Donald V. Torr was born on June 14, 1926, in Clinton, Iowa. He received his B.A. in 1948, his M.A. in 1949, and his Ph.D. in 1952, all from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Starting in 1950, Torr was employed with the government, working on test development/validation projects with the Personnel Research Laboratory of the Air Force Personnel and Training Research Center. In 1959, he became the manager of systems applications at General Electric in upstate New York, leaving in 1967. Torr then joined the faculty at Gallaudet University as assistant vice president of the Office of Educational Technology and professor of education. He retired in 1991 after 21 years of service. He died in 2021.

He and his wife, Nancy, have two daughters, Leslie Winkleman and Sally McAleer.