Developing Diverse Teams

Shamichael is a social, civic and tech innovator. As a '23 Loeb Fellow at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, he explored how urban design and planning can make for socially inclusive cities. He has served as the Senior Library Manager with Memphis Public Libraries where he guided the reimagining of the historic Cossitt Library. His 2020 TEDx talk "Reimagining the Public Library to Reconnect the Community" garnered international acclaim. In 2021 he co-founded Libraries as Bridges which focuses on evaluating how libraries build social cohesion, promote civic renewal and advance the ideals of a healthy democracy.

The Free Library of Philadelphia welcomed Kelly Richards as its president and director in January 2022. Richards brings with him almost three decades of library experience, having most recently served as Director of the Muskegon Area District Library in Michigan and President of the Michigan Library Association. In addition to these roles, Richards served as the Chairperson for Lakeshore Ethnic Diversity Alliance. Richards began his career in library services in the Las Vegas Clark County Library District before joining the Genesee District Library in Flint, Michigan, where he served as Assistant Executive Director and Branch Operations Manager. Richards earned an Associate of Arts and a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice at Ferris State University. He served as a police officer in Flint, Michigan, and an airport police officer at Bishop Airport before returning to school to earn his MLIS at the University of Pittsburgh. Richards is published in two books, In our own voices: The Changing Face of Librarianship (Scarecrow Press, 1996) and Pioneer African American Librarians in the West (Scarecrow Press, 2006). Richards is married, has three children, and is an avid angler.

Felton Thomas, Jr. is the Executive Director and CEO of Cleveland Public Library (CPL), one of the nation’s largest and most respected metropolitan library systems. Under Thomas’ leadership, CPL has embarked on an ambitious 10-year Facilities Master Plan (FMP) to renovate or rebuild all 27 of its libraries, launched groundbreaking initiatives addressing community needs around technology, education and economic development, and is consistently ranked as a "Five Star” library, a prestigious distinction from the Library Journal. A native of Las Vegas, Nevada, Thomas started his library career at age 13 when he became the youngest page in the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District. He then served as Branch Manager at West Las Vegas Library, Director of Regional Branch Services for the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District, and President of the Nevada Library Association before moving to Cleveland, Ohio in 2009. Throughout his 40-year career in libraries, Thomas has been a recognized leader in the field of library and information science serving as President of the Public Library Association (PLA), Chair of the Board of Directors for the Digital Public Library of America (DPLA), and as a Trustee for Lyrasis, a non-profit member organization serving and supporting libraries, archives, museums, and cultural heritage organizations around the world. His contributions earned him the Library Journal’s Mover and Shaker award, the White House Champion for Change award, and the American Library Association’s (ALA) Equality Award.