Support the Janet M. Bennett Intercultural Library

** Also see the Update below from Sandy Garrison-Whitmore, Former ICI Librarian. **

Dear colleagues,

We are Kris Acheson-Clair, Melissa Liles, Michaela Carrière, and Christopher Deal, each representing our institutions as members of the Janet M. Bennett Intercultural Library Consortium (intercultural.org).

We are honored to have been invited to support Janet's cherished Library and, through it, her legacy. To do it justice, we need your help.

Please read on for details and contribute in whatever amount or ways you can.

Thank you,

Kris, Melissa, Michaela, and Christopher

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ENSURING A LEGACY

A dedicated scholar, educator, mentor to hundreds, and lifelong learner who led the Intercultural Communication Institute (ICI) for over 30 years, Dr. Janet M. Bennett helped amass the Intercultural field’s most comprehensive resource library.

Those who knew the ICI and the much-beloved Summer Institute for Intercultural Communication (SIIC) know how dear the Library was to Janet.

It was Janet's fervent wish that the Institute’s collection of more than 35,000 books, original papers, training materials, and multimedia treasures continue to serve researchers and practitioners worldwide following the ICI’s closing in 2019 and her passing in early 2022.

So that this exceptional collection may continue to serve future generations and evolve to meet emerging needs, it has been reconceptualized —with the aim of digitizing and distributing it internationally— as the Janet M. Bennett Intercultural Library at intercultural.org.

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A GOOD START — WITH A LONG WAY STILL TO GO

New homes for the collection have been found, with four organizations volunteering together as a consortium to provide safe physical space for the materials.

Unfortunately, Janet's estate left no additional funds to support the ongoing maintenance, modernization, and growth of the Library.

Funds are now needed so we can take the next immediate, critical steps required to ensure the Library's existence.

These include:

We need your financial support to do this necessary work.

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HOW DONATIONS WILL BE SHARED

All funds that you contribute —big, small, or in between— will help cover partial costs related to the activities above and will be shared among the founding Library Consortium organizations:

Your contribution, in any amount, will help us ensure Janet's legacy and this unique repository.

Please donate using our GoFundMe campaign. If you would like to make a tax-exempt donation of US$500 or more, you can do so through Purdue's CILMAR. You can do this:

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LEARN MORE & GET LIBRARY UPDATES

More information about the Library plans, activities, and founding consortium members is available at intercultural.org.

This is also where we will post ongoing updates as the catalog, new digital files, and related Library opportunities are available. You are warmly welcome to register your interest and receive ongoing communications about the Library.

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THANK YOU

We cannot do this without you, our fellow members of the Intercultural Community. Thank you for your support of Janet’s legacy and the future of the field.

Sincerely,

Kris Acheson-Clair, Melissa Liles, Michaela Carrière and Christopher Deal