Scope and Contents:
The Allen Avner Oral History Interview Collection consists of nineteen interviews with Richard Allen Avner conducted by Alexander Scheeline between December 2022 and January 2023.
Richard Allen Avner was born on March 1, 1937 in Fort Sheridan, Illinois, to Sim N. Avner and Laura Mae Moore Avner. Avner received a Bachelor of Science in Applied Psychology from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1961 and a Master of Arts in Experimental Psychology from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 1964. In 1962, he married astronomer and computer-assisted instruction developer Elaine Sweital Avner. Between 1964 and 1966, Avner served in the United States Army Aeromedical Research Laboratory at Fort Novosel (previously Fort Rucker), Alabama. Avner was a principal research scientist at the University of Illinois’ Computer-Based Education Research Laboratory from 1967 to 1993. Active in Champaign-Urbana’s Jewish community, Avner is a longtime member of Sinai Temple and has served on the board of directors of the Champaign-Urbana Jewish Federation.
Alexander Scheeline is a professor emeritus of chemistry at the University of Illinois, having joined the faculty in 1981. He is also a member of Sinai Temple and has served on the board of directors of the Champaign-Urbana Jewish Federation.
The collection includes audio files of interviews and files of interview transcriptions. In these interviews, Avner discussed his family, military service, work at the University of Illinois’ Computer-Based Education Research Laboratory, and involvement with Jewish organizations in Champaign-Urbana.
The interviews were donated to the Library by Alexander Scheeline and Richard Allen Avner in 2023 with transcriptions completed by Library graduate assistants in 2023 and 2024.
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