Wayne State University Libraries

"Commitment to the Community"

The Wayne State University Library System is an active and engaged member of the Metro Detroit community.  Through various outreach and service efforts the Library System is committed to providing quality resources, facilities and learning opportunities to K-12 educators and students and the community at large.

Resources and Programs for K-12 Students & Educators:

• Job Shadow Day:  Each February (on or around Groundhog’s Day) WSU libraries hosts over 100 students, grades 6 and above to learn about the profession of librarianship. The program in its eighth year, is run by librarians at Wayne State and is a chance to encourage under represented groups to pursue careers in library professions.
• Detroit Students Collect: Together with the Michigan Center for the Book and The UPS Foundation, the Wayne State University libraries sponsors essay contests for area middle and high school students.  Students write about their favorite book collections and authors. 
• Chapbook Information Literacy Initiative, A Community Arts Outreach Program Collaborative: The focus of this project is to promote artistic appreciation of the written word in order to aid in developing information literate youth and young adults for the 21st Century. The Wayne State University Library System in partnership with Life Directions, Inc-Detroit, will teach students about the creative process of writing, art, and photography in order to produce a literary chapbook of written words and images.  (Chapbooks date back to the Middle Ages and were books and pamphlets of poetry and folklore sold by peddlers known as chapmen.) WSU Libraries will offer an opportunity for students in Life Directions’ Peer Motivation Program to create and digitize their written and photographic works for preserving their generation’s history.  These digitized works will be developed into a special collection housed in the Wayne State University Adamany Undergraduate Library
• Library Instruction & Tours:  Each year The Wayne State University Library System provides over 50 library instructional sessions and tours for all grade levels K-12.  Interested teachers should contact the library for more information. 
• Information Literacy and Writing Workshops:  The WSU Library System also coordinates professional development opportunities for librarians and educators.  These programs are typically held two times per year and are opportunities to gain continuing education credit.

For more information about any of the K-12 resources and programs for educators and students described above, unless otherwise noted, please contact Lothar Spang.

Health Initiatives and Programs:

• Wayne State University Shiffman Medical Library Community Health Information Services (CHIS) CHIS offers different ways for the community and students to learn more about accessing health information and related research skills including onsite and offsite instruction, personalized health information packets, reference/research services, access to the library's community designated computers and a professional medical librarian to assist you in confidence. Contact 313-577-6666 or askmed@wayne.edu
• The Detroit Community Aids Library is a gateway to local and worldwide HIV/AIDS information resources for Detroit and Southeastern Michigan by providing information and community-based outreach programs. The Shiffman Library also publishes the User Friendly Manual: a guide for persons living with HIV/AIDS that brings together a complete directory and referral information for the Detroit metropolitan area.
• The African American Health Disparities Information Web site is an educational resource designed to provide information on the various health disparities and major health conditions adversely affecting the African American community. The information focuses on the primary health conditions in which health disparities exist.
• The Urban Health Partners program promotes and enhances health information services to Detroit’s public health professionals. The target audience for the program is public health providers lacking traditional access to a medical library serving hard-to-reach and underserved populations in southeastern Michigan. Urban Health Partners also further develops, in breadth and depth, information resources that support the Arab American community’s health care providers including the development of an online collection of organized, quality Arabic-language health education materials for providers and consumers.
• Michigan Go Local A comprehensive database of health services in every community in Michigan is the goal of Michigan Go Local to begin in 2006. In partnership with the National Library of Medicine and its MEDLINEPlus.gov Go Local will link the highest quality health information to provider and service contact information and geographic information. For more information or to volunteer please visit our new web site.