Gretchen Whitney Passed
KNOXVILLE – – In Memoriam: Gretchen Whitney, UT Knoxville School of Information Sciences retired associate professor, passed away in early April. She graduated from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill with both a bachelor’s and master’s degree. She completed her doctorate at the University of Michigan in 1988. Both Whitney’s master’s and doctoral degrees were in library science. Whitney is best known for creating the jESSE listserv in 1994 which was the leading discussion group for library and information sciences educators until the StanleyK discussion group was established in 2007.
Whitney came to UT in 1994 and taught courses in information environment, web design and content representation until her retirement in Oct. 2009. Prior to coming to UT, she was on the faculty at the University of Arizona. Whitney also worked in special libraries and the information industry. Whitney is survived by her sister Kay Whitney Fagundus of Winterville, NC. Gifts in memory of Dr. Gretchen Whitney can be made to the UT School of Information Sciences Enrichment Fund by selecting the “other fund not listed” option at https://securelb.imodules.com/s/1341/utk/index.aspx?sid=1341&gid=2&pgid=3204&cid=4841
She served ASIS&T in a variety of ways, including as Deputy Director of the SIG Cabinet and on the Board of Directors.
Gretchen also established and managed the e-mail list for Metrics.