The Board of Library Trustees is a policy-making body that guides the development of library services. It is composed of seven volunteer citizens appointed by the County Executive. Their policy decisions impact all areas of library operations.
Type | Date | Time | Location |
2023 Board of Library Trustees Meeting | September 21st | 7:00- 8:30 pm |
Location TBC Join meeting virtually via Zoom Passcode: 912080 One tap mobile: US: +13017158592 |
2023 Board of Library Trustees Meeting | November 16th | 7:00- 8:30 pm |
Location TBC Join meeting virtually via Zoom Passcode: 912080 One tap mobile: US: +13017158592 |
*Please note that all Board of Library Trustees meetings can be followed by an executive session as needed.
Angela D. Smith, President
Term: April 1, 2020 - December 31, 2024
Angela Smith joined the Board of Library Trustees in April 2020. She is a professional with more than 10 years’ experience working in print and web communications. For the past five years, she has worked at a healthcare research funding organization in Washington, DC, as a multimedia producer responsible for creating, producing, and overseeing all multimedia production. She is passionate about reading, education, health literacy, and the important role and impact public library systems have in the communities they serve. She resides in Upper Marlboro, Maryland.
Sylvia Bolivar, Vice President
Term: 2016 - December 31, 2026
Sylvia Bolivar has been a member of the Board of Library Trustees since June 2008. She advises municipalities on community and economic development programs. Prior to that, Sylvia served as Senior Advisor for Placed-Based Initiatives at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. In this capacity, she managed the Promise Zones Initiative working closely with local leaders to create jobs, improve educational outcomes, reduce violent crime and support overall economic growth and vitality.
In November 2015, Sylvia was an honoree at the first annual Latinas Empowering Prince George’s County Award for her leadership and advocacy in Education. Sylvia Bolivar resides in College Park, MD. She can be found on weekends at the library with her young son.
Brett Crawford
Term: April 1, 2020 - December 31, 2024
Brett Crawford heads a management consulting firm focused on strategy, governance and innovation in the nonprofit and emerging businesses sectors. He has extensive experience promoting small business development, community development and education policy.
Previously, Brett served as Louisiana’s Secretary of Revenue responsible for the state’s tax policy and administration. He also headed Louisiana’s economic development financing agency. He currently chairs the board of directors of Volunteers of America Chesapeake and is an advisor on strategic partnership and collaboration issues for Compass.
Brett has an MBA from Dartmouth, a law degree from Georgetown, and a bachelor’s degree from LSU. He lives in Clinton, MD.
Robert Fernandez
Term: July 5, 2022 - December 31, 2024
Robert Fernandez has been the Resource Development Librarian at Prince George’s Community College since 2017. He has a Master’s degree in Library Science from the University of South Florida and over 15 years of experience working in libraries. He also serves on the Board of Directors of Wikimedia District of Columbia, a Wikimedia affiliate group which engages with local cultural institutions. His interests include open access content, genealogy, geocaching, and art history. He is currently pursuing a Master’s in Art History at George Washington University. Robert and his wife Elizabeth live in Landover.
Patrice Garnette, J.D., CFE
Term: July 5, 2022 - December 31, 2023
Patrice Garnette is currently a Capital Markets Compliance Manager at Freddie Mac where she oversees the firm’s compliance with financial obligations, engages in risk management, and monitors the firm’s trading activities. She is experienced with leading legal, compliance, and regulatory projects and teams for state and federal regulators, nonprofit organizations, and corporate entities. Patrice is a certified fraud examiner. She currently serves on the national Advisory Council of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) and she is the membership chair of the Board of Directors for ACFE’s D.C. chapter.
Patrice is a former teacher, an avid reader, and a lifelong learner. She holds a J.D. from the George Washington University Law School, a master’s degree from American University, and a bachelor’s degree from Hampton University. She resides in Bowie, Maryland.
Toni A. Smith
Term: April 1, 2020 - December 31, 2024
A passionate advocate, Toni has a long-standing commitment to children's issues and an intimate understanding of the wide array of social justice issues faced by children, youth and families. She has worked in a variety of local and national youth advocacy nonprofit environments including The Forum for Youth Investment and the Department of Pediatrics at Howard University Hospital. She holds leadership roles in convening advocates and community organizing and has written numerous articles that have been published nationally and internationally. She is passionate about improving the lives of children and youth, empowering women and girls to reach their full potential, and supporting the vital work of community-based nonprofit organizations. Toni believes, that through service as a board trustee for the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System, enriching, engaging and illuminating the lives of others is absolutely achievable.
Toni is the founder and executive director of In Reach, Inc. a nonprofit organization that prepares Prince George’s County students for college, work and life. She resides in Bowie, Maryland.
Dr. Arthuree R. M. Wright
Term: 2016 - December 31, 2022
Arthuree McLaughlin Wright retired from Howard University in May 2015 after serving 15 years as Associate Director of Information Services and two years as Interim Director of Libraries. She began her career in the Science Library at MIT in Cambridge after earning a B.A. in mathematics at Indiana University and the M.L.S. at Rutgers University. While at MIT, Arthuree was chair of the Board of Directors for the Cambridge YWCA. Later she completed the Ph.D. in library and information science at the University of Maryland.
At Howard Arthuree focused on information literacy, assessment of learning, and service effectiveness. Nationally, she chaired the Research Committee of the Association of College and Research Libraries and served on the American Library Association’s Committee on Accreditation.
From 2004 to 2012 Arthuree chaired the Board of Higher Education and Campus Ministry for the Baltimore Washington Conference (BWC) of the United Methodist Church. Prior to that appointment she chaired the BWC Task Force on Children and Poverty. Arthuree and her husband, Obie, a retired Methodist pastor, reside in Bowie.
Contact the Board
9601 Capital Lane, Largo, MD 20774
boardoftrustees@pgcmls.info