Dorothy Murray Crosland (September 13, 1903 - March 24, 1983) was the long-time head

librarian A librarian is a person who works professionally in a library providing access to information, and sometimes social or technical programming, or instruction on information literacy to users. The role of the librarian has changed much over time, ...

of the

Georgia Tech Library The Georgia Tech Library is an academic library that serves the needs of students, faculty, and staff at the Georgia Institute of Technology. The library consists of the S. Price Gilbert Memorial Library and Dorothy M. Crosland Tower. In addition ...

at the

Georgia Institute of Technology The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

. Initially appointed as Assistant Librarian in 1925, she was promoted to Librarian in 1927 and Director of Libraries in 1953, a title she would hold until her retirement in 1971.

Education and early life

Crosland was born on September 13, 1903, in

Stone Mountain, Georgia Stone Mountain is a city in DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The population was 6,703 according to the 2020 US Census. Stone Mountain is in the eastern part of DeKalb County and is a suburb of Atlanta that encompasses nearly 1.7 square mil ...

. She went to Girls High School in Atlanta, and graduated in 1923 with a degree from the Library School of the Carnegie Library of Atlanta, later known as the

Emory University Emory University is a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1836 as "Emory College" by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory, Emory is the second-oldest private institution of ...

School of Library Science.

Career

In 1945, Crosland was named the Woman of the Year in Education. Crosland was the executive secretary (from 1950 to 1952) and president (from 1952 to 1954) of the

Southeastern Library Association The Southeastern Library Association (SELA) is an organization that collaborates with different library associations within the Southeastern United States, including Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Caro ...

and president of the Georgia Library Association from 1949 to 1951. Crosland oversaw the planning and construction of the current library building and the architecture library at Georgia Tech, both of which were dedicated in 1952. She also oversaw the construction of the Graduate Addition, a tower one-and-a-half times the size of the existing library, which was completed in 1968. The building's dedication stated: "In a real sense these two buildings are a memorial to Dorothy M. Crosland, Director of Libraries. Through her industry, her persistence and perseverance, her foresightedness, both structures have been conceived and brought to completion." The Graduate Addition was renamed the Crosland Tower in 1985. Crossland played a key role in the foundation of the College of Computing through her involvement in the convening of a series of conferences in 1961 and 1962. These would eventually result in the establishment of the School of Information (as it was then known) and the United States' first master's program in Information Science. In 1961, she was named an honorary alumna of Georgia Tech.

External links

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crosland, Dorothy Murray 1903 births 1983 deaths Georgia Tech faculty Georgia Tech alumni Emory University alumni