This project received funding support from the Global Arts + Humanities Discovery Theme

This autumn, Ohio State faculty, librarians and alumni and the Bexley Public Library are collaborating on a series of intergenerational workshops to support children and their families research and write their own heritage stories.

Bigger Than Me: My Story, My Culture, is a new children’s book series that nests personal stories within broader family and cultural histories, empowering children who have grown up away from their countries of family origin to connect or reconnect with their cultural heritage.  

This pilot program is led by Michelle Wibbelsman (Spanish and Portuguese), Leticia Wiggins (Ethnic Studies Librarian), Hallie Fried (alumna and educator) and youth librarians at Bexley Public Library. It is modeled on the children’s book, On the Wings of the Condor, featured in WOSU’s Columbus Neighborhoods segment “Genealogy for New Generations.”  

The workshops bring children and family members together as partners in researching, gathering materials and conducting oral history interviews for their unique stories. Workshops equip participants with resources and research methods by “teaching on the sly” and approaching collaborative research as quality family time and fun.  

The program will culminate in a series of self-published books co-written by children and their families. Bexley Public Library will host a showcase in spring 2025 to celebrate the Bigger Than Me: My Story, My Culture series and allow participants to share their published stories and workshop experiences. 

Learn More

For more information on these workshops, collaboration with community partners, or the Bigger Than Me children’s book series,  reach out to Michelle Wibbelsman (wibbelsman.1@osu.edu) or Leticia Wiggins(wiggins.65@osu.edu). 

This community-engaged initiative received generous funding support from OSU Libraries, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, College of Arts and Sciences Office of Engagement, OAA Office of Outreach and Engagement, Department of Spanish and Portuguese, Humanities Institute, Center for Ethnic Studies, Global Arts and Humanities Discovery Themes and Bexley Public Library Youth Services.