Stokes Health Sciences Library (Louis Stokes Health Sciences Library)

The Louis Stokes Health Sciences Library (LSHSL) is the primary health information research facility for the university's medical, dental, pharmacy, nursing, and allied health students and faculty. The library offers seating for 600, including study carrels with club chairs, throughout the LSHSL in traditional and non-traditional settings. There are 21 group- and single-study rooms in total:  11 small study rooms each have a table and four chairs; eight problem-based learning rooms are furnished with a table, and seats 10.  There are also two single-study rooms for students studying for their board exams. A whiteboard is mounted in each of these rooms. 

The LSHSL is also equipped to serve the health information needs of individual patients, healthcare providers, the community, and researchers in general. Spread over 80,000 square feet and towering at four levels of one of the most iconic buildings on campus, the LSHSL has two elevators and offers space to meet various needs of the Howard community. The Louis Stokes Health Sciences Library is a resource library for the National Networks of Libraries of Medicine of the National Library of Medicine. The library is also one of nine libraries that belong to the Washington Research Library Consortium (WRLC), which supports and enhances member libraries and information services of universities in the Washington, DC metropolitan area. The WRLC enables the success of learning and scholarship by creating coordinated collections, designing a robust infrastructure for discovery and access, and ensuring the long-term preservation of physical and digital information resources and sharing expertise.

The library is affiliated with the Medical Library Association as well as the Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries (AAHSL). The AAHSL comprises the libraries serving the accredited U.S. and Canadian medical schools belonging to or affiliated with the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). It includes other related libraries and organizations that lead in resolving information and knowledge management problems in the health care environment.

The building contains numerous learning, study, and meeting spaces, including: 

Ground Floor

• The university seal on the floor of the LSHSL Gallery welcomes all patrons to the library. The Gallery is adorned with Howard University memorabilia and accommodates up to 75 people.
• With seating for 40 Room 138 is a flexible classroom environment and meeting space.
• The Harold J. Kaplan Classroom (Room 119) seats 30.
• College of Medicine’s Class of 1955 Student Lounge has six tables, seating for 24, three beverage vending machines, a snack machine, microwave, and a television.

Second Floor

• Eight Problem-Based Learning rooms are used for seminars and group study spaces. There is a total of 96 chairs and 48 tables.
• With seating for 23, the Faculty Reading Room offers a tranquil venue for reading, writing, or relaxing.
• Room 219 offers seating for 25 and is a flexible classroom environment and meeting space.

Third Floor

• The Special Collections Stacks provide a secure and controlled environment for the preservation of historical materials (rare books, artifacts, manuscripts) documenting the health sciences history of the University and Howard University Hospital.  It also serves as a repository for the intellectual contributions of African American health practitioners. These materials are available by appointment only.
• With built-in wood and glass cabinetry lining the walls, the Special Collections Reading Room is a pleasant space for the display and use of special collections and archival materials and is also used for executive-level meetings.

Fourth Floor

• The Fourth-Floor open space accommodates about 125 persons. This popular room is used for special events and also converts into a study area.  Adjacent to this space is the intimate Dr. George Jones Conference Room with scenic views of Freedmen’s Square, where the Freedmen’s Hospital was initially established to aid in the medical treatment of former slaves in Washington, D.C. In 1868, six years after its founding, Freedmen’s Hospital became a teaching hospital for the Howard University Medical School.
• The Health Science Testing Center is located on the 4^th floor of the Louis Stokes Health Science Library. There are 130 workstations, study carrels, and student lockers.

About the Building's Name

The Louis Stokes Health Sciences Library is named for Congressman Louis Stokes (LL.D. 1985), who represented the Cleveland, Ohio area in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1969-1999. He was the first Black person to serve on the powerful United States House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations. He was a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus.  A long standing champion of equity, he was particularly active in working to reduce health inequities, and used his perch on the Appropriations Committee to direct federal funding to support minority health education. He also chaired the Appropriations Committee’s Subcommittee for Veterans, HUD, and Independent Agencies, the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct (Ethics Committee), and the Select Committee on Assassinations.  In addition, he served on the House Select Committee on Intelligence.

Howard University awarded Stokes an honorary Doctor of Laws degree in 1985 after he served as the Charter Day speaker.

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