LHRT (Library History Round Table)

Jay I. Kislak (1922 –  2018) - Library Philanthropist and Collector- Librarians We Have Lost-Sesquicentennial Memories -1976-2026.

Jay I. Kislak  established one of the country's largest privately-held mortgage banks.  From 1984 to 2020, the Kislak Foundation's philanthropic giving was focused on rare books, art, and historic documents. He was a collector. From 1984 to 2020 Kislak focused on conserving rare books, art and historic documents, and advancing knowledge of past cultures, civilizations and explorations.

The collections are now on public display at the Library of Congress and Kislak Centers in Miami and Philadelphia.

In recognition of Kislak's efforts to preserve cultural heritage he was appointed by President George W. Bush to head the U.S. Department of State's Cultural Property Advisory Committee from 2003 through 2008.

Library Donations include:

• 2023- Annual Kislak Family Foundation Prize to recognize an organization in the United States or abroad with an outsized impact on literacy relative to its size or years of operation was announced by the Library of Congress.
• 2022, the Kislak Family Foundation donated $10 million to the Library of Congress to create a gallery exploring the history of the early Americas.
• 2018. the Library of Congress appointed the first Jay I. Kislak Chair for the Study of the History and Cultures of the Early Americas.
• 2017. $30 million collection to Special Collections Division of the University of Miami's Otto G. Richter Library, in Coral Gables, and at Miami Dade College's Freedom Tower, in downtown Miami.
• 2004. Kislak  donated nearly 4,000 items from his collection to the Library of Congress. This included rare masterpieces of indigenous art, maps, manuscripts, and cultural treasures documenting more than a dozen Native cultures and the earliest history of the Americas.
• Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts. University of Pennsylvania Libraries. The Penn Libraries Receives $5.5 Million Donation from Jay I. Kislak and the Kislak Family Foundation
  

Sources:

Jay I. Kislak. Biography. Library of Congress Biography.

Remembering Collector Jay Kislak. Fine Books and Collections. (2018).

The Collection of Jay I. Kislak: Sold to Benefit the Kislak Family Foundation

https://www.kislak.com/philanthropy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kislak Foundation.

https://www.kislak.com/philanthropy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Jay I. Kislak Collection - Library of Congress.

https://newsroom.loc.gov/news/library-of-congress-expands-2024-literacy-awards-program/s/95c4632b-3fc1-4e23-af7d-49c75c0b3a9d" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kislak Family Prize. Library of Congress.

Jay I. Kislak- Wikipedia

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Kathleen de la Peña McCook
Distinguished University Professor
School of Information
University of South Florida
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