It is with regret that the Faculty of Information announces the death of Professor Emerita Margaret Cockshutt on July 9, 2023 at the age of 96.
Professor Cockshutt (BLS 1949, MLS 1964) was librarian and teacher of cataloguing at the University of Toronto School of Library Science from her graduation in 1949 to 1961. She became a full-time instructor in 1964. She was also active in the administration of the School as Administrative Assistant to Dean Bertha Bassam and from 1984-87 as Associate Dean.
Professor Cockshutt was considered an expert in both cataloguing and the theory and application of classification systems, in particular the Dewey Decimal system. She was open to using new technologies to help “transition from traditional library services to more technology-oriented services,” said former colleague and Dean Emerita Adele Fasick.
Upon Professor Cockshutt’s retirement in 1992 and in honour of her long teaching career, a multimedia, interactive, electronic classroom for teaching, student use, and continuing education was planned and equipped in the Bissell Building, home to the Faculty of Information. In its most recent incarnation, the classroom continues to be one of the most technologically sophisticated classrooms on campus.
