    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1998, Book I)]
    [May 21, 1998]
    [Page 822]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Message to the Congress Transmitting the Report of the National
    Endowment for the Humanities
    May 21, 1998

    To the Congress of the United States:
        I am pleased to present to you the 32nd annual report of the
    National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), the Federal agency charged
    with advancing scholarship and knowledge in the humanities. The NEH
    supports an impressive range of humanities projects advancing American
    scholarship and reaching millions of Americans each year.
        The public has been enriched by many innovative NEH projects. These
    included a traveling exhibit, companion book, and public programming
    examining the history and legacy of the California Gold Rush on the
    occasion of its Sesquicentennial. Other initiatives promoted humanities
    radio programming and major funding for the critically acclaimed PBS
    series, ``Liberty! The American Revolution.''
        The NEH is also utilizing computer technologies in new and exciting
    ways. Answering the call for quality humanities content on the Internet,
    NEH partnered with MCI to provide EDSITEment, a website that offers
    scholars, teachers, students, and parents a link to the Internet's most
    promising humanities sites. The NEH's ``Teaching with Technology''
    grants have made possible such innovations as a CD-ROM on art and life
    in Africa and a digital archive of community life during the Civil War.
    In its special report to the Congress, ``NEH and the Digital Age,'' the
    agency examined its past, present, and future use of technology as a
    tool to further the humanities and make them more accessible to the
    American public.
        This past year saw a change in leadership at the Endowment. Dr.
    Sheldon Hackney completed his term as
    Chairman and I appointed Dr. William R. Ferris to succeed him. Dr. Ferris will continue the NEH's
    tradition of quality research and public programming.
        The important projects funded by the NEH provide for us the
    knowledge and wisdom imparted by history, philosophy, literature, and
    other humanities disciplines, and cannot be underestimated as we meet
    the challenges of the new millennium.

                                                          William J. Clinton

    The White House,

    May 21, 1998.