"During her career at the University of Texas at Austin, she was selected three times by students for the Ex-Students Award for Teaching Excellence where students remembered her as caring, involved, and supportive...Billie Grace was highly respected and loved by her community. She was known for her generosity, and genuine interest in and acceptance of others. She supported causes related to education, health, and the arts, and serving those in need, and she was active in her church at the First Presbyterian Church of Austin." --Emily Minott
Dr. Billie Grace Janet Herring (1932-2019)
Dr. Billie Grace Janet Herring:1932-2019
Dr. Billie Grace Herring was a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, teacher, and friend. Born on November 16, 1932, in Flatonia, TX, she grew up in a home shaped by hard work and care. Her father, William Ungerer, was a German immigrant and general contractor. Her mother, Minnie, was a homemaker who enjoyed tending to her garden. Billie had a close relationship with her half-sister named Hildegard.
After graduating as valedictorian of Flatonia High School where she left a legacy by writing the school song, Billie Grace moved to Austin to attend the University of Texas. There she met the love of her life, James Craig Herring. They married in 1956 and were married 55 years until his death in 2011.
Billie Grace built an extraordinary career at the University of Texas at Austin Graduate School of Library and Information Science, first as a student and later as an educator and leader. She served the university in numerous roles during her career from 1974 until her retirement in 1996, including:
· Professor Emerita of Library and Information Science
· Associate Dean
· Acting Dean
· Program Director for Learning Resources Certification
· Chairwoman of the Graduate Studies Committee
· Graduate Advisor
· Minority Affairs Officer for the Graduate School
During her career at the University of Texas at Austin, she was selected three times by students for the Ex-Students Award for Teaching Excellence where students remembered her as caring, involved, and supportive. Her legacy continues through the Billie Grace Herring Endowed Scholarship at The University of Texas at Austin School of Information, or iSchool.
Billie Grace was a dedicated scholar. She authored one book, twenty-three professional articles and book chapters, and contributed numerous professional publications. Her work included her book titled Cataloging and Classification published by the University of Texas at Austin in 1975, a learning packet titled Designing a Study of Available Resources for the Special Education Supervisor Training Project in 1975, and a book review in The Texas Press in 1978: The Generic Book: What it is and how it works. She was also a frequent author of book reviews to the Reference Services Division of the American Library Association, including:
· Sources in educational research: A selected and annotated bibliography (1970)
· The directory for exceptional children; A listing of educational and training facilities. 6th ed. (1970)
· Materials for occupational education, an annotated source guide (1972)
· Technician education yearbook, 1971-1972 (1972)
· Basic reference sources, A self-study manual: Preliminary edition (1972)
· A reference index to twelve thousand Spanish American authors; A guide to bibliographies and bio-bibliographies. (inter-American bibliographical and library association publications, series III, volume I) (1972)
· Bibliography of Latin American folklore: Tales, festivals, customs, arts, magic, music. (inter-American bibliography and library association publications, series I, volume 5) (1972)
· Dictionary catalog of the research libraries: A cumulative list of authors, titles, subjects, representing books and book-like materials added to the collections since January 1, 1971. (1972)
· National service directory of executive employment research, 1972–73; a critical and comparative study (1973)
· Educational vacations '73 (1973)
· American library resources: A bibliographical guide, supplement 1961–70 (1973)
· Education/Psychology journals: A scholar's guide (1976)
Beyond her professional accomplishments, Billie Grace was highly respected and loved by her community. She was known for her generosity, and genuine interest in and acceptance of others. She supported causes related to education, health, and the arts, and serving those in need, and she was active in her church at the First Presbyterian Church of Austin.
Billie Grace had an affinity for birds and birdwatching. She enjoyed classical music and collected glass paperweights. She belonged to a women's writer's circle, traveled, and researched German culture in Texas.
Dr. Billie Grace Herring passed peacefully in her sleep on August 31, 2019, at 86 years old in her home in Austin, Texas. Her life was one of service, scholarship, kindness, and love.
References
Legacy. (2019, September 4). Billie Herring Obituary (1932 - 2019) - Austin, TX - Austin American-Statesman. Legacy.com. https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/statesman/name/billie-herring-obituary?id=8071377
--Submitted by Emily Minott, Graduate Student, School of Information Sciences, Wayne State University School
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In honor of the Sesquicentennial (150th Anniversary of ALA) in 2026, the Library History Round Table is hosting Librarians We Have Lost, Sesquicentennial Memories -1976-2026. This collage of tributes seeks to honor librarians who died between 1976-2026. The tributes are published to ALA Connect, a digital memorial on LHRT News & Notes, and ALA's institutional repository (ALAIR).
We invite tributes from anyone about any library worker who passed away between 1976-2026. To submit a tribute, please use the form at https://lhrt.news/librarians-we-have-lost-sesquicentennial-memories-1976-2026-2/
For questions or comments, please reach out to Dr. Kathleen McCook (kmccook@usf.edu) or Brett Spencer (dbs21@psu.edu).
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Brett Spencer
Reference Librarian
Thun Library, Penn State Berks
He/Him/His
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