We Are St. Louis
St. Louis County Library, Mo.
Innovation Synopsis
Exploring the answer to the question “Who is St. Louis?” helps us as a community understand that the region is made stronger by its diversity of residents. This series of programs focuses on these cultures, religions, nationalities, races and ethnicities. Each newcomer brings new ideas and vibrancy to the region.
Challenge/Opportunity
Through a partnership between St. Louis County Library and St. Louis County Parks, we are able to address cultural literacy in an engaging way. There is a need for increased knowledge of the heritage of the St. Louis region including the history and influence of the various identities, races, cultures and ethnicities. It is evident from the suggestions for future topics that there is a desire to continue to learn about various cultures.
Key Elements of Innovation
SLCL and the historian at St. Louis County Parks, collaborated to schedule topics, locations and dates for the all programs in the "We Are St. Louis" series including: • German Heritage in August, • Mexican Heritage in September • African-American Heritage in November • American-Indian Heritage in December • Japanese Heritage in January • Jewish Heritage in March • Bosnian Heritage in April
The format was typically a panel discussion and some entertainment.
Achieved Outcomes
An average of 80 people attended the We Are St. Louis series, with one of them (German) having over 200 attendees. A survey was emailed to all participants of the seven programs. 95 percent of survey respondents indicated that they would be “very likely” or “likely” to attend a future event. We received the 2017 Award of Merit for our "We are St. Louis" series from the American Association for State and Local History.
