IV
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. CON. RES. 366
Expressing the sense of the Congress regarding the importance and value
of education in United States history.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JUNE 29, 2000
Mr. PETRI (for himself, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Mr. SKEEN, Mr.
BOEHLERT, Ms. SLAUGHTER, and Mr. MARTINEZ) submitted the fol-
lowing concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on
Education and the Workforce
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of the Congress regarding the
importance and value of education in United States history.
Whereas basic knowledge of United States history is essential
to full and informed participation in civic life and to the
larger vibrancy of the American experiment in self-gov-
ernment;
Whereas basic knowledge of the past serves as a civic glue,
binding together a diverse people into a single Nation
with a common purpose;
Whereas citizens who lack knowledge of United States history
will also lack an understanding and appreciation of the
democratic principles that define and sustain the Nation
as a free people, such as liberty, justice, tolerance, gov-
•HCON 366 IH
ernment by the consent of the governed, and equality
under the law;
Whereas a recent Roper survey done for the American Coun-
cil of Trustees and Alumni reveals that the next genera-
tion of American leaders and citizens is in danger of los-
ing America’s civic memory;
Whereas the Roper survey found that 81 percent of seniors
at elite colleges and universities could not answer basic
high school level questions concerning United States his-
tory, that scarcely more than half knew general informa-
tion about American democracy and the Constitution,
and that only 22 percent could identify the source of the
most famous line of the Gettysburg Address;
Whereas many of the Nation’s colleges and universities no
longer require United States history as a prerequisite to
graduation, including 100 percent of the Nation’s top in-
stitutions of higher education;
Whereas 78 percent of the Nation’s top colleges and univer-
sities no longer require the study of any form of history;
Whereas America’s colleges and universities are leading
bellwethers of national priorities and values, setting
standards for the whole of the United States’ education
system and sending signals to students, teachers, par-
ents, and public schools about what every educated cit-
izen in a democracy must know;
Whereas many of America’s most distinguished historians
and intellectuals have expressed alarm about the growing
historical illiteracy of college and university graduates
and the consequences for the Nation; and
Whereas the distinguished historians and intellectuals fear
that without a common civic memory and a common un-
•HCON 366 IH
derstanding of the remarkable individuals, events, and
ideals that have shaped the Nation, the people in the
United States risk losing much of what it means to be
an American, as well as the ability to fulfill the funda-
mental responsibilities of citizens in a democracy: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That it is the sense of the Congress that—
(1) the historical illiteracy of America’s college
and university graduates is a serious problem that
should be addressed by the Nation’s higher edu-
cation community;
(2) boards of trustees and administrators at in-
stitutions of higher education in the United States
should review their curricula and add requirements
in United States history;
(3) State officials responsible for higher edu-
cation should review their public college and univer-
sity curricula in their States and promote require-
ments in United States history;
(4) parents should encourage their children to
select institutions of higher education with substan-
tial history requirements and students should take
courses in United States history, whether required
or not; and
(5) history teachers and educators at all levels
should redouble their efforts to bolster the knowl-