Obituaries

Liborio Campisi

Liborio Campisi, longtime Manager of Systems Programming at the Office of Library Services, died on October 27.

After several years with H. W. Wilson, he joined OLS in 1987, beginning as a systems programmer for the integrated library system project. Liborio, who had degrees in history and mathematics and a passion for opera, was responsible for the data processing operation of CUNY's central catalog from its Notis days to the current Aleph system.

At Liborio's passing, Greg Dunkel of the CUNY Central Office praised his “spirit and dedication to his work.” Curtis Kendrick, University Librarian, said, “One of the ways we can best honor Liborio is by working to make sure that the system to which he dedicated a large share of his life continues to work well.”

According to Marsha Ra, Curtis's predecessor, Liborio “was devoted to CUNY libraries and worked untold hours keeping the system going even when he was gravely ill. I would also say he was one of the kindest human beings I have ever known.”

Gladys Wynne Jarrett

Gladys Wynne Jarrett, one of three original York College librarians, died July 15, 2007 , at the age of ninety-one.

Born in Barnesville , Georgia , Gladys graduated from Hunter in 1936, received an MA in Spanish from Columbia in 1937 and an MLS from Pratt in 1963. She began her library career as a technical assistant in the New York Public Library in 1948 and later worked at Syracuse University , the Agricultural and Technical College of North Carolina, Brooklyn Public Library, and Pace College before coming to York as a cataloging librarian in 1967. 

She was later Head of Public Services, Acting Chief Librarian, and Chief Librarian from 1976 to 1985.  She is believed to have been the first African-American woman to be a CUNY chief librarian.  Gladys was also president of LACUNY in 1972-1973.

Dr. Hobart Jarrett, her husband of sixty-five years before his death in 2005, taught English at Brooklyn College from 1961 to 1986.

Alyce Stiegelbauer

Alyce Stiegelbauer, retired York librarian, died December 22, 2006 , at the age of 79.

Alyce began working at York as a college assistant in 1971. After earning an MLS from Queens in 1978, she served as evening librarian, head of cataloging, head of circulation, head of public services, systems coordinator, and deputy chief librarian. Alyce, who also had an MA in English from Queens , retired in 1988.

Richard Wall

Richard Wall, a member of the Queen College Libraries faculty since 1975, died July 7, 2007 .

Dick served as Queens ' bibliographer for several areas in the humanities, including English and American literature, theater, and film. He also served as the library's collection development specialist, coordinating all subject bibliographers in evaluating collections, testing new electronic and digital products, and assisting in preparing recommendations for the Tech Fee Committee.

Dick, who had an MLS from Simmons and an MA in English from Brandeis, served as Queens' representative on the CUNY Libraries Electronic Resources Advisory Committee for many years, chaired the library's Collection Development Steering Committee and Publications Committee, coordinated exhibits in the Rosenthal Library, served on the board of the Theatre Library Association, and chaired its awards committee for over a decade.

The Queens Libraries conducted a memorial service on December 4 and devoted the fall issue of PAGEdown, its newsletter, to memories of Dick: qcpages.qc.cuny.edu/Library/pagedown/index.html.

In February 2007, the Queens film studies collection, which Dick painstakingly developed, was named in his honor. To continue the development of the collection, the Richard Wall Film Studies Fund was created. Checks to the Queens College Foundation should include the memo line “for the Richard Wall Film Studies Fund” and may be sent to Professor Shoshana Kaufmann, Associate Librarian for Development, Benjamin Rosenthal Library, Queens College, 65-30 Kissena Blvd. , Flushing , NY 11367 . For further information, contact Shoshana at Shoshana.Kaufmann@qc.cuny.edu or 718-997-3741.