NCH WASHINGTON UPDATE (Vol. 11, #44; 17 NOVEMBER 2005)
1. DONATION APPEAL TO READERS
2. REPORT: MEETING OF THE NHPRC
3. NEH AWARDS $565,000 FOR HURRICANE-RELATED RELIEF
4. BUSH LIBRARY RELEASES MORE POLICY AND CONFIDENTIAL RECORDS
5. CIA CONTINUES TO RESIST RELEASE OF JFK ASSASSINATION RECORDS
6. BITS AND BYTES: NPS Responds to NCH FOIA Request; Coming Up Taller Award
Nominations
7. ARTICLES OF INTEREST: "For History's Sake, Nothing Like a Paper Trail"
(Washington Post)
1. DONATION APPEAL TO READERS As long-time readers of this publication are aware, the National Coalition for History (NCH) is supported largely by the voluntary contributions of over 70 institutional supporters. Collectively, they provide most of the history coalition's annual operating budget. Each year though we depend on our readers for a small percentage of our budget (about 3%). Often, it is reader contributions that determine whether the history coalition ends the fiscal year in the black.
Nearly every week throughout the year the NCH WASHINGTON UPDATE has been delivering to you -- free of charge -- vital news and information about what's going on of interest to the history and archive community on Capitol Hill and throughout the nation. Today, we appeal to you, our readers, to give something back.
As we approach the holiday giving season, the NCH Board of Directors invite you to make an end-of- the-year fully TAX DEDUCTIBLE contribution to the NATIONAL COALITION FOR HISTORY (federal tax ID #01-0688590 for federal income tax purposes). Your contribution will help insure the continuation of our important education and advocacy activities that advance the interests of the historical and archival communities. A $50 individual contribution is suggested though we certainly are appreciative of donations in any amount. Small history/archives organizations that are not members of the history coalition but nevertheless benefit from the NCH WASHINGTON UPDATE and our other advocacy activities are urged to contribute $100.
There are several ways to make a donation: BY CHECK, contributions payable to the "National Coalition for History" can be mailed to NCH, 400 A Street SE, Washington D.C. 20003. All contributions are acknowledged in writing.
ONLINE DONATIONS may be made by visiting our contribution webpage that can be accessed at http://www.conservenow.org/detail.asp?ORGID=2032&memflag=true.
FEDERAL EMPLOYEES can make a donation through the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) workplace donation drive. The National Coalition for History is a member of the Conservation & Preservation Charities of America (http://www.conservenow.org) and this year, for the first time, we are participating in the CFC. If you are a federal employee and enjoy receiving your weekly posting of this electronic newsletter, please consider contributing to the National Coalition for History. Our federal agency CFC donation code is CFC # 2351. Please contribute!
2. REPORT: MEETING OF THE NHPRC On 16 November 2005, the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) met for their biannual meeting at the National Archives building in Washington, D.C. In his opening comments, Executive Director Max Evans announced some staffing changes, briefed the commission on the status of a formula-based funding program proposal for archives in the United States, announced that a special strategic planning retreat had been scheduled for the commission early in the new year, and -- of most interest to potential grant applicants -- that in the future grant guidelines and application forms would be available only online.
In his welcome remarks, Archivist of the United States Allen Weinstein reported that in spite of a tough budget environment, "the NHPRC is alive and well." With respect to several expired terms and vacancies on the commission, he stated that Congressman Roy Blunt (R-MO) had agreed to serve as the representative for the House of Representatives, but that discussions were held with him prior to his assuming a more responsible leadership role; it also remains unclear whether Senator Dodd (D-CT) wants to serve another term.
Weinstein also reported on the continuing efforts to assist states in the Gulf Coast region after hurricanes Katrina and Rita, and noted that the NHPRC provided funds to those states most heavily affected. The Archivist noted that while historic preservation interests are represented, the is no archival representation within the interagency structure of FEMA; Weinstein is working to correct that.
In his report, Max Evans announced a set of new publications, reported on several staff retirements and new hires (including that Lucy Barber, currently with the California State Archives, had been selected to fill retiring Michael Meier's position). Evans reported that the FY-2006 budget remains a concern and that it is currently being deliberated by House and Senate conferees. Thus, grants being awarded by the commission were "tentative and contingent" depending on the funding actually appropriated. Evans formally thanked the various history and archival organizations that worked so hard this last year to secure funding for the NHPRC.
Evans stated that NHPRC regulations were under review; one proposal would empower the Archivist to grant up to $25,000 in emergency funds without formal consultation with the NHPRC (Archivist Weinstein requested that the other commission members deliberate on the proposal). Evans reported on the status of the formula-based state grant program and announced that there would be a strategic planning meeting held on 3 February 2006 for the commission members.
Finally, Evans noted that the NHPRC grant guidelines would expire shortly and that a new system of grant tracking and monitoring has been put in place. In the future potential grant applicants will have to obtain guidelines and application forms online. Consistent with the procedures in place for other federal granting agencies, in the future there will be no hard-copy versions available.
Following an executive session meeting the commission proceeded to consider the pending grant applications.
3. NEH AWARDS $565,000 FOR HURRICANE_RELATED RELIEF The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has awarded 19 emergency grants for projects that will aid in the recovery and preservation of cultural resources in the Gulf Coast region affected by hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The amount of all the grants combined is $565,000. They are the first to be awarded in the endowment's special program announced in early September that provides hurricane relief to libraries, colleges, universities, museums, and other cultural and historical institutions. Most individual awards are $30,000, with one $25,000 award.
Bruce Cole, Chair of the NEH stated, "Hurricanes Katrina and Rita caused immeasurable damage to homes, businesses, whole communities, and individual lives along the Gulf Coast. NEH has awarded these grants to help the resilient people of the affected areas recover and preserve the historic materials and cultural treasures that represent the region's rich and vibrant history."
Some of the recipients include the New Orleans Museum of Art, for the conservation care of more than 30,000 items, including works by Gauguin, Warhol, and Monet; Tulane University for support treatment of archival collections about women in the Gulf South region; Beauvoir in Biloxi Mississippi, to protect historical artifacts recovered from the Jefferson Davis Home and Presidential Library; and the Alabama Humanities Foundation, to support disaster relief to small libraries and cultural information centers in Mobile County and other southwestern parts of the state.
Additional information about the NEH and its grant programs, as well as a complete list of all the recipients, is available online at http://www.humanities.gov .
4. BUSH LIBRARY RELEASES MORE POLICY AND CONFIDENTIAL RECORDS On 28 October 2005, the George Bush Presidential Library made another release of documents that previously had not been open to the public due to statutory restrictions under the Presidential Records Act (PRA). The documents had been withheld under the P-2 (materials relevant to federal office appointments) and the P-5 restrictions ("confidential advice" between the President and his advisors).
As part of the release the library has made available a 568-page listing that describes the documents that have been released. A quick perusal of the report reveals that some of the documents relate to the operations of the Domestic Policy Council, the Office of Counsel to the President, the Council of Economic Advisors, the Chief of Staff's office, the Office of Policy Development, and the White House Office of Records Management.
The documents are accessible to researchers in the research room at the Bush library. The lists of opened documents are posted on the web at http://bushlibrary.tamu.edu/research/releaseddocuments.html. Requests for copies of any of the newly released materials can be made by e-mail or phone: please e-mail the George Bush Library at Library.Bush@nara.gov or call (979) 691-4041 (M-F, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. CDT). There is a fifty cents per page charge for copying. When ordering documents, please reference the NLGB control number of each document to ensure accurate processing.
5. CIA CONTINUES TO RESIST RELEASE OF JFK ASSASSINATION RECORDS According to a posting in Secrecy News (on online publication of the Federation of American Scientists) more than 40 years after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is refusing to release certain documents that relate directly to the shooting.
Jefferson Morley, a researcher and writer for the Washington Post newspaper has been seeking access to the CIA records relating to the late George Joannides, who was the chief of the Psychological Warfare Branch of the agency's Miami Station in 1963. "The CIA has acknowledged that it has an unspecified number of documents about Joannides' activities in the summer and fall of 1963 but says it will not release any of them for reasons of 'national security'," Morley explained. A conference on the matter will be held at the Washington DC District Court in the near future.
The Morley case has generated a significant amount of support from outside interests. "As published authors of divergent views on the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, we say the agency's position is spurious and untenable," wrote some two dozen assassination historians and specialists in a joint letter on the case. Morley remarked to Secrecy News, that the CIA's refusal to release information "defies the will of Congress. It obscures the public record on a subject of enduring national interest. It encourages conspiracy mongering. And it undermines public confidence in the intelligence community at a time when collective security requires the opposite."
For more information about this case, please see "Blocked," in the New York Review of Books, 11 August 2005. This can be viewed online at http://www.nybooks.com/articles/18193.
6. BITS AND BYTES Item #1 -- NPS Responds to NCH FOIA Request: Several weeks back we reported ("NPS Seeks Public Comment on Controversial "Management Policies" Document; NCH WASHINGTON UPDATE, Vol 11, #40; 20 October 2005) that the National Park Service had released a draft of a new version of its important guideline "Management Policies" and had invited public comment for 90 days. In order to make the process of commenting on the guideline easier, the National Coalition for History filed a Freedom of Information (FOIA) request with the National Park Service asking that a side-by-side comparison document that shows the changes between the 2001 version and the version currently circulating for comment be made available. The National Park Service has complied with that request and the comparison document should be posted soon at http://parkplanning.nps.gov (on this page, hit the "documents and links" tab; at next screen scroll down to the bottom of the "document content" listing and click on "Official Comparison of 2001 and Current Draft" û a PDF version will load) The action by the NCH makes commenting on the document easier not just for history coalition member organizations but other national park advocacy groups and individual citizens as well. The NCH will be submitting its official comments in the near future.
Item #2 -- Coming Up Taller Award Nominations: An award program of the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities entitled "Coming Up Taller" is accepting nominations through 30 January 2006. The awards seek to recognize excellence in after_school and out_of_school arts and humanities programs serving the needs of underserved children and youth. Award recipients receive $10,000 and an invitation to attend the annual Coming Up Taller Leadership Enhancement Conference. Programs initiated by museums, libraries, and schools are eligible to participate. For guidelines and nomination application, visit http://www.cominguptaller.org .
7. ARTICLES OF INTEREST One posting this week: "For History's Sake, Nothing Like a Paper Trail" (Washington Post; 6 November 2005) by Russell Riley, professor at the University of Virginia's Miller Center of Public Affairs discusses the relative importance of "paper trials". This article can be viewed online.