichols possesses a BS in Industrial Management from the University of Akron (Eta Chapter, 1989), a Master of Library Science degree from Kent State University, and an MBA from Mississippi State University. In October, after 12-plus years as CEO of the Akron Bar Association and Foundation, Allen retired, ending a professional career that also included 32 years working in Ohio public libraries, sixteen of which were as director of the Wadsworth Public Library and its Foundation.

Allen served the bar association and library professions through participation in various organizations, including terms as president of the Ohio Library Association, Ohio Metropolitan Bar Association Consortium and the national Conference of Metropolitan Bar Associations. He has presented training workshops and programs for librarians as well as association staff and published three books with ABC-CLIO/Libraries Unlimited. He is also co-editor, with his wife Mary Anne, of the “Libraries Unlimited Professional Guides for Young Adult Librarians” series.

His leadership in numerous community agencies and governmental boards has led to commendations from the Ohio Senate and General Assembly. The Wadsworth Chamber of Commerce honored him as the Outstanding Business Leader of the Year in 2002 and awarded him its Community Vision Award in 2004 and again in 2009. The Kent State School of Library and Information Science named him Alumnus of the Year in 2005. In 2021, Allen was named a recipient of the Dr. Frank L Simonetti Distinguished Business Alumni Award from the University of Akron’s College of Business Administration.

His Delt experience has seen him as Eta Chapter House Corporation President and Chapter Advisor for Iota Iota as well as his appointment since 2023 as a Regional Governor.