[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 70 (Tuesday, May 18, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E899]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HONORING JACQUELINE Z. DAVIS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE NEW YORK PUBLIC 
                    LIBRARY FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. KAREN McCARTHY

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 18, 2004

  Ms. McCARTHY of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize a 
champion of the arts, Jacqueline Z. Davis, who will receive the 
insignia of Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from Jean-
Rene Gehan, Cultural Counselor of the French Embassy, in a ceremony 
this evening at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, 
where she has served with distinction as Executive Director for the 
past four years. Ms. Davis' vision for the performing arts has made a 
global impact. The Chevalier recognizes her outstanding career and her 
contribution to the culture of our two great nations.
  The Chevalier is a distinguished honor reserved for a select few 
deemed by the French Minister of Culture and Communication to have made 
groundbreaking contributions to the arts in France and throughout the 
world. For nearly 25 years, Ms. Davis has been a devoted advocate of 
the performing arts and a leader in her field. As Executive Director of 
the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, she has launched 
compelling exhibitions and performances representing cultures around 
the world and has been instrumental in the renovation of the Library's 
new building at Lincoln Center, a project that included the creation of 
a grand, light filled reading room, several loft exhibition galleries 
and state of the art audiovisual stations that have revolutionized the 
educational experience.
  Ms. Davis has a profound understanding of the history, art and 
culture of France influenced by her numerous visits and her time spent 
there as a student at L' Institut Catholique in Paris, where she 
received a Certificats Des Etudes De La Langue Francaise. Her passion 
for the arts is visible in the many performances and exhibits produced 
under her leadership, earning her the respect of her colleagues by her 
unwavering dedication to preservation of the performing arts. Upon Ms. 
Davis' appointment to the position of Executive Director of the 
Performing Arts Library, Library President Paul LeClerc noted ``After 
an exhaustive national search, I am delighted that . . . Jacqueline 
Davis will head one of the New York Public Library's greatest 
collections. She has had a brilliant career to date in performing arts 
administration, and she will be a superb addition to the Library's 
leadership.'' Tonight the world of arts and letters will acknowledge 
her contributions to the arts and to the Library as she is awarded The 
Chevalier.
  Prior to her appointment at the Library of the Performing Arts, 
Jacqueline served as Executive Director of the Lied Center at the 
University of Kansas, one of the leading university arts presenters in 
the nation. In 1994, she received the Governor's Arts Award for 
``outstanding contribution to the excellence, growth, support and 
availability of the arts in Kansas.'' Ms. Davis has served on the 
boards of Chamber Music America, Dance USA and the American Arts 
Alliance, as President of the Association of Performing Arts Presenters 
and been a frequent panelist for the National Endowment for the Arts 
and Arts International. She was named one of 11 Outstanding Presenters 
in the United States through a study commissioned by Pew Charitable 
Trusts. She currently serves on the American Theatre Wing's Tony Awards 
Nominating Committee.
  Mr. Speaker, please join me in paying tribute to Jacqueline Davis, 
recipient of the 2004 Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. 
Her lifelong passion for the arts (des arts) and letters (et des 
lettres) has made an impact on her family, her friends, and all those 
whose lives she has touched and those whose future will be enhanced by 
her lifelong commitment to furthering artistic excellence recognized by 
the Chevalier. Merci beaucoup, Jacqueline.

                          ____________________