Benjamin Gross Appointed Associate Director of Research Services at the Harry Ransom Center

The Harry Ransom Center at The University of Texas at Austin has appointed Benjamin Gross as the John Merritt Associate Director for Research Services, a senior leadership position responsible for guiding the Center’s research operations and advancing its mission to foster inquiry, discovery, and learning.

Gross comes to the Ransom Center from the Linda Hall Library in Kansas City, Missouri, an independent research library devoted to the history of science, technology, and engineering. As Vice President for Research and Scholarship, he led academic outreach initiatives and launched a new virtual fellowship program to support scholars unable to travel to the Midwest.

At the Ransom Center, Gross will oversee all aspects of research services, including reading room operations, reference and instruction, and the administration of the Center’s internationally recognized fellowship program. He joins a team deeply committed to facilitating meaningful engagement with the Center’s vast collections in literature, photography, performing arts, and the humanities.

Gross holds a BA in history from Yale University and a PhD in the history of science from Princeton University. His research on the development of liquid crystal displays (LCDs) began with his dissertation and continued through appointments at the Science History Institute and The College of New Jersey, where he curated the Sarnoff Collection. He is the author of The TVs of Tomorrow: How RCA’s Flat-Screen Dreams Led to the First LCDs (University of Chicago Press, 2018).

Gross’s appointment affirms the Ransom Center’s commitment to deepening access, advancing scholarship, and supporting a global community of researchers across disciplines and backgrounds.

Gross will begin his role at the Ransom Center May 5, 2025.