Arthur William Rudnick was born to Johann and Wilhelmine (Müller) Rudnick on December 22, 1887, in Chicago, Illinois. He received his B.S. (1910) in dairy manufacturing from Iowa State College (University). Following his graduation he was hired as an Instructor (1910-1913) of dairying at Kansas State Agricultural College (Kansas State University).

Iowa State offered Rudnick a position as Assistant Professor (1913-1916) of dairying and he accepted. He was promoted to Associate Professor (1916-1917) and Professor (1918-1970). During much of his career he served as Iowa State's extension specialist in dairy manufacturing and developed one of the first dairy manufacturing Extension programs in the country. He retired from the Department of Dairy and Food Industry after more than fifty years of service to the University.

In addition to his role as an educator Rudnick also worked to improve the dairy industry by involving himself in other professional opportunities. He served as a delegate to the 1937 World Dairy Congress held in Berlin, Germany. In 1951 Rudnick returned to Europe as a member of a team of farm specialists sent to seek out qualified farm families for immigration to the United States under the Displaced Persons Act. He also served as an officer in the National Creamery Buttermakers' Association, the Iowa Creamery Operators' Association, and the Iowa Cheese Manufacturer's Associations. Rudnick received the Faculty Citation (1962) from Iowa State University.

Arthur Rudnick married Alice Smay of Nevada, Iowa, in 1912. Together they had a child, Arthur W. Rudnick, Jr. Arthur Rudnick died on January 5, 1972.

The collection (1917-1972) contains biographical information and a travel diary documenting Rudnick's 1937 trip to Europe as a delegate to the World Dairy Congress. Rudnick's travel diary is noteworthy in that he carefully details his trip, even recording the topics of speakers he listened to at the World Dairy Congress. Pasted into the diary are numerous publications he collected on the trip, mostly written in German, about the dairy industry in Germany. Several loose items, including photographs of livestock, were separated from the diary and placed in a folder.

The collection is in alphabetical order.