b. Dec. 15, 1920; d. Jan 13, 2013, Los Gatos, CA

BA 1945 University of Michigan
MA 1948 University of Michigan
MS in Library Science 1959 Columbia University

Research Assistant, History of Science Dept., Cornell University
New York Public Library
Director, City University of New York’s URBANDOC Project
1969-1976 Director, City University of New York (CUNY) Center for the Advancement Library and Information Science
1976-1981 Director, Graduate School of Library Science, McGill University
1981- Head Librarian, College of Staten Island (part of CUNY)

Sessions, Vivian S. (1963). The city planning and housing library: an experiment in the organization of materials. New York: New York Public Library.

Sessions, Vivian S. (1964). URBANDOC, a report on computerization, documentation and information retrieval, in the literature of urban planning and renewal. New York: s.n.

Sessions, Vivian S. (1971). URBANDOC: a bibliographic information system. New York: CUNY. 3 v.

Sessions, Vivian S. (1974). Directory of data bases in the social and behavioral sciences. New York: Science Associates International.

Vivian`s teaching career began at CUNY in a continuing education program “with part-time lecturers, emphasizing online searching and information science. She was the first director for the School from outside McGill. The Dean of Graduate Studies, under whose jurisdiction the School operated, wanted the School to develop strength in information science. Vivian established immediately an online retrieval laboratory with terminals and computers which supported her teaching area. Within a few years, however, all but one of the faculty in place at her time of arrival had left, discouraged by the style and content of her leadership. The 1980 accreditation resulted in McGill receiving a two-year conditional accreditation” and Vivian resigned and returned to New York. “Vivian left an indelible impression on all who knew her.”

Peter F. McNally, Professor and Director, History of McGill Project.