The Future Librarians for Inclusivity and Diversity is honored to be joined by our founder Crystal Jolly-Washington! Join us for this special conversation with Crystal and learn more about her vast community engagement work and her current position as a children's librarian at the Detroit Public Library.

Crystal Jolly-Washington is a life-long Detroiter who loves librarianship and her hometown. She is a children's librarian in her community at the Detroit Public Library (DPL) and spends much of her time visiting elementary schools and promoting the joy of reading on the DPL Mobile Library. 

Jolly-Washington has a Bachelor of Arts in public affairs from Wayne State University and graduated from the School of Information Sciences with a Master of Library and Information Science in 2012. She was the Diversity Graduate Student Assistant and was active in many of the school’s student organizations.

“I am so proud to have held the position of Diversity Graduate Student Assistant for SIS,” Jolly-Washington said. “I had the opportunity to participate in conferences and visit places all over the country in an effort to spread the word about viable career options in library and information science to underrepresented groups.”

Jolly-Washington also participated in outreach to community organizations in Detroit and was a co-founder and president of the Future Librarians for Inclusivity and Diversity student organization and vice president of the WSU chapter of the American Library Association.

"Being involved in student organizations definitely enhanced my experience at SIS,” she said. “I met so many wonderful colleagues I probably would not have met if not for participating in student organizations. Additionally, taking on leadership roles enabled me to hone my leadership and networking skills."