CIDC Organizational Information

The Cornell Institute for Digital Collections was established in 1997 through generous lead gifts from Arthur Penn and an anonymous donor, and equipment donated by Intel Corporation. It operates as an interdisciplinary and interdepartmental organization under a campus-wide mandate from the university provost, and it is administered as a unit of the Digital Library and Information Technology (D-LIT) division of the Cornell University Library. Overseen by D-LIT's director, Associate University Librarian Thomas Hickerson, CIDC is co-directed by Anne Kenney, Associate Director of the Department of Preservation and Conservation, and Peter B. Hirtle.

Arthur Penn
History doesn't belong to anyone. Quite the opposite. Online digital collections afford us an Olympian panorama of time that reveals our common heritage and makes it very clear that humanity, in all its manifestations, is an achievement we all share.
-Arthur Penn, CIDC Co-Founder

CIDC's precursor, the Cornell Digital Access Coalition (DAC), was established in 1992 by the Cornell University Library with the assistance of the vice president for information technologies. It was co-directed from 1993 to 1996 by Thomas Hickerson and Associate Professor of Communication Geri Gay, currently director of the Interactive Media Group. DAC compiled an impressive record of success in providing leadership in organizing and conducting diverse university-wide projects with corporate, private, and foundation support.

CIDC Partnerships