Richard (Dick) De Gennaro, the director of libraries at Penn from 1970 to 1986, died on October 11, 2024, from natural causes. He was 98.

Born in New Haven, Connecticut, Mr. De Gennaro joined the U.S. Navy at age 16. He served four years in the Pacific Theater during World War II as a radioman and rose to the rank of Petty Officer First Class. After the war, Mr. De Gennaro earned a BA and MBA at Wesleyan University, then studied in Paris, Poitiers, Barcelona, Madrid, and Perugia from 1951 to 1955. After returning to the U.S., he earned a master of library science at Columbia University.

Mr. De Gennaro started his career in 1956 as a reference librarian in the New York Public Library. Two years later, he joined the staff at Harvard University, where he attended the advanced management program at Harvard Business School and rose through the ranks in Harvard’s library system. From 1967 to 1968, he was also a visiting professor at the University of Southern California. He then returned to the east coast; from 1970 to 1986, he served as the director of libraries at the University of Pennsylvania. During his time at Penn, Mr. De Gennaro played a pivotal role in bringing computers to Penn’s library systems, served on Penn’s Faculty Senate Committee on Education, and was an active and genial member of Penn’s community.

After leaving Penn, Mr. De Gennaro served as director of the New York Public Library for four years before returning to Harvard in 1991 as the Roy E. Larsen Librarian of Harvard College. During his career at Harvard, he became an internationally recognized authority on library management and information technology, publishing numerous peer-reviewed articles and the book Libraries, Technology, and the Information Marketplace. He was recognized as a leader in his field with the American Library Association’s Melvil Dewey Medal (1986), Academic Librarian of the Year Award (1991), and Hugh Atkinson Memorial Award (1993). Mr. De Gennaro also held roles in several professional organizations, including as chair of the Research Libraries Group and as president of the Association of Research Libraries.

“Richard De Gennaro left a lasting imprint on the field of library and information science, and more importantly, on the people who were his friends, colleagues, and students,” said his family. “He was a man of vision, a person who had an enormous supply of patience but who also would not suffer foolishness gladly. He was able to convey new and unusual ideas in a way that stirred the imagination and enthusiasm of others.”

He is survived by his wife, Barbara; his children, Rafael and Christina; and many nieces and nephews.