The Center director for 18 years, Bill Ferris, has moved to Washington, D.C., to serve as chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities. He will be dearly missed, yet faculty, staff, and students at the Center are excited that he has been given the opportunity to lead the nation's foremost guiding institution in the humanities. As witness of his creative vision and exemplary efforts as director of the Center, we realize that the National Endowment for the Humanities is about to experience successful years under his tenure. The following quotes gleaned from press articles surrounding Ferris's appointment express the confidence we have in his ability to meet the challenges ahead:

University of Mississippi Chancellor Robert C. Khayat: "Bill Ferris has not only garnered the level of serious academic study our region deserves but also has enhanced the public's understanding and respect for it. With his creative talents and vision, Bill will do the same for the National Endowment for the Humanities. We are proud to have one of our scholars appointed to this important post and know Bill will bring even more positive attention to our region and state."

Charles Reagan Wilson, professor of History and Southern Studies, University of Mississippi: "Bill will energize the nation behind a broad-based vision of the humanities. He is a superb communicator who can explain the importance of the humanities to a diverse range of Americans."

Tom Rankin, associate professor of Art and Southern Studies, University of Mississippi: "Bill is a natural. There is no better person out there to lead the NEH. He will be a great spokesperson for the humanities at all levels."

James C. Cobb, history professor at the University of Georgia, who team taught a course with Ferris at the University of Mississippi for six years: "I think he'll liven up the place. It's going to be very hard to criticize Ferris as spending taxpayer money on programs very few Americans can relate to. I'll bet he's going to think up ways to make the humanities much more accessible to a broader population."

Sheldon Hackney, former chairman of NEH, whom Bill is succeeding: "The critical thing about him is that he operates on a whole range of American culture. He's--and I don't mean this pejoratively--an academic entrepreneur."

Jamil S. Zainaldin, president of the Federation of State Humanities Councils: "He has the traditional certification of an academic scholar and is well entrenched in higher education. But he's also worked extensively with state and local humanities councils, and his programs at the Center for the Study of Southern Culture are all about the public dissemination of the humanities."

University of Mississippi history professor Michael E. Landon: "If anybody can, he will be able to increase funding for the agency from both public and private sources."

Ferris's mother, Shelby Ferris, of Vicksburg, Mississippi: "I think he'll do his best. I know it's the top position in the humanities to which anyone could aspire."

--Allison Vise Finch