The governing Council of the Association met in Washington on May 29–30 and took a number of decisions affecting the organizations’s operations. By custom and under the Association’s constitution, the Council meets twice a year, in the late spring and at the time of the annual meeting. The May meeting included a half-day meeting of the Finance Committee of the Council, which reviewed the budget and fiscal plans for the 1987–88 financial year. The Council on its recommendation adopted a balanced budget, envisaging expenditures of $1,239,000 on Association business. It approved the setting up of a separate endowment fund to be known as the Bernadotte Schmitt endowment. Part of the income from this handsome bequest the Council directed be used for a program of small research grants for history projects relating to Africa, Asia, and Europe, like the existing Beveridge, Kraus, and Littleton-Griswold grants for Western Hemisphere specialists. The Council also authorized Richard Kohn, a member of its executive committee, to work with headquarters staff on developing a modified version of the AHA’s functional budget plan.
Council also endorsed the choice of San Francisco as the site for the 1989 annual meeting and filled several vacancies on Association committees. It reviewed Nominating Committee recommendations for the annual Award for Scholarly Distinction and made choices to be announced at the annual meeting in December. This award was begun two years ago to honor distinguished historians.
The Council also endorsed a resolution of the National Coordinating Committee on declassification policy for government documents; reappointed Professor Paul Conkin of Vanderbilt University as Parliamentarian for the Annual Meeting, and endorsed plans by long-term member Morris D. Forkosch to establish an endowment for a future book prize in British history.
Business of importance was transacted on behalf of all three divisions of the Association. The Council unanimously adopted the Statement on Standards of Professional Conduct, developed by the Professional Division, and directed that the full text be communicated to affiliated and sister organizations.
On the recommendation of the Research Division, the Council approved the appointment of Professor John Higham of The Johns Hopkins University to be general editor of the revised AHA Guide to Historical Literature, selected the University of Maryland, College Park, to be the site of the Guide editorial staff, and reviewed offers from several university presses and other publishing houses, preliminary to making a final decision this fall. The Council also endorsed the Research Division Committee’s plan to review and revise the guidelines for Program Committees for the AHA’s annual meetings.
The Council met with 1988 Program Committee co-chair Melvyn Leffler, University of Virginia, and approved chair Konrad Jarausch’s and his selection of 1988 committee members. To reenforce the committee’s coverage of third world history, it authorized the selection by the co-chairs of one additional member specialist. The Teaching Division Committee reported to the Council on its plans for a special fall meeting devoted to recruitment of minority graduate students. It described the progress of the National Commission for the Social Studies, in which former president Arthur Link is leading AHA participation
