Gwendolyn S. Cruzat facts for kids

Gwendolyn Stiggins Cruzat (born c. 1930) is a very important librarian and teacher. She is a Professor Emerita from the University of Michigan. This means she was a professor who retired but still holds her title. Her teaching and research greatly helped the field of medical librarianship. Medical librarians help doctors and nurses find important health information. In 1998, the Medical Library Association named her one of the 100 most notable medical librarians.

Early Life and Learning

Gwendolyn Stiggins was born in Chicago, Illinois. She grew up in Midland, Pennsylvania. She loved learning and went to college.

College Degrees

She earned her first degree, a bachelor's in mathematics, from Fisk University in 1951. After that, she got a master's degree in library science from Atlanta University in 1954. Her master's project studied how children's book choices were linked to their television interests. Later, in 1976, she earned her PhD from Wayne State University. Her PhD research was about how librarians in colleges worked together to bargain for their rights.

Her Career as a Librarian

Gwendolyn Cruzat had a long and successful career. She worked in different libraries and taught many students.

Early Library Work

From 1954 to 1960, Cruzat was the head of reference at her old college, Fisk University. In 1960, she moved to Detroit. There, she worked at the Harper Hospital Library until 1964. In 1964, she became a research librarian at Wayne State University's medical school library. She stayed there until 1970. In this role, she helped manage a program for students learning to be medical librarians.

Teaching at University of Michigan

In 1970, Cruzat joined the School of Information and Library Studies as a lecturer. A lecturer is a teacher at a university. She became a full professor in 1979. This is a very high teaching rank. Cruzat created a special program at the school for students who wanted to become medical librarians. She also led the program for students earning their PhDs. She helped create an online lab where students could learn how to search databases and organize information. Cruzat retired from teaching in 1993.

Helping the Library Community

Gwendolyn Cruzat did a lot to help other librarians and libraries. She shared her knowledge with many people.

Consultant and Traveler

Cruzat was a visiting teacher at several universities. She also worked as a consultant for important groups. These included the U.S. Department of Education and the National Library of Medicine. She even worked with the Library of Congress, which is a huge library in the United States. She traveled to places like Hawaii and Puerto Rico for special projects. She also went to Brazil to teach workshops and advise their medical library.

Leadership Roles

Cruzat was very active in the Medical Library Association. She led different parts of this group. She also held leadership roles in the American Library Association (ALA). From 1978 to 1980, she led a committee that focused on collective bargaining for librarians. From 1984 to 1986, she worked on the ALA Committee on Accreditation. Here, she strongly supported having more diversity in schools that taught library science. She also served on the Board of Regents for the National Library of Medicine from 1981 to 1984.

Her Amazing Legacy

Gwendolyn Cruzat received many awards for her hard work and contributions.

Awards and Honors

In 1977, the University of Michigan gave her the Distinguished Service Award. She was the first person in the university's library school to get this special honor. In 1979, she gave an important speech called "Medical Librarianship: A Systems Perspective" for the Medical Library Association. In 1993, she was recognized as a lifelong Fellow of the association. The Medical Library Association also named her one of their 100 most notable medical librarians in 1998.

In 1989, she received the Distinguished Alumna Award from the Atlanta University School of Information and Library Studies. When she retired in 1993, the University of Michigan named her Professor Emeritus. This means she kept her professor title even after retiring. In 2006, her old college, Fisk University, gave her an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree. This is a special award that honors her achievements.