Jay I. Kislak (June 6, 1922 – October 3, 2018) was an American businessman, philanthropist, bibliophile, and aviator.

Early life and education

Kislak was born in

Hoboken, New Jersey Hoboken ( ; ) is a City (New Jersey), city in Hudson County, New Jersey, Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Hoboken is part of the New York metropolitan area and is the site of Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub. As of the ...

on June 6, 1922. He earned his first real estate license in high school at the

Newark Academy Newark Academy is a coeducational private day school located in Livingston, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, serving students in sixth through twelfth grades. It was the first school in New Jersey to offer the International Ba ...

Livingston, New Jersey Livingston is a township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 31,330, its highest United States census, decennial co ...

. He attended and graduated from the

Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania The Wharton School ( ) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia. Established in 1881 through a donation from Joseph Wharton, a co-founder of Bethlehem Steel, the Wharton ...

, where he majored in

economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

. Upon graduation, he served as a U.S.Navy aviator in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

.Jay I Kislak: Inspirational Entrepreneur and Philanthropist
Kislak Family Foundation. In 1945, Kislak returned to New Jersey to enter the family real estate business full-time. In the early 1950s, Kislak moved his family to

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

, where established one of the country's largest privately-held mortgage banks, originating and servicing loans nationally for over 40 years. He served as chairman of the Kislak Organization. From 1984 to 2020, the Kislak Foundation's philanthropic giving was focused on rare books, art, and historic documents. Many of the items in the collection have been donated to the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

and several university libraries.

Philanthropy

National Air and Space Museum

The

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

National Air and Space Museum The National Air and Space Museum (NASM) of the Smithsonian Institution is a museum in Washington, D.C., in the United States, dedicated to history of aviation, human flight and space exploration. Established in 1946 as the National Air Museum, ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

received $10 million from the Kislak Family Foundation to support the creation of the new "World War II in the Air" exhibition. It will be named the "Jay I. Kislak World War II in the Air" gallery. The gallery will explore how World War II transformed aviation and warfare and inaugurated a new era in military aviation. Flying was a family legacy and Kislack celebrated his 95th birthday on the

USS Intrepid (CV-11) USS ''Intrepid'' (CV/CVA/CVS-11), also known as The Fighting "I", is one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. She is the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name. Commissioned in August 1943, ''Intrepid'' participated in s ...

aircraft carrier.

Library of Congress donations

In 2022, the Kislak Family Foundation donated $10 million to the

to create a gallery exploring the history of the early

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

. Kislak first donated nearly 4,000 items from his collection to the Library of Congress in 2004. 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. In 2018, the Library of Congress appointed the first Jay I. Kislak Chair for the Study of the History and Cultures of the Early Americas. In 2023 an 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.

Sothebys auction

Jay I. Kislak's substantial collection extended far beyond the nearly 4,000 items he donated to the

. His collection included

impressionist Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

modernist Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...

, and

contemporary Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from about 1945 to the present. In the social sciences, contemporary history is also continuous with, and related t ...

art and prints, photographs, designs, books and manuscripts. Sotheby’s departments are currently consigning many of works from the collection, including Richard Diebenkorn’s ''Berkeley Six'',

Raoul Dufy Raoul Dufy (; 3 June 1877 – 23 March 1953) was a French painter associated with the Fauvist movement. He gained recognition for his vibrant and decorative style, which became popular in various forms, such as textile designs, and public build ...

’s ''Les Martigues'', Mary Cassatt’s ''Girl in a Hat with a Black Ribbon'', Diego Giacometti’s ''Hommage à Böcklin'' console, William Bourne’s ''A Regiment for the Sea'' and Daniel Giraud Elliot’s ''Monograph of the Felidae or Family of Cats''. In addition to the Library of Congress, Kislak donated to multiple institutions of higher learning, including the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private university, private research university in Coral Gables, Florida, United States. , the university enrolled 19,852 students in two colleges and ten schools across over ...

Miami Dade College Miami Dade College (MDC) is a public university, public college located in Miami, Miami, Florida, United States. Established in 1959, MDC operates eight campuses and numerous outreach centers throughout Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade Count ...

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

, the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

, and the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

Kislak Center at the University of Miami and Freedom Tower at Miami Dade College

The Kislak Center at the

Libraries was established with original source materials related to the history of the early

. The gift established a partnership between the

and

Kislak Center at the University of Pennsylvania Libraries

Jay I. Kislak and the Kislak Family Foundation donated $5.5 million to the

University of Pennsylvania Libraries The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of founder and first pre ...

in Philadelphia to complete the renovation of the 5th and 6th floors of the Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center and also contributed to ongoing Kislak Center programming. Additionally, Kislak gifted the Penn Libraries books from the library of

Jacques Auguste de Thou Jacques Auguste de Thou (sometimes known by the Latin version of his name Thuanus) (8 October 1553, Paris – 7 May 1617, Paris) was a French historian, book collector and president of the Parlement of Paris. Life Jacques Auguste de Thou wa ...

Kislak Family Foundation Artist/Writer in Residence at the University of Florida

The Center for Latin American Studies at the University of Florida received a donation from the Kislak Family Foundation to establish an artist/writer in residence program. The program funds a visiting artist or writer who teaches courses, conducts workshops, delivers lectures, and tutors students on the main Gainesville campus. The program's purpose is to bring preeminence to the

in the field of

Latin American art Latin American art is the combined artistic expression of Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and South America, as well as Latin Americans living in other regions. The art has roots in the many different Indigenous peoples of the Americas, i ...

and expose the campus community to works of art and literature. In 2022,

Gabriela Alemán Gabriela Alemán (born September 30, 1968, in Rio de Janeiro) is a Brazilian-born Ecuadorian writer and educator, whose work has been translated into multiple languages. Biography Born to Ecuadorian parents in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, she live ...

was the first selected Kislak Family Foundation Artist/Writer in Residence.

Kislak Real Estate Institute at Monmouth University

In 2006, on the 100th anniversary of the Kislak Real Estate Company, a seven-figure donation was made to

Monmouth University Monmouth University is a private university in West Long Branch, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1933 as Monmouth Junior College, it became Monmouth College in 1956 and Monmouth University in 1995 after receiving its university charter, c ...

West Long Branch, New Jersey West Long Branch is a Borough (New Jersey), borough situated within the Jersey Shore region, in Monmouth County, New Jersey, Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 8,5 ...

, which named its Real Estate Institute for Kislak.

Honors and recognitions

In recognition of his efforts to preserve cultural heritage, Kislak was appointed by President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

to head

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs o ...

's Cultural Property Advisory Committee from 2003 through 2008. In 2013, Kislak received the Encomienda of the Order of Merit Civil from the

King of Spain The monarchy of Spain or Spanish monarchy () is the constitutional form of government of Spain. It consists of a Hereditary monarchy, hereditary monarch who reigns as the head of state, being the highest office of the country. The Spanish ...

, among other awards and appointments. In 2017 he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of Fundraising Professionals. Kislak and his family were among the 25 founding families of Temple Beth Am in

Pinecrest, Florida Pinecrest is a suburban village in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The village is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 18,388. Pinecrest is governed by a five-member vill ...

, one of the largest temples in Florida. He also was a member of Temple Israel of Greater Miami in

and Synagogue Adas Yoshurun in

Rockland, Maine Rockland is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Maine, United States. As of the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census, the town population was 6,936. The city is a popular tourist destination. It is a departure point for the Maine S ...

.Deaths in South Florida 10/5
Jay I. Kislak. ''South Florida Sun-Sentinel'' Oct 05, 2018.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kislak, Jay I. 1922 births 2018 deaths American philanthropists Aviators from Florida Aviators from New Jersey American bibliophiles Newark Academy alumni Pennsylvania State University people People from Hoboken, New Jersey Philanthropists from Florida Philanthropists from New Jersey Real estate agents University of Florida University of Miami Wharton School alumni Bibliophiles