Reihhard Keith Doms (April 24, 1920 – September 26, 2009) was an American librarian. Doms served as president of the

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with 49,727 members a ...

from 1970 to 1971 and was director of the

Free Library of Philadelphia The Free Library of Philadelphia is the public library system that serves Philadelphia. It is the 13th-largest public library system in the United States. The Free Library of Philadelphia is a non-Mayoral agency of the City of Philadelphia gove ...

from 1969 to 1987. Born in Endeavor, Wisconsin, Doms attended the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...

where he received degrees in French and

library science Library science (often termed library studies, bibliothecography, and library economy) is an interdisciplinary or multidisciplinary field that applies the practices, perspectives, and tools of management, information technology, education, and ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he served in the

Army Signal Corps The United States Army Signal Corps (USASC) is a branch of the United States Army that creates and manages communications and information systems for the command and control of combined arms forces. It was established in 1860, the brainchild of Ma ...

' Intelligence Service. The Army also sent him to

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to study

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

. Prior to moving to

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

in 1969, Doms was assistant director and then director of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. Doms served as Director of the Free Library of Philadelphia from 1969 to 1987. He was known for incorporating progressive technologies in their libraries. In a 1971 article in ''American Libraries'', Dom stated:

"In ten years the majority of young people will be comfortable with and very much skilled in the use of both print and nonprint media… The librarians of this nation must prepare themselves and their institutions to be as fully responsive to the expectations of the next generation as is possible."

Doms also held leadership positions in Concord, New Hampshire, and Midland, Michigan. After his retirement in Philadelphia, he became Director of the Urban Libraries Council in 1987. Doms died at his home in State College, Pennsylvania on September 26, 2009.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Doms, Keith 1920 births 2009 deaths People from Marquette County, Wisconsin Military personnel from Wisconsin Presidents of the American Library Association American librarians University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Letters and Science alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Library and Information Studies alumni