Pitt alumnus Kelly Richards, president of The Free Library of Philadelphia, will be the first presenter of SCI's fifth anniversary "Dean's Spotlight Series." The Free Library of Philadelphia welcomed Richards as its president and director in January. Richards brings with him almost three decades of library experience, also having 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, an organization that trains government agencies and businesses in Diversity Equity and Inclusion/Belonging.

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 overseeing 19 branches.

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 Masters in Library and Information Science at the University of Pittsburgh. In addition, he has received certificates for completing the Snowbird Library Institute, the Michigan Library Association Leadership Academy, and the UCLA Anderson School of Business Executive Education program.

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.

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