Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture Appoints Three New Council Members

Laura W. Bush, former First Lady of the United States; Ruth J. Simmons, president of Brown University; and Gregg W. Steinhafel, chairman, president and CEO of Target, have been named members of the advisory board (the council) for the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

The museum’s council advises the museum and the Smithsonian’s Board of Regents on the planning and design of the museum; fundraising; the acquisition and display of objects; and the administration, operation and maintenance of the museum.

Former First Lady Laura Bush is actively involved in issues of national and global concern, with a particular emphasis on education, health care and human rights. She has investigated and showcased successful programs for early childhood education, at-risk youth, global literacy and the preservation of U.S. national parks and national treasures.

Simmons was named president of Brown University in 2001. She also is a professor in the Department of Comparative Literature and the Department of Africana Studies. As president, Simmons has created an ambitious set of initiatives designed to expand and strengthen the faculty, increase financial support and resources for students, improve facilities, renew a broad commitment to shared governance and ensure that diversity informs every dimension of the university.

Steinhafel was named president and CEO of Target in May 2008 and became chairman of the board of directors in January 2009. Minneapolis-based Target Corp. has 1,744 stores in 49 states. Since 1946, the corporation has given five percent of its income through community grants and programs like Take Charge of Education.

The 22-member council includes leaders from business, academia and the arts. The three new appointees will serve an initial term of five years, remaining on the council until the museum opens in 2015.

The council members are:

• Laura W. Bush, former First Lady of the United States
• James I. Cash, the James E. Robison Professor of Business Administration, Emeritus
• Wayne Clough, Secretary, Smithsonian Institution
• Kenneth I. Chenault, chairman and CEO of American Express Co.
• Ann M. Fudge, retired chairman and CEO of Young & Rubicam Brands
• James A. Johnson, vice chairman of Perseus LLC
• Robert L. Johnson, founder and chairman of RLJ Cos. and founder and former chairman and CEO of Black Entertainment Television
• Quincy Jones, producer and multimedia entrepreneur
• Ann D. Jordan, consultant for Northpoint Technology
• Michael L. Lomax, president and CEO of the United Negro College Fund
• Doris Matsui, Member, U.S. House of Representatives (D-Calif.), Smithsonian Institution Board of Regents
• Homer A. Neal, director of the University of Michigan-ATLAS Project and the Samuel A. Goudsmit Distinguished University Professor of Physics at the University of Michigan
• E. Stanley O’Neal, former chairman and CEO of Merrill Lynch & Co.
• Samuel J. Palmisano, chairman of the board and CEO of IBM Corp.
• Richard D. Parsons, chairman of Citigroup, former chairman and CEO of Time Warner Inc., council co-chair
• Franklin D. Raines, retired chairman and CEO of Fannie Mae
• Linda Johnson Rice, president and CEO of Johnson Publishing Co. Inc., council co-chair
• Ruth J. Simmons, president of Brown University
• Gregg W. Steinhafel, chairman, president and CEO of Target Corp.
• H. Patrick Swygert, President Emeritus of Howard University
• Anthony Welters, executive vice president of United Health Group
• Oprah Winfrey, chairman of Harpo Inc.

The National Museum of African American History and Culture was established by an Act of Congress in 2003 making it the 19th museum of the Smithsonian Institution. Scheduled for completion in 2015, it will be built on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on a five-acre tract adjacent to the Washington Monument. Currently, during the pre-building phase, the museum is producing publications, hosting public programs and assembling collections. It is presenting exhibitions at other museums across the country and at its own gallery at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. An array of interactive programs and educational resources is available on the museum’s Web site nmaahc.si.edu.