Recently, MCLS worked with EveryLibrary Institute and a team of students from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor School of Information (UMSI) on a research project about the positive impact libraries make for each citizen on their lifelong learning and literacy journey. The project originated from summer 2025 discussions about how library associations and organizations could support Indiana and Michigan libraries collaboratively in a time of major disruptions and threats to library funding. Given different needs in each state, MCLS partnered on the project I describe below to focus on Michigan, and on a separate project focused on Indiana that is currently underway.  

I thank Lisa Waskin (MCLS Board of Directors, Superior District Library), John Chrastka (EveryLibrary Institute), Lori Donovan, Kristin Fontichiaro, and Anthea Josias (UMSI) for their work to conceive and support our project. Most importantly, I thank our UMSI SI699 student team, Madeline Brookman, Ellie Franklin, and Sofia Frumkin, for all their work on the research and documents they produced (including an annotated bibiography, a course paper, a white paper, and a poster they presented at the UMSI Student Project Exposition on April 20). 

Following summer 2025 meetings between library association leaders, John, and myself, a group of Michigan library leaders and EveryLibrary Institute agreed on a need for data that can support other work to help libraries demonstrate their positive impact (such as developing policy briefs and other information). Through other conversations in fall 2025, UMSI approached our group about proposing a student research project for their SI699 Mastery Course, and we agreed to submit. Lisa drafted a project proposal in consultation with John and me. By early January, UMSI had accepted our proposal and it had been selected by our student team. John, Madeline, Ellie, Sofia, and I began meeting as a project team, and John created a work plan to guide the students’ work framed around the following elements: 

• creating a Michigan literacy profile, a picture of literacy needs, gaps, and opportunities across the lifespan of residents and across communities based on a set of research questions; 
• looking at Michigan library and literacy domains (i.e., foundational and reading literacy, digital and information literacy, workforce and economic literacy, and health and civic literacy) that impact individuals and groups across distinct life stages with unique needs, from early childhood to older adulthood; 
• naming library contributions and capabilities for delivering literacy services to fosters stakeholder awareness, understanding, and awareness of what libraries can offer; 
• and understanding current policy priorities of elected officials and stakeholders to “connect the dots” between their priorities and libraries’ interests and capabilities. 

Our project team agreed that the main project deliverables would be an annotated bibliography and an SI699 course paper. The students also decided to create a short white paper summarizing their findings and conclusions with references (in addition to a poster for the exposition). 

As their semester ramped up, our student team began an iterative approach to search the literature and find data from various Michigan state agencies and organizations, national resources, and foundations, with advice from John, help from UM-Ann Arbor Education Liaison Librarian Karen Downing and retired school librarian Kathy Lester, and frequent communication with each other. They also found a February announcement about literacy investments in Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s proposed FY2027 budget, which does not mention funding for libraries. 

Some of the student team’s key data findings were as follows (see references list below):  

• Michigan currently ranks 44th in education nationwide (1) (lower than a ranking of 40th in 2022) 
• 45% of Michigan fourth graders perform at or below basic reading achievement levels (2)
• As one example of how students across Michigan are struggling to achieve literacy standards, only 14% of third graders in Detroit met or surpassed English Language Arts (ELA) grade level standards, and 91% of Detroit high school students scored below college readiness on their Standardized Aptitude Test (SAT) in all subject areas in 2023 (3)
• There are significant opportunities to improve adult literacy in a variety of ways, including: 
  • Digital literacy to find trustworthy information on the Internet (4)
  • Increasing access to information for incarcerated adults (5)
  • Increasing health literacy to encourage adults to seek preventive care (6)
• Studies in Michigan and North Carolina have found that students in schools with well-staffed school libraries with larger collections and librarian-classroom teacher collaboration scored higher in reading and literacy (7, 8)
• Barriers to connecting libraries with positive literacy impacts include a decrease in certified librarian staff in Michigan schools (i.e., a 60% drop between 2003 and 2013) and smaller collection sizes (9)
• Academic libraries’ digital literacy work can help students adapt to technology they will find in the workplace (10)
• Literacy skills can positively impact a person’s physical health, and also their emotional and mental health (6) 
• Exposure to works of fiction improves social ability and engages psychological processes that allow comprehension of a character’s personal experience (6)

In the course of their research, our student team came to recognize how vital libraries are for people’s development and success in their communities. Their course paper conclusion noted that: 

When libraries are well funded, their patrons are able to access countless resources, participate in civic engagement, and grow academically and socially. School libraries, public libraries, and university libraries…are all integral to the improvement of literacy rates… When libraries have increased numbers of qualified staff, larger collections, more resources, and are open for more hours, users are consequently more successful academically… Furthermore, library programs can be used for more specific scenarios for Michigan residents, including building up financial literacy and independence, as well as opportunities for learning and advancement for incarcerated populations (Brookman, Franklin, & Frumkin, SI699 course paper pp. 11-12). 

The students recommend strongly that Michigan provide more funding for libraries and see a significant opportunity given Governor Whitmer’s literacy priority. They also offered other advice to MCLS and EveryLibrary Institute, including looking beyond literacy in future work about the library’s benefits, monitoring political trends in Michigan and other midwestern states, and conducting primary research with library users. 

Moving forward from this great opportunity to work with enthusiastic and energetic students and EveryLibrary Institute, MCLS will continue pursuing opportunities to gather and share information about the positive impacts that libraries make for people across all stages of life. If you would be interested in learning more or getting involved, please let me know. We are interested in doing a similar project focusing on Indiana. 

I am always open to hearing ideas for how MCLS can support libraries. I hope to hear from you soon at garrisons@mcls.org.   

References  

1. Annie Casey Foundation. (2025, June). Education rank in Michigan. Kids Count Data Center. https://datacenter.aecf.org/data/tables/11425-education-rank?loc=24&loct=2#detailed/2/24/false/575,1096,2545,1095/any/22082. 
2. Annie Casey Foundation. (2025, Jan.). Fourth grade reading achievement levels in Michigan. Kids Count Data Center. https://datacenter.aecf.org/data/tables/5116-fourth-grade-reading-achievement-levels?loc=24&loct=2#detailed/2/24/false/1096,1095,1729,871,573,36,867,38,18,16/1185,1186,1187,1188/11560 
3. Data Driven Detroit. (2023). State of the Detroit child: Education. Data Driven Detroit. https://sdc.datadrivendetroit.org/profiles/0600000US2616322000 
4. Gross, B. (2023). Safety net: weaving a web of resources to catch what one-shots can’t. Journal of Electronic Resources Librarianship, 35(2), 114-128. 
5. Norton, N. & McGowan, M. (2023). Dictionaries denied: Information poverty in Michigan prison libraries. Journal of Civil Rights & Economic Development, 36(4).  
6. Shulman, K., Baicker, K. & Mayes, L. (2024). Reading for life-long health. Frontiers in Pediatrics, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fped.2024.1401739 
7. Burgin, R., & Bracy, P. B. (2003). An essential connection: How quality school library media programs improve student achievement in North Carolina. Hi Willow Research & Pub. https://www.lrs.org/documents/impact/NCSchoolStudy.pdf?lrspdfmetric=no 
8. Rodney, M. J., Lance, K. C. & Hamilton-Pennell, C. (2003). The impact of Michigan school librarians on academic achievement: Kids who have libraries succeed. Library of Michigan. https://wayback.archive-it.org/418/20150104053005/http:/www.michigan.gov/documents/hal_lm_schllibstudy03_76626_7.pdf 
9. Lester, K. (2021). Equity in literacy in Michigan. Teacher Librarian, 48(5), 38-42.  
10. Cormier, M., Brock, T., Jacobs, J., Kazis, R., & Glatter, H. (2022). Preparing for tomorrow’s middle-skill jobs: How community colleges are responding to technology innovation in the workplace. Community College Research Center. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED619844