SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — The South Orange Public Library had to shut its doors for four months when the COVID-19 pandemic took hold of the world last year, and even when it opened again in July, things looked different than they had before the pandemic. But the staff adapted and made it work, and the New Jersey Library Association agreed — the SOPL won three awards at the NJLA’s annual awards ceremony this year: one in the public relations “Surprise Us” category for an “I Miss You!” video SOPL produced during the pandemic, one in the public relations information literature category, and one for teen librarian Keisha Miller, who was named the 2021 Librarian of the Year.
“We created a system,” interim Library Director Lindita Cani said in an interview with the News-Record on June 14. “The library building was still closed, but we were still open. We were learning new skills. We try to make it work for everyone and make sure their needs are met. It was a time when we didn’t have a day off, but we didn’t mind.”
The teens in town weren’t always tuning into the library’s virtual events; Miller said in an interview with the News-Record that the last thing they wanted to do after staring at a screen all day for school was stare at a screen more. But the VolunTeen Program, which she started in 2009 for students in grades six through 12 to volunteer at the library and in town throughout the summer, is coming back this year and the teens are starting to trickle back into the library.
“Teens are the one population of people who are undervalued,” Miller said. “We often don’t give them the credit they deserve. They have so many ideas and initiatives, so if I can help them navigate that through the library, then that’s a way to give back.”
Miller started working at the library in 1998 as a part-time page, and in 2008 started working there full time. In 2012 she finished her master’s in library science and became the teen librarian. That was not her plan; with a criminal justice major in college, she had thought about going to law school or becoming a social worker. Eventually, after encouragement from former director Melissa Kopecky, she decided to stick around the library. She’d already been working with the South Orange–Maplewood School District, so it was easy to transition to the teen age group.
“I wish I could be as chill as a teen,” she joked. “Not that they don’t have anything to worry about — they do. They just think differently. So many kids have come through here, and they all come with unique experiences and stories. A lot of people think the library is for children and adults and seniors, but for that in-between group, it’s hard for people to make that connection.”
Emily Witkowski, the teen librarian at the Maplewood Public Library, sees the same thing in South Orange’s sister town.
“A lot of times people think they’re aliens from another world,” Witkowski, who was on the nominating committee for Miller’s award, said about teenagers in a June 11 phone interview. “But they’re human, too.”
Miller is the teen librarian, but she has other priorities, too. In 2019 she started the NJLA Librarians of Color Roundtable, which evolved into the Library Workers of Color to include people who work at libraries but don’t have master’s degrees.
“It’s not often you see a librarian of color, but there are so many who do that work behind the scenes,” Miller said. “Everyone needs to feel welcome. If a person comes into the library and sees someone who looks like them, they’ll go to them.”
Witkowski is continually impressed with the programs that Miller comes up with and draws inspiration from Miller for Maplewood.
“She’s such a team player,” Witkowski said. “She can collaborate with anyone; she’s full of ideas. If she’s working on a project, she calls me and asks to include us. We do have separate libraries, but we’re connected. It makes things easier for me to know there’s someone to share with.”
Witkowski wasn’t surprised when Miller won the NJLA award, but Miller was.
“This was a surprise,” Miller said. “South Orange has been extremely supportive when it comes to the library. To have that acknowledgement, my colleagues across the state are obviously paying attention as well.”
In 23 years, Miller has seen a lot of teenagers cycle in and out of the library.
“A lot of kids will come and say ‘I remember when you read me stories,’ and that makes me feel old,” she said. “But something made them want to come back when they’re in seventh, eighth grade. That makes me feel good.”
South Orange teen librarian named Librarian of the Year added by Amanda Valentovic on
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