Margaret Trask

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Margaret Trask
Born(1928-04-28)28 April 1928
Died19 November 2002(2002-11-19) (aged 74)
NationalityAustralian
OccupationLibrarian
Known forDeputy Chancellor of UTS; founder of the "Australian Information Management Association"
Parent(s)Mary Winifred Price and Henry Kinsella

Margaret Trask AM (28 April 1928 – 19 November 2002) was an Australian librarian and educator, as well as Deputy Chancellor of the University of Technology Sydney (UTS). She is considered to be a pioneer in the area of information sciences in Australasia.[1][2]

Career[edit]

Trask began her career working for the State Library of New South Wales. She also worked as a librarian for the Penrith City Counci and the University of New South Wales (UNSW).[2] In 1968, she began teaching library studies at the UNSW.

In 1974, Trask founded the School of Library and Information Studies at the Kuring-gai College of Advanced Education, which later became part of the campus at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS).[1][3] She was the head of the school until 1985, implementing new curriculums for undergraduate and graduate library studies.[2] She was also a member of the UTS council for eight years[1] and received a fellowship from the university in 1991.[4] From 1998 until 2002, Trask served as deputy chancellor of the UTS.[5]

Related activities[edit]

Trask became a member of the Library Association of Australia"in 1956. The association awarded her a fellowship in 1969, for her work in helping subsidise public high school libraries.[3][2] In 1977, she also served as president of the association's "Children's Libraries" section, advocating for better resources for schools.[1][3][2]

From 1968 until 1973, she sat on the Secondary Schools Libraries Committee, affecting government policy through her many written reports.[3] In 1985, she co-founded the Australian Information Management Association (AIMA) and became its executive director of Training & Consultancy Services.[1] The AIMA offered leadership development and consultancy services in the area of library sciences, impacting libraries across Australian, New Zealand and the South Pacific.[5]

Trask also wrote numerous articles for library periodicals, as well as for book reviewing and education journals.[2][6][7]

Awards and distinctions[edit]

In 1979, Trask was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia.[8] Every year, the University of Technology Sydney hands out a medal in her honor to deserving graduates.[5] In 2003, a special issue on Trask's career was published by the "Australian Library Journal".[5] In 2018, a street was named after her in the Canberra suburb of Coombs.[3]

Background[edit]

Trask was born on 28 April 1928 in Camden, New South Wales.[4] Her parents were Mary Winifred Price and Henry Kinsella, both immigrants from Ireland.[4] Trask graduated with a bachelor's degree from the University of New England and obtained a Master of Librarianship from the University of New South Wales.[2][4] She died on 19 November 2002.[4]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e "Farewell Margaret Trask - UTS News Room". Newsroom.uts.edu.au.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "Margaret Trask - Australian Library and Information Association". Alia.org.au.
  3. ^ a b c d e Eichholzer, Brendan (16 May 2018). "Two Canberra roads to be named after librarians - Australian Library and Information Association". Australian Library and Information Association. Archived from the original on 21 January 2021. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Margaret Trask AM BA, MLib, FLAA". The Australian Library Journal. 51 (4): 287–289. 2002. doi:10.1080/00049670.2002.10755997. ISSN 0004-9670.
  5. ^ a b c d "Obituary : Margaret Trask, AM" (PDF). Austlii.edu.au. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  6. ^ "Margaret Trask". Worldcat.org. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  7. ^ "Trask, Margaret (1928-2002) - People and organisations". Worldcat.org. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  8. ^ "Mrs Margaret Trask". It's An Honour. Retrieved 16 July 2021.