Report of the Board of Regents 



This year, the Board of Regents welcomed two new members, 

 Representatives Ralph Regula and Robert T. Matsui, who 

 filled vacancies created by the departures of Representatives 

 Bob Livingston and Esteban E. Torres. At year's end, Louis V. 

 Gerstner Jr. resigned from the Board of Regents. Regents 

 Barber B. Conable Jr., Hanna H. Gray, and Wesley S. 

 Williams Jr. were appointed for successive statutory terms. 



At the Regents' January 25, 1999, meeting. Secretary I. 

 Michael Heyman announced his decision to retire at the end 

 of the year. A Search Committee was formed under the 

 cochairmanship of Howard H. Baker Jr. and Wesley 

 Williams, with Hanna Gray, Barber Conable, Anne d'Harnon- 

 court, and Manuel L. Ibanez. Smithsonian National Board 

 Chair Frank A. Weil served in a nonvoting capacity. During 

 the winter and early spring, the committee advertised the 

 position widely, sought nominations through extensive corre- 

 spondence and personal contacts, and consulted with staff and 

 trusted advisers. At the May 10, 1999, meeting of the board, 

 the committee discussed with the Regents a proposed lisr of 

 qualities to be sought in an nth Secretary and presented the 

 leading possibilities among a group of 250 names. At the Sep- 

 tember 13, 1999, Regents' meeting, after some 13 interviews 

 and exhaustive reference checks, the committee unanimously 

 recommended Lawrence M. Small, president and chief operat- 

 ing officer of Fannie Mae, electing him to serve as Secretary 

 effective January 23, 2000. 



With assistance from the Secretary and their ad hoc Com- 

 mittee on Facilities, chaired by Wesley Williams, the 

 Regents approved the Smithsonian's acquisition of property 

 near the Old Patent Office Building. The site selected, the 

 Victor Building, will house the programs and offices cur- 

 rently encroaching on public space in the Patent Office 

 Building. It will also allow the Institution to relocate most 

 offices from leased space. The Victor Building appears to of- 

 fer the Smithsonian space at a significant savings over the 

 long term. The Secretary and his staff will be raising funds 

 to make this acquisition affordable. 



The Board of Regents authorized the establishment of 

 Smithsonian Business Ventures. Pursuant to the recommen- 

 dations of the Regents' ad hoc Committee on Business 

 chaired by Senator Baker, Smithsonian Business Ventures 

 is a separate entity under the direction of its board and chief 

 executive officer and the oversight of the Secretary and the 

 Regents. Robert W Fri, Thomas M. Kenney, Constance 

 Berry Newman, M. Ronald Ruskin, Robert J. Thomas, and 

 Anthony Welters were appointed by the Regents to the 

 Business Ventures Board, and Chief Executive Officer Gary 

 M. Beer serves as an ex officio member. 



The Regents consulted with the Secretary throughout 

 the year on progress toward a major national fund-raising 

 campaign. It was particularly gratifying to see the Smithson- 

 ian National Board's Campaign Committee contributing to 

 this year's substantial progress. During the course of the 

 year, the Regents approved budget requests for fiscal years 

 2000 and 2001 and established the following endowment 

 funds: the Edna F. Blum Endowment for general purposes of 

 the Institution; the Krieg Drawings and Prints Endowment 

 at the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum; the Karl 

 Hagan Fund for the National Air and Space Museum; and 

 the National Zoo Endowment. 



The Regents were pleased to confer on Professor Ikuo 

 Hirayama membership in the Order of James Smithson in 

 recognition of his outstanding contributions to the Freer 

 Gallery of Art. The Regents also voted to ptesent Samuel P. 

 Langley Medals to Apollo 1 1 astronauts Neil Armstrong, 

 Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, and Michael Collins in commemora- 

 tion of their pioneering mission to the Moon. 



Much of the Regents' work between meetings was ac- 

 complished by their standing committees, including the Ex- 

 ecutive Committee, the Nominating Committee, the Audit 

 and Review Committee, the Investment Policy Committee, 

 and the Personnel Committee. As the year drew to a close, 

 the Regents considered the complexities of the Smithsonian's 

 financial management and decided to establish a new ad hoc 



