Mike Cullen Returns to Foundation Board as Chair

FAIRFAX, VIRGINIA — Fairfax Library Foundation is pleased to announce that Mike Cullen has been elected chair of its board of directors, effective July 1, 2026. Cullen will replace outgoing chair Miriam Smolen. Cullen previously served on the Foundation’s board of directors from 2017–2023 and as its treasurer from 2018–2023.

Cullen is a principal with Baker Tilly Advisory Group, a national accounting and advisory firm. He is a cybersecurity and IT leader on the firm’s risk, internal audit, and cybersecurity consulting team. He has lived in Fairfax for more than 30 years and attended middle school and high school in Centreville before graduating from Virginia Tech. In addition to being a supporter of Fairfax Library Foundation, Cullen and his wife are also patrons of the Fairfax County Park Foundation, Wolf Trap, National Park Foundation, and Virginia Tech. His wife is a retired elementary school librarian, and his brother is a Fairfax County librarian.

“I’m excited to be taking leadership of the Foundation at such an exciting time in its history. I am the beneficiary of the long-term vision—and seemingly inexhaustible energy—of our outgoing chair, Miriam Smolen, and I pledge to continue to build on the progress we’ve made during her term.”

Current board member Alice Magelssen-Green was promoted to vice chair by the board, and newly elected board member Shelby Allen will serve as secretary. Allen is an accountant with the Fairfax County Department of Finance. Matthew Levin remains the Foundation’s treasurer.

Three other board members were also elected to the board this year: Jeanne Bliss, Nicole Nguyen, and Emily Rabbitt. Bliss is the assistant principal and dean of faculty at Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria, Virginia. Nguyen is a managing attorney and senior adviser with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Rabbitt is the director of marketing and communications at The SEED Foundation, an educational nonprofit based in Washington, D.C. Since 1994, the Fairfax Library Foundation has existed solely with the mission to enhance the programs and services of the Fairfax County Public Library, the largest public library system in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Designated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable and educational organization, the Foundation provides supplementary support to the community by providing access to information, technology, innovations, civic engagement and entertainment, and by offering literacy and educational opportunities.

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