Arts & Entertainment
NMAI director Rick West to step down in 2007



Rick West, the director of the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian, will step down in 2007.

West, a member of the Cheyenne-Arapaho Tribe of Oklahoma, has overseen the museum since it was authorized by Congress 17 years ago. In September 2004, the museum finally opened its doors to the public.

"This museum is most accurately described, and functions as, an international institution of living cultures," West told The Washington Post.

West had always said he would leave sometime after the museum opened.

Get the Story:
Indian Museum Director Stepping Down in 2007 (The Washington Post 10/27)
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Relevant Links:
National Museum of the American Indian - http://www.nmai.si.edu

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