NEH chairman to step down

Bruce Cole, the chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities for the last seven years, is leaving in January to join the American Revolution Center in Valley Forge, Pa.

His departure gives the incoming administration of Barack Obama the opportunity to name the heads of both national endowments. Dana Gioia, the chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, announced in September that he would be leaving the first of the year to join the Aspen Institute, an international organization that conducts forums on contemporary issues.

Cole, 70, a Renaissance art scholar and former distinguished professor at Indiana University, was the longest-serving NEH chairman and expanded its public reach and partnerships through traditional programs and digital initiatives.