Collections : [University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library]

Organization dedicated to outreach, education, and intervention for troubled youth located in Albion, Michigan. The collection includes materials related to Floyd Starr, Foundtaion's administrative and development records, historic and promotional photographs, analog and digital audio-visual recordings, marketing materials, as well as publications.

The Starr Commonwealth Records collection contains 150.4 linear feet (157 boxes), 1.65 GB, and 52 oversize boxes of the records from the main administrative office of the Starr Commonwealth organization. It also includes historical records from the Starr Commonwealth School for Boys and records from the organization's branch facilities located across Michigan and Ohio. The collection also contains a substantial amount of material related to Floyd Starr, the founder and first president of the organization. Materials include correspondence, records, publications, videocassettes, audiocassettes, digital files, photographs, scrapbooks. The collection highlights the life and work of Floyd Starr, the administrative work of Starr Commonwealth, and the impact of the organization on local communities in Michigan and Ohio.

The Starr Commonwealth records have been organized into seven series: the Floyd Starr series, the Visitors series, the Administrative records series, the Marketing records series, the Development records series, the Publications series, and the Visual materials and Artifacts series.

The Floyd Starr series contains correspondence, papers and audiovisual materials about the life of Starr Commonwealth's founder.

The Visitors series contains correspondence, speech transcripts, photographs, and clippings from the visits of influential individuals to Starr Commonwealth. The series highlights materials from the trips of George Washington Carver and Helen Keller to Starr Commonwealth to visit with the students and deliver inspiring speeches.

The Administrative records series contains records, notes, correspondence, clippings, audiovisual materials and photographs from the central administrative offices of Starr Commonwealth. The series also includes materials from the Starr Commonwealth Public Relations department and the Chapel-in-the-Woods religious facility on the Albion campus.

The Marketing records series contains records, photographs and audiovisual materials that illustrate publicity projects and strategies for the organization.

The Development records series contains records, publications, and photographs from fundraising and donor activities. These records highlight some of Starr Commonwealth's major fundraising strategies and activities.

The Publications series contains published materials produced by Starr's Albion, Van Wert and Columbus campuses. Publications include annual reports, student and faculty newsletters, student handbooks, and scholarly publications from Starr Commonwealth leadership.

The Visual Materials and Artifacts series contains a collection of scrapbooks, photographs, photograph albums, and slides. It also contains materials and artifacts from Bruecker Museum on the Albion campus. These materials provide a visual representation of the students, faculty, buildings and major events at Starr Commonwealth throughout its history.

Writer, journalist, news broadcaster, radio host, television producer, creative consultant, and teacher in Detroit, Mich. Includes materials related to Ovshinsky's founding of Detroit's first underground newspaper, The Fifth Estate, as well as photographs, correspondence, writings, personal memorabilia, legal materials, press articles, topical files, transcripts and audiovisual materials representing Ovshinsky's work in radio and television from the 1960s through the 2000s.

The collection traces Harvey Ovshinsky's personal and professional development as a writer, journalist, news broadcaster, radio host, television producer, creative consultant, and teacher. The Personal files include autobiographical writings providing insights into the events in Ovshinsky's childhood and adolescence that led to his early interest in writing and journalism. The Professional files contain the first issues of The Fifth Estate, and extensive memorabilia and press coverage on various radio stations and video and television production companies where Ovshinsky was employed. This series encompasses material on the history of Detroit's counterculture in the 1960s and 1970s. The Project files also include topical files on Detroit culture and history, which inspired many of Ovshinsky's documentaries and creative writing.

Materials from Ovshinsky's teaching career and transcripts from his speaking engagements in the Professional files reveal his approach to teaching writing, while drafts for films, stories, and television series in the Project files offer a view into Ovshinsky's creative process. Files named "War Dances" appear throughout both the Professional files and the Project files series. "War Dances" were an integral part of Ovshinsky's approach to both problem solving and the creative process. "War Dances" were personal notes and reflections in which Ovshinsky assessed his present situation, identified his goals and imagined paths to the solution of a problem or to the final stages of a project. Materials from the subseries Educational and children's properties in the Project files include extensive topical files from Ovshinsky's research on how children learn through play. Samples of Ovshinsky's work in radio, television, educational programming and public speaking are available in Audiovisual materials.