Cole chosen to lead National Endowment

Bruce Cole, distinguished professor of Fine Arts and chair of the department, will be sitting in a new seat in December.\nThe Senate, led in this move by Sen. Ted Kennedy, unanimously confirmed Cole Friday as the new chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities.\nA spokesman for Kennedy said Cole was the natural choice.\n"He is well-qualified for the job, he has the necessary background to take this agency into the future," the spokesman said.\nCole has served since 1992 on the National Council on the Humanities, which acts as an advisory board to the NEH.\nCole is also a member of the oldest learned society in Europe, the Academia Senese degli Intronati, and a member of the Honorary Board of Directors of the American Friends of Florentine Museums. But in Bloomington Cole is most recognized as a professor, having taught at IU since 1973.\nIn that time, the Italian Renaissance enthusiast quickly rose through the ranks of the Henry Hope School of Fine Arts to where he resides today as the chair. His leadership will be missed, said trustee Steve Ferguson.\n"I think he has provided great vision and leadership over the years, anybody of that stature you will miss," he said. "The reputation of the University is made up of the quality of your faculty and your student body. People like Bruce are the ones that make this institution great."\nNow, after about 30 years, Cole will relocate to the nation's capital where he might have a new job, but will certainly maintain the same passions.\nLynne Munson, the incoming deputy chairwoman, said Cole will be primarily occupied with promoting excellence in the humanities.\n"His won't be an issues based chairmanship," she said. "He is primarily concerned with the heady task of running a government agency well. He is more concerned with making sure the Endowment is spending the money it has in support of excellence."\nCole is reluctant to comment about specific goals in respect for the current chairman, William Ferris, who completes his term in November. But he did say he is excited to start working with the staff of the NEH.\n"I am eager to participate in the Endowment's vital work of the study, preservation, and dissemination of the humanities to all our citizens," he said. "As a recipient of a NEH grant, as a panelist in the NEH grants review process, and as a member of National Council on the Humanities, I was continually impressed by the excellence and dedication of the Endowment's staff. I look forward to working with these fine colleagues in Washington."\nCole has many qualifications for the position but Munson, who worked with Cole on the National Council of the Humanities, said what struck her most is his keen understanding for the importance of the humanities. \n"I am absolutely thrilled about this appointment," she said. "I think that Cole will do an excellent job. He was simply an exemplary member of the council. He has a depth of knowledge of arts history and the humanities in general and knows the importance of them to our nation."\nColleagues describe Cole as being hard working and passionate in his field. Julia Bondanella, associate director of the Honors Division, said Cole has very high standards and is capable of working with people who have different points a view, a quality Bondanella said is necessary for the NEH.\n"I think Bruce respects a pretty wide range of scholarship, different kinds of approaches and methods," she said. "He will be good from a scholarly point of view but also he has a deep knowledge of how important it is to preserve our heritage. I think, as an educator and teacher he will work hard to ensure that the humanities continue to have a central role in public life and in educating citizens"