Collection Equity: New Haven Free Public Library

The New Haven Public Library (Library) recognizes its role as a contributor to community health. The Collection Equity Award would allow the Library to increase access to health, medical, and wellness resources and materials that serve a diverse and multilingual urban population. We strive to eliminate common barriers to health equity and health literacy by offering a range of fitness, nutrition, and life-cycle educational programs.

The Library's "On Death and Dying" series was well-attended (approximately 50 participants) and received overwhelmingly positive feedback from the local community. The 4-program series included discussions led by death doulas about grieving the loss of a loved one and other experts about options for burial.

We have offered access to an array of free outdoor fitness classes, including Zumba, High- Intensity Interval Training, yoga, and our very popular POUND Fitness.

During the winter, the Library introduced a Basic Nutrition class—attended by 19 participants and viewed an additional 256 times since—the first in an ongoing series for which we plan to build a full curriculum. Supporting collection titles would go a long way in helping patrons fully understand and create lifelong healthy eating habits.