EDITOR
Jonathan Grudin
jgrudin@microsoft.com

Gary Olson recently moved to UCI from the University of Michigan, where as faculty member and acting dean, he participated in the formation of its influential School of Information, described in this article. I have helped track down historical information on other influential iSchools. We may be witnessing the birth of a new star in the academic firmament—its growth, so far only a little slower than a supernova, may be tested by the economic collapse, but could accelerate with a recovery. —Jonathan Grudin

The Information School
Phenomenon

Gary M. Olson University of California Irvine | gary.olson@uci.edu

Jonathan Grudin
Microsoft Research | jgrudin@microsoft.com

The past 15 years have seen a remarkable movement in academic circles, the emergence of infor-

[1] Some universities apply the terms school

mation schools, or iSchools for short (the moniker

the organizations under this banner are indeed schools or colleges; many can be found at leading research universities.

and college to somewhat different organi-

created by an organization of such schools). In

zational entities, but we

this article we examine the iSchool movement, “Information” Becomes an Academic Focus, and

follow the convention used by most, whereby

tracing its history, speculating on its longevity, Syracuse the First iSchool

and looking at its impact on human computer The term “information” was gradually added to

they are essentially equivalent.

[2] We call this a “proto-

interaction (HCI) research and education. the names of departments and schools. In 1964

school” because while

The iSchools have an organization—the the Graduate Library School at the University of

it was a department, not a school, it was not

iSchools Caucus ( www.ischools.org)—and hold an Pittsburgh became the Graduate School of Library

annual conference; as of this writing, 21 schools and Information Sciences. In 1968, the new

part of any other school, and reported to the vice

chancellor.

are members. Antecedents of the iSchool phe- University of California Irvine campus established

[3] The quotation is

nomenon emerged gradually in the late 20th cen- a “proto-school” called Information and Computer

from T. Didomenico, “Three Decades as an

tury. The movement gathered momentum in the Science [2].

Information Leader,”

Home Page 7, no.

early 1990s and has already stirred several pots: Then, in 1974, Syracuse University Dean Robert

1 (2004). < http://

the library world, computer science, design stud- Taylor, noting the rise of telecommunications and

ischool.syr.edu/news- room/newsletters/

ies, to name a few. computing, rechristened the School of Library

ISTSummer2004.pdf>.

Let’s preface the history of the iSchools with a Science as the School of Information Studies. He

Interpreting the word

“information” in a title

brief digression on the status of a school in a uni- considered this “a way to fold the library science

is complicated by the use of “information

versity. Although there are no formal definitions program’s vision of enabling people to find and use

of what a university is, most universities consist of information into an ever-broadening set of academ-

systems” as a synonym for computer hardware

and software systems in

a collection of schools and colleges, which in turn ic disciplines.” It would be 20 years before another

the management field.

We consider “informa-

oversee the programs of the various disciplines school selected a name in which information was

tion systems” to be a

tightly defining term, not
an expansive term, so
cinating organizations, evolving and reacting to Library science has a central role in this account, do not include it as a
variant of information. In

or departments. Universities themselves are fas- the only discipline [3].

changes in society around them. At many U.S. so it is important to note that departments and

contrast, “Informatics”
universities, a school or college is in a politically schools of library science went through a very ^{as used at Indiana has a}
social, multidisciplinary
strong position. Their deans are powerful in the rough period during the 1970s and 1980s. More focus. Our incomplete
canvas found an M.S. in

March + April 2009

university’s administrative structure, much more than 15 library schools closed, including several at

information science at so than departments and department chairs [1]. leading research universities—Chicago, Minnesota, ^{Drexel in 1963, thus far} the earliest iDegree of

So in the context of university life, it is signifi- Columbia, and the University of Southern

which we are aware.