Teresa Miller of PGCMLS Receives 2021 Emerging Leader Award
from the Maryland Library Association
The Prince George’s County Memorial Library System (PGCMLS) has a strong track record of developing innovative library leaders who bring creativity to enriching services to the community. Teresa Miller, Librarian I, Spauldings Branch Library, was recognized with the Maryland Library Association Emerging Leader Award on Thursday, May 6, 2021 during the virtual Maryland Library Association/Delaware Library Association Conference.
Miller’s work leading the PGCMLS staff LGBTQ+ team has transformed the Library’s services, programs, outreach, and preparedness for supporting the local LGBTQ+ community and allies. The award was presented during a keynote address by bestselling author and commentator R. Eric Thomas (“Here for It”). Also nominated for this year’s Emerging Leader Award was Zachary “Zach” Jones, Library Associate II, Largo-Kettering Branch Library.
“All of us at PGCMLS are proud of Teresa for her important work in moving the organization forward with its support of LGBTQ+ customers,” said Michelle Hamiel, COO for Public Services. “She and Zach Jones bring a passion for public service to the Library that directly benefits the community.”
The Maryland Library Association Emerging Leader Award recognizes a member of the association working in a library who demonstrates strong leadership potential and encourages the recipient to assume an increasingly responsible role in librarianship. “I feel incredibly honored to receive this award,” said Miller. “Thank you to all of my colleagues who have worked so hard to make the LGBTQ+ team a success!” Miller was nominated by Rachel Zukowski, Program Services Manager, PGCMLS, on behalf of the Library’s Executive Team.
About Awardee Teresa Miller
Teresa Miller founded the PGCMLS LGBTQ+ team in November 2019 to address the need for library services focused on the LGBTQ+ community. She specializes in youth programming, particularly crafts and LGBTQ+ content. Miller was recently promoted from a part-time Librarian I position at Greenbelt Branch Library to full-time Librarian I at Spauldings Branch Library. A first-generation college graduate, Miller earned her Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks in 2017, and her Master of Science in Library and Information Science from the University of Maryland College Park in 2019. She has worked as a circulation aide in Alaska’s largest library, where she also studied bookbinding and repair. In her free time, she enjoys crafting with recycled and found materials.
