Competitive attitudes toward grades gave way to shared ideas, and that sense of intellectual community carried into classroom discussions.

-Laura Meixner, Cornell Associate Professor of Art History

Investigate New Models For The Use of Digital Collections

Digital collections offer vast possibilities as a flexible medium for information delivery. CIDC is exploring how to utilize the transformative features of digital technology to better serve a variety of needs in a non-proprietary manner. While educational and research applications come first to mind, CIDC also is committed to expanding public use of digital collections. Encouraging new users will reveal new uses of the medium, and adapting the medium to serve diverse uses will promote greater access.

Museum Educational Site Licensing Project

The Museum Educational Site Licensing Project provides access to over 4,500 images of paintings, photos, textiles, ceremonial objects, and other cultural artifacts through a collaborative effort of the Getty Information Institute, the Eastman House, the National Gallery of Art, the National Museum of American Art, Harvard University Art Museums, three other museums, the U.S. Library of Congress, and seven universities. This cooperative venture has demonstrated how information and images from various sites can be disseminated nationally over electronic networks. It is a versatile collection that has been successfully used in classrooms across the country.

Museum Digital Liscensing Cooperative, Inc.

CIDC is involved in this collaborative initiative along with the American Association of Museums, Sun Microsystems, and the University of California at Berkeley to develop a nationwide collection of digital images of museum holdings that could operate both in a not-for-profit as well as a profit manner. Cornell will lead in the implementation of imaging standards and will provide training through workshops, manuals, and online tutorials.