Supporting Digital Scholarship

“When we look back at our founding, it’s clear that a lot of things came together to make Project MUSE possible—especially the right people in key roles at the right time.  Scott Bennett was certainly one of those right people.  As director of the Milton S. Eisenhower Library at Johns Hopkins, Scott endorsed and advocated the innovative partnership of the University’s Press and Library that ultimately created Project MUSE.

“The support and advice of Scott and others at the Hopkins library was critical to our success.  They helped us with technical knowledge, contacts, and influence in the library world.  In very fundamental ways, they helped us figure out how MUSE would work and what it would be.  The fact that, twenty-five years later, MUSE remains enthusiastically library-centric is a testament to their impact and lasting influence.

“We’re grateful to all the early leaders who allowed MUSE to happen, and we’re mindful that success and support were not inevitable.  Scott Bennett set the tone, along with Jack Goellner, Marie Hanson, and Robbie Dircks at the Press.  They helped oversee ambitious grant proposals and allowed staff to take chances on an uncertain and exciting  ‘experiment’ in the early days of the world wide web.

“In later years, Jim Neal, Winston Tabb, and many other friends and colleagues at the Hopkins Libraries have continued to be the partners MUSE has needed to succeed and thrive. But it began with Scott Bennett.”

—Wendy Queen, director of Project MUSE

 “As the leader of the JHU Libraries at the time of the grant, Scott Bennett’s support was essential.”

—Marie Hansen, JHU Press associate director when MUSE was established