I remember the semester that Russ and I were planning our wedding and I was taking Social Sciences with Dr Bill Robinson in my Masters classes online through UTK and working full-time in my then-new job at Northeast State Community College. Somehow, no matter the topic, he managed to tie each week’s lesson to weddings or wedding planning in some way, and kept me both motivated and focused during an incredibly chaotic time…
During his course on Book Publishing, he taught me about the fine art of end papers, and so many other things I’d never taken any notice of…
In Public Libraries class, he expressed his concern for my future because my talents, he told me, were being wasted in an academic library. “You’re only fooling yourself, Chrissie. You ARE a PUBLIC Librarian, not an Academic Librarian; that’s where your true talents lie…”
And in his Genre Fiction Class class, which I actually took on-campus, at Temple Court, I got saddled with the genre of Romance, and Russ helped me research paperback novels when we went to the American Library Association Conference in Atlanta that Summer term, when I was taking the class. Dr Bill’s favorite reference to a romance novel was the fictitious The Wicked And The Whipped, which all of us loved. My genre partner and I made a book cover dummy for the non-existent book as part of our project for the class. I remember him being amused by it…
Dr Robinson graciously volunteered to serve on the committees that chose my first two book covers. He shared his thoughts and expertise, even though my days as a student were long-gone. But that’s what made Bill Robinson the phenomenal man he was, really. Even when we were his students, we were not merely students, as you can clearly see from the examples I’ve outlined from my four classes with him. We were already professionals. We were, above all else, human beings, not just his paycheck or career…
I will never forget the things that Dr Bill Robinson taught me. I will never forget how he treated me and saw things for me that i refused to see for myself. I will never forget how he included Russ in my School of Information Sciences family, when not all instructors/leaders there were friendly about doing so because Russ’ academic background was different from mine. I will never forget how he loved us. Because surely, he did. I’m so thankful for his mentorship and leadership. But even more for his friendship. Rest in peace, Dr Robinson. I will always appreciate what you taught me, about life, libraries, and myself.
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