South Orange library announces new head of youth services

Photo Courtesy of Tehsuan Glover/Studio Creative Group
Keisha Miller is the new head of youth services at South Orange Public Library.

SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — South Orange Public Library’s longtime teen librarian, Keisha Miller, has been promoted to head of youth services. 

“Her advocacy for all youth, commendable experience as a teen librarian, engaging programming skills, and enthusiasm to support the South Orange community have prepared her well for this role,” library Director Jill Faherty said. 

In this newly created position, Miller will oversee children’s and teen services, which includes programming, collection development and staff management — responsibilities that reflect her belief that the library is the “living room of the community, a place where everyone comes together to share and create.”

“It’s extra special to work in such a beautiful town with a village of diverse people and ideas,” Miller said, adding that she is “excited to continue the work and advocacy for the youth in the community.”

Miller has been a mainstay at the library since 1998, when she began working part-time as a children’s page. In subsequent years, her responsibilities have grown, as she earned her master’s degree in library and information science from Pratt Institute in 2012. As the library’s teen librarian, she has led the VolunTEEN program every summer.

“It’s hard to believe that the toddlers who I met many years ago are now high school or college students,” Miller said. “In this position as head of youth services, I look forward to meeting many more kids, teens and their families.”

The New Jersey Library Association has recognized Miller numerous times for her work at SOPL and the broader library community: She was chosen as an Emerging Leader in 2012; received NJLA’s most prestigious honor, Librarian of the Year, in 2021; and was elected to NJLA’s executive board in 2021.