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He suggested that for the May meeting of the Board the staff should prepare a more comprehensive status report which would show results in key positions over the period of years since the Secretary's arrival. He expressed confidence that the Regents would see a decidedly more positive picture.

The overview statement follows. The October 1989 "Equal Opportunity Report," copies of which had been distributed, is on file in the Office of the Secretary.

* * * * *

When Congress created the Smithsonian Institution in 1846, no one in Washington could have predicted how far-reaching James Smithson's original vision would extend. Today, nearly 150 years later, the Smithsonian stands as an embodiment of one person's single-minded determination "to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men."

The intent of this eloquent charter is as clear and meaningful today as it was in 1846. In his December 1989 "State of the Smithsonian" speech, the Secretary reaffirms the Institution's strong commitment to the "increase and diffusion of knowledge, stating that "It reflects a striking degree of confidence on the part of our founders in the unqualified and endlessly contributive potential of knowledge for human life -- in its power to sweep across changing contexts of time, historical consciousness, and ethnic and national differences. There have been many dark and uncertain years when that confidence at times may have seemed obsolescent or misplaced. But now, once again, it is the gathering force as a doctrine to live by."

Indeed, that doctrine has set the tone for all the Smithsonian's diverse activities in this and the past century. Through thousands of exhibitions and special programs, the Institution has disseminated knowledge to audiences from throughout the world who come from every racial, ethnic, cultural and socio-economic sphere. The Smithsonian is here to serve all segments of the population, and to address a world audience. It seeks at every point to override national rivalries, and ethnic, racial, religious, or gender stereotypes and prejudices of all kinds that act as barriers to intercommunication and common action.

Whether faced with art or astrophysics, zygotes or zebras, Institution researchers, curators, and administrators seek to extract the illuminating fundamentals of a topic and convey its essence to the widest possible audience. Their success in creating universally appealing exhibitions, educational activities, outreach efforts, and public programs is in large part due to a vigilant effort to preserve and articulate our cultural and national heritage.