Ruth Wiggins Waldrop, one of the founders of the UA School of Library and Information Studies, passed away ten days shy of her 99th birthday last week.
Waldrop was an alumna of the University and a lifelong advocate for libraries and the education of librarians. She was one of the main authors of a document titled, “A Proposal for Graduate Education in Librarianship: Crisis and Resolution” which was instrumental in establishing the current School of Library and Information Studies at the University.
“I have spoken to her only on the phone because I came here in 2003 and she had long since been retired,” said Elizabeth Aversa, director of the school of library and information studies. “The last time I spoke with her was in 2005 from her assisted living facility in Florida. She was extremely lively and very interested in what was going on in this school.”
Aversa explained that the reason Waldrop had such an interest in the status of the School of Library and Information Studies is because she is the very lady who lobbied the legislature to separate the school from the College of Education in 1969.
“I came here in 1984 and she was here at that time,” said Gordon Coleman, associate professor of the department of library science. “She had retired from teaching and had become the first executive director of the Alabama Library Association. She is the one that sort of kept the Association glued together, because sometimes volunteer groups with nothing but officers fall through the cracks. She had a long history in this state.”
During Coleman’s first encounter with Waldrop was when the two traveled together around various parts of the state.
“We went to the governor’s office in Montgomery, but he wasn’t there. She introduced me to the Superintendent of Education instead. She knew a lot of people,” Coleman said.
Among her numerous accomplishments, Waldrop authored books for both children and adults, including “How to Select a Children’s Book,” “Alabamiana for Grades K-12: An Annotated Bibliography” and a series centered on famous First Ladies. In the later part of her career, Waldrop served as executive director of the Alabama Library Association.
Waldrop was also the recipient of many professional and academic awards over the course of her career, such as the George Washington Honor Medal from the Freedoms Foundation of Valley Forge, Rothrock Award from the Southeastern Library Association, Citation for Exceptional Service from the Alabama Library Association, Helen Keller Literary Award from the Friends of Alabama Libraries, and the Golden Key Award from her alma mater at Livingston.
Coleman described Waldrop’s personality as upbeat, positive and optimistic.
“She could open all kinds of doors and sometimes would knock them down if they didn’t open willingly,” Coleman said.
