Herbert S. White

Herbert S. White (1927-2024) was an American librarian.

Image of Herbert S. White

Life

Herbert Spencer White was born July 5, 1927 in Vienna, Austria. He studied at the City College of New York, 1944-1946, then at Syracuse University 1947-1950 where he earned a BS in Chemistry (1949) and an MS in Library Science (1950). He served in the US Army Air Corps, 1946-1947.

White became director of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Scientific and Technical Information Facility, was a librarian at the Library of Congress and at the Atomic Energy Commission, program manager of the IBM Corporate Technical Information Center, and Vice President for Operations of the Institute for Scientific Information.

In 1975 he joined the Indiana University, Bloomington campus White was dean and professor from 1975-1991 at and distinguished Professor Emeritus after 1991. [5]

• IBM
• NASA
• ISI
• Indiana University

He died on September 9, 2024.

Contributions

White believes that a special library must be efficient and its goals must support the objectives of its parent organization. He thinks that managing the boss is the most important thing a special librarian can do; therefore, the librarian must "convince the boss it is his job and in the organization's best interests to support the librarian. While President of ISI, he started new programs, including the North European Chapter, began publishing the Bulletin (ASIS Bulletin Vol. 3, Dec. 1975).

"Through writings, speeches, and contributions to library education and management, he has had a career that mirrors the life and spirit of Melvil Dewey" (American Libraries, June 1987). He wrote "Research & Reality," a column in American Libraries; "White Papers," a column in Library Journal. He is interested in Library and information management, information retrieval, library mechanization.

For more detailed biographical information see: http://www.indiana.edu/~alldrp/members/white.html

A brief sketch of him appears in Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_S._White

Awards

American Society for Information Science and Technology. Watson Davis Award; Award of Merit, *1981.

• Special Libraries Association. J.C. Dana Award, 1985.
• American Library Association. Melvil Dewey Award (ALA) 1987.
• Indiana Librarian Lifetime Achievement Award (CLR). 1990.

Offices

• Special Libraries Association. President, 1969-70.
• American Federation of Information Processing Societies. Director, 1972-78.
• American Society for Information Science and Technology. President. 1973-74.
• International Federation for Documentation (FID). Board of Directors, 1976-78; Treasurer, 1978-82.
• Association for Library and Information Science Education. Chairman, Governmental Relations Committee, 1980-88.
• American Library Association. Councillor, 1988 - ?

Further reading

• "Herbert S. White." Wikipedia [1]
• Who's Who in Library Service. 4th ed. [New York]: Shoe String Press, 1966. p 742.
• White, Herb. Videotaped oral history, No. 92-045. Indiana University, Bloomington. staff and is located in the Indiana University Center for the Study of History and Memory, April 1992. [2].