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Fall Recap 2025
Hello, library community!
The Library Check-in is a newsletter that shares news, event highlights, and happenings from across the Prince George's County Memorial Library System (PGCMLS). This page showcases general features from across the library system that made this past season unforgettable.
"Local Look-Back" of programs and initiatives from each of the system’s 20 locations can be found here.
To stay up to date on all things relevant to the Library, be sure to follow us on social media (@PGCMLS), or by clicking the social icons in the footer of the webpage. Thank you for being a part of this wonderful community — dive in and enjoy!
A Season of Engaging Health & Wellness Programs Across PGCMLS
PGCMLS is proud to provide programs and resources year-round that support the health and wellness of the Prince George’s Community.
This overarching Library work was especially exciting this past fall, with branches offering fun new “Get Active” exercise opportunities, a number of programs designed to support mental health and mindfulness, a variety of activities geared towards healthy eating and nutrition, and access to free health screenings and community safety trainings. Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15-October 15) gave the PGCMLS community even more chances to get their groove on, with the GET Dance Company program and “Babychata: Baila con tu Bebé” at the Accokeek Branch Library, and the “Dance Party: Hispanic Heritage!” program at the Glenarden Branch Library.
Whether community members were showing up to the Hillcrest Heights Branch Library for “Playday: Healthy Eating,” the Hyattsville Branch Library for “Reiki Level 1,” the Bladensburg Branch Library for an “Eat Well Cooking Demonstration,” or the Upper Marlboro Branch Library for a “Hands-Only CPR and AED” training, they got to experience first-hand how health and wellness activities are becoming a staple of the modern public library.
A total of 1,670 participants came out to 117 health and wellness programs hosted by PGCMLS branch libraries between September and December.
To read more about a few of PGCMLS’ branch-specific health and wellness programs from the last season, check out pgcmls.info/library-check-in/local-look-back.
Library Needlework Programs Bring Community Together
At eleven of the Library’s nineteen branches, regular “Pins and Needles” and “Needlework Social” programs see customers of all ages and backgrounds coming together to create a community rooted in a shared love of the fiber arts. Knitting and crochet are perennial favorites, but sewing, quilting, and embroidery are also enjoyed at these programs.
“We get a wide variety of ages every month,” says Accokeek Branch Library Associate Storm Carman-Hanks. “Teens are often really interested in my crocheted accessories, but we also often end up with whole families [participating together], after one member who’s interested comes for the program, and then the rest of the family joins in.”
Those intergenerational connections are reflected at the Spauldings Branch Library, says Librarian Teresa Miller, who runs that branch’s weekly “Needlework Social” series. Because it’s often scheduled alongside a weekly tutoring program, Teresa gets a pretty consistent group of kids who come to the branch early to do their crochet.
“There are some who knew how to crochet before, and some who learned here and have really progressed over the last year, which is really cool to see,” she says. “The older attendees have enjoyed the chance to help the younger people along as they learn, and to tell all their stories about learning to crochet in Home Ec classes when they were teens. It’s just a really great opportunity for the generations to connect.”
“Sometimes it’s a party — literally!” says Bladensburg Branch Librarian Debra Capponi, describing one afternoon where their group celebrated the birthday of Kevin, one of their teenage participants. The Bladensburg program is run by Library Associate Traci Perkins and Circulation Assistant Yesenia Gutierrez, who Debra praises for having grown and nurtured a multigenerational group of crochet enthusiasts at the branch.
This relational energy is one secret behind the success of the Library’s many needlework programs. People aren’t just coming into their local branch to check out books and connect to WiFi — they are coming to develop real connections with their neighbors.
“Our ‘Pins and Needles’ program is more than a craft group; it is a community,” says the New Carrollton Branch Library’s needlework team, which includes Circulation Assistants Bernadine McCall and Edith Johnson-Gilmore, Library Associate Gia Schwatka, and Librarian Nici Ray. Started in 2019 through a collaboration between Bernadine and Mrs. Dorothy Evans — a longtime customer, dedicated crocheter, and a nurse at Doctors Community Hospital — the New Carrollton “Pins and Needles” program focuses specifically on crafting handmade blankets in various shades of pink to gift to newly diagnosed breast cancer patients.
“We share stories, support each other through everyday struggles, and listen when someone needs encouragement or advice,” the New Carrollton team says. “Some members have experienced breast cancer themselves, making our mission even more meaningful. Friendships flourish here — between stitches we enjoy lunches together, store-hopping, clothes-swapping, and countless moments of laughter.”
Every October, the New Carrollton group holds a special celebration to honor their collective work and display all the blankets made throughout the year. At the end of the celebration, the blankets are donated to Doctors Community Hospital. Since the group’s founding, they have donated over 250 blankets.
Members frequently share stories from doctor’s appointments where conversations about their crochet projects spark curiosity, the New Carrollton team reports. Once they explain the mission of “Pins and Needles,” people often respond by saying they know someone who has received one of our blankets.
“What an incredible feeling,” says the New Carrollton team, “to know our work is touching so many lives.”
“Pins and Needles” and “Needlework Social” programs can currently be found at the following branch libraries: Accokeek, Bladensburg, Beltsville, Hyattsville, Laurel, Mount Rainier, New Carrollton, Oxon Hill, South Bowie, Spauldings, and Surratts-Clinton. Check out the PGCMLS calendar to find the next needlework program near you!
To read more about the Library’s needlework programs, head to pgcmls.info/library-check-in.
Bike Safety Programs at Glenarden and Mount Rainier a Fun Way to Salute Fall
PGCMLS is no stranger to bike safety programs — or to partnering with the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA), a local non-profit that seeks to build a more just and sustainable transportation system, starting with empowering more people to ride bikes.
Since hosting a landmark “Teen Safety Town Hall” at the Hyattsville Branch Library in April 2024, PGCMLS has continued to promote bike safety by providing space for WABA’s Vision Zero Youth Institute meetings at neighborhood branches, distributing printed bike safety collateral to “Teen Zones” across the library system, and partnering with WABA for a “learn-to-ride” program geared toward elementary-aged kids at the Largo-Kettering Branch Library this past summer.
This fall, Glenarden Branch Library Associate Thibault Raoult added a “Bike Maintenance Workshop and Helmet Fit Demonstration” program to the PGCMLS bike safety line-up, which he hosted at both the Glenarden and Mount Rainier branch libraries.
Developed by Thibault as part of his Library Associate Training Institute (LATI) work in Fall 2024, this program was originally designed to encourage teens in the Glenarden community to think more seriously about bikes as a safe and reliable means of independent transportation. After LATI, this led to Thibault working with WABA to design a space where teens could come not just to get their gear fixed up, but also to see the library as a place where they can access so much more than books.
“As a teen hub [at Glenarden], we’re always thinking about how to answer the question, what does the library do for me?" explains Thibault. “There's the academic and community side, of course, but there’s also wellness and spending time outdoors. If teens can come to associate the Library with that dimension of their life, that's powerful! Anytime you can get them doing something with their hands that's away from screens, that has real impact.”
Accordingly, the first program, held at Thibault’s home branch of Glenarden, was geared toward teens. The second program, which ended up also attracting families and adults, was held on October 18 at the Mount Rainier Bike Co-op, right next door to the Gateway Farmers Market’s annual “Fall Fest.”
“It’s tough to convey how festive and energetic the atmosphere was [at the festival],” Thibault says.
Maryland STEM Festival 2025
Throughout early fall, programs and events featuring science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) took center stage at schools and libraries across the state. PGCMLS was no exception! At all of our branches, kids and families were invited to learn about everything from lasers to geodes to alternate kinds of counting systems.
A sampling of the Library’s 2025 STEM Festival activities includes glow stick geometry at the Laurel Branch Library, KEVA plank and pipe cleaner engineering at the Greenbelt and Baden branch libraries, volcanoes and egg drops at the Bowie Branch Library, and geology, ecology, and biology programs at the Accokeek and Baden branch libraries.
To check out upcoming STEM events at your nearest PGCMLS branch library, click here!
By The Numbers: Fall-Winter 2025 Stats
Library Luminaries
County Spotlight: Dr. Deann Collins
When it comes to increasing access to learning, collaboration, and the joy of discovery for students across Prince George's County, PGCMLS and the Prince George’s County Public School System (PGCPS) share a common goal. For the Spotlight Profile in this edition of “The Library Check-In,” we are highlighting Dr. Deann Collins, Chief of Staff for Interim PGCPS Superintendent, Dr. Shawn Joseph.
A longtime educator and public school administrator, Dr. Collins took on this new role in part to turn her focus on the systemic questions of how to improve education outcomes for Prince George’s County students — particularly as they relate to the new PGCPS administration’s “Big Rock” strategic priorities. As part of this work, she is collaborating directly with county agencies and community organizations across Prince George’s, including PGCMLS.
“In this role, you get to be on the ground, you get to go visit schools, talk to staff, talk to people who have passion in the community,” says Dr. Collins, who has helped facilitate twenty “Listen and Learn” sessions between PGCPS and the community over the last few months. “I value these partnerships, and the ability to collaborate across agencies and offices to improve outcomes for students.”
This past fall, the collaboration between the school district and the Library included a series of “Play and Grow: Ages 0-3” programs for children with developmental delays or disabilities, held at branches across the PGCMLS and organized as part of a longstanding partnership with the PGCPS Infants and Toddlers Program. It also included the ”Be Excited About Math (B.E.A.M.) Fair” at the Oxon Hill Branch Library, co-hosted by the PGCPS Elementary Mathematics Department in alignment with the district’s “Accelerating Outcomes in Mathematics and Literacy” strategic “Big Rock” priority for the first quarter of the school year.
Through collaborative programs like these, the access that Prince George’s County families have to resources that contribute to greater academic and social success is made both broader and deeper. As a bonus, more students are exposed to the variety of programs and services offered by the modern public library.
“One of the things I love about the modern library is, it’s built with students in mind,” Dr. Collins says. “Spaces where you can check out a book and go hang out, sit with your headphones on, eat — even the aesthetics are designed with the interests of students in mind! It’s so important to see the library as a space where you want to go.”
Celebrating Welcoming Week and the Fifth Annual Festival of Cultures
In late September, PGCMLS hosted its fifth annual Festival of Cultures, an all-day, all-ages, free event that celebrates the vibrant and diverse community of Prince George’s County, and fosters deeper bonds of understanding among neighbors. At the event, which was held this year at the South Bowie Branch Library, community members were invited to come together to build connections with each other through music, dance, art, and a sharing of traditions.
“The Festival of Cultures theme — Many Cultures, One Heartbeat — encourages people to remember the threads that connect us, while also celebrating our differences,” says Maribel Rodriguez, PGCMLS Bilingual Program and Outreach Associate. “This festival is where the Library’s diverse community can come together to recognize our common humanity, and to celebrate all of our different traditions, languages, dances, food, and stories.”
Maribel reports that the 2025 festival was particularly successful, with more than 370 people attending, and positive feedback being received about nearly every aspect of the program. “We loved the variety of activities,” wrote one attendee. “What a spark of creativity and light!” Shared another: “We came for the bomba and found so much more. Thanks for highlighting so many cultures today!”
The Library’s annual Welcoming Week initiative, held in September, was also a success. Welcoming Week festivities were organized around the global 2025 theme, “Stories We Share,” and gave community members a chance to build deeper connections with their neighbors. Maribel is particularly grateful to her colleagues on the PGCMLS Intercultural Support Committee, whose support in getting these programs together was crucial.
Resource Spotlight: Brainfuse HelpNow
Biblio Consulta: A Spanish Language Phone Reference Service
Available in both English and Spanish, Brainfuse's HelpNow service allows students to get live tutoring, learn along with a broad range of lessons, practice with tests and flashcards, and submit papers for feedback. With BrainFuse HelpNow, PGCMLS customers have access to free, comprehensive tutoring in subjects that range from traditional K-12 topics to life skills and career and college prep.
Bonus! Throughout January and February, Brainfuse HelpNow will also be offering a series of free SAT Prep workshops led by Brian Stewart, author of Barron’s SAT/ACT prep books. These webinars, held on Zoom, will break the test into clear, manageable steps and show students the strategies top scorers use. You can register for the first four workshops, which run weekly starting on January 7 by clicking here.
Congratulations to our Fall 2025 Library Associate Training Institute Graduates!
In early November, six PGCMLS Library Associates graduated from the Fall 2025 Library Associate Training Institute (LATI) program: Nancy Coleman (Hyattsville Branch Library), Isaiah Everheart (South Bowie Branch Library), Sang-Hee Park (Greenbelt Branch Library), James Phelps (Accokeek Branch Library), Belmar Sorto (New Carrollton Branch Library), and Paige Woolf (Oxon Hill Branch Library).
PGCMLS is proud to send a strong cohort to every LATI program, where Maryland Public Library Associates are given the opportunity to advance their customer service, reference, and programming skills. Several PGCMLS staff members contribute regularly as LATI trainers, including Family Literacy Specialist Pamela Hamlin, Business Analytics Manager Colin Khem, and Teen Services Specialist Isaiah West. The knowledge and skills that PGCMLS Library Associates gain through LATI bolster our system’s ability to serve the Prince George’s County community with thoughtfulness, innovation, and care.
Congratulations to PGCMLS’ Fall 2025 LATI graduates!
PGCMLS in the News
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“From Idea to Action: How Maryland Libraries Support Emerging Adults,” Public Libraries (a publication of the Public Libraries Association)
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"Hyattsville seniors finish four-week therapeutic art class," Hyattsville Life & Times
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“CTV News 11/13/25,” PGCTV
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“Maryland students work to preserve a unique bit of animal history about Greenbelt,” WTOP (video report direct link)
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“PGCMLS Partner Spotlight: Unselfish Acts of Kindness,” Greenbelt News Review
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"The Weekend Scene: Celebrate Hispanic heritage, Oktoberfest and local art around DC," NBC4 Washington
Industry News & Recommended Reads
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Industry News: A Victory for IMLS as Court Blocks Trump’s Attempt to Dismantle Agency (Library Journal)
On November 21, Judge John J. McConnell Jr. issued a summary judgment ruling that the current administration’s efforts to shut down the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), along with other federal agencies, were both illegal and unconstitutional.While IMLS might not be a federal agency everyone knows by name, it provides crucial support to services to more than 125,000 libraries across the United States – services Prince Georgians use every day. Following an Executive Order in March of 2025 that sought to dismantle the agency, services supported by IMLS grant funding were diminished. This November 21 ruling from Judge McConnell restores much-needed funding to public cultural institutions across the country, including the Maryland State Library, through which PGCMLS accesses IMLS support.
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Recommended Read: 47,000+ people hope to get one of 5,000 spots in Prince George’s County's housing voucher program (WUSA9)
In early December, the Oxon Hill and Laurel branch libraries served as official sites where residents could get assistance filling out the online application for the county’s housing voucher program, which reopened for the first time in ten years. The application period lasted a week, during which thousands of community members came into the branches for assistance with the online application.“On Monday we had a line out the door,” says Laurel Branch Librarian John Barnes, who along with Laurel Branch Lead Librarian Traci Montgomery supported county workers in assisting community members during the application process. Across the branch, library staff assisted further in developing an organized queueing system, arranging places for applicants to sit down, and providing books to help keep kids entertained while their caregivers were occupied.
“Everyone was appreciative of the support we were able to give,” John says. "It was a good reminder of the range of services we're able to provide."
Branch Architecture in the Spotlight
This fall, two PGCMLS branch buildings received special recognition for their physical spaces.
From the Potomac Valley Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, the Baden Branch Library received a Commendation Award for Interior Architecture, as part of the chapter’s 2025 “Excellence in Design” awards.
Sara Mitchell (Project Manager, Support Services) was responsible for guiding the final color design. The guidance they brought to Grimm + Parker was for the design to be fun and garden-themed, reflecting the remembrance garden outside the branch that has been maintained by the Friends of Baden Library for a number of years. With that inspiration in mind, the architecture firm came back with the circular shape of the overlapping ceiling tiles that mimic flower petals and citrus fruit, which Sara then chose a color scheme for.
Per the commendation letter: “The design is colorful in both expression and use, offering unscripted zones that support multiple functions beyond the prescribed program. It is a cheerful and imaginative proposal, best captured by a community member's reflection: ‘Even though this is small, it is huge for us.’ The Jury wholeheartedly agrees.”
Across the county, the Bladensburg Branch Library was officially awarded LEED Gold certification by the U.S. Green Building Council. The branch’s final score of 61 reflects the building’s optimized energy utilization, use of low-emission design materials, and efficient neighborhood footprint, among other features. The site’s EV-charging stations, rainwater management system, and dedicated public bus shelter also contributed to the Gold-level score.
Congratulations to both the Baden and Bladensburg branches, and to the Library’s Support Services team!
Thank You for Your Ongoing Support of the PGCMLS Foundation!
The PGCMLS Foundation raised more than $20,000 during the 2025 Giving Tuesday season, which will be used to support PGCMLS in the new year.
To contribute to the PGCMLS Foundation’s ongoing efforts to support the work of the Library, you can make a one-time or recurring donation here.
Local Look-Backs
New Carrollton Branch Library Brings “Family Movie & a Craft” Sparkle to Summer Meals Program
At the New Carrollton Branch Library this past summer, New Carrollton Library Associate Claudia Parra organized a bonus treat for community members who came in for the “Summer Meals” program: a curated “Family Movie & a Craft” series!
Featuring a mix of animated films both new and old that Claudia paired with fun, simple crafts that kids and parents could do together, this programming series saw families return week after week, with kids excited to dive into whatever activity Claudia had planned. It also let the New Carrollton branch staff show off what makes public libraries so vital, facilitating access not just to resources and services like the county’s free summer lunch program, but also to interactive, socially engaging learning opportunities — and all of that in a safe and welcoming community space.
“I wanted the community to be able to make good use of [both] the summer meals and the resources we have [at the Library],” explains Claudia, who first developed the bonus program in 2024 as a way to entice more community members to come in during the summer months. “We know that people really need those lunches, but that they don't always know what's going on at the library, so I thought this would be a good way to promote both.”
Customers shared their appreciation of the program with Claudia throughout the summer. Everyone was happy for the free lunches, but they also appreciated how it was a nice cool break from the summer heat, or that it was somewhere they could bring grandkids who were visiting for the summer. Says Claudia, “I was happy to hold this safe space for them — to have the community making good use of our resources, making new friends, and just experiencing the joy of a simple craft, all in this shared space.”
Library Check-In Archive
In addition to the version that goes out to all PGCMLS cardholders (linked in PDF form above), the Library Check-In is further tailored to reflect "local look-back" stories within the specific geographies of the nine County Council and eight Maryland General Assembly Districts that cover Prince George's County. PDF versions of those targeted newsletters can be found below.
Subscribe to Library "The Library Check-In" and other email updates!
