Senators Reject Reagan’s Pick for Humanities Panel

WASHINGTON — President Reagan’s controversial nomination of Edward A. Curran to be chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities was rejected today by the Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee.

The 16-member, Republican-controlled committee voted against Curran, 52, deputy director of the Peace Corps, in an 8-8 tie, with Sen. Robert T. Stafford (R-Vt.) casting the lone GOP vote against the nomination. All seven Democrats on the panel opposed Curran.

Democrats accused Curran of a “failure of candor” at a 1981 confirmation hearing on his successful nomination to another government post and said he lacked the support of the nation’s academic community for the new job.

At a confirmation hearing Oct. 3, several senators sharply questioned Curran about his scholarly experience, credibility and political ideology.

Curran also was criticized by leading figures from the academic community. William Schaefer, executive vice chancellor of UCLA, called the nomination “insensitive and inappropriate.”

Reagan chose Curran to succeed William J. Bennett, who left the endowment Feb. 7 to become education secretary. The endowment, an independent federal grant-making agency, awarded more than $125 million last year to support a wide variety of scholarly and educational projects.

Curran’s critics complain that he lacks a doctorate, has never taught at a college or university and has limited experience in scholarly research or writing.

Several senators expressed concern that a few months after Curran became director of the National Institute of Education in 1981, he wrote Reagan recommending that the institute, the research arm of the Education Department, be abolished because of influence from “the left.”

Soon afterward, Curran was fired by his boss, then-Education Secretary Terrel H. Bell.

Curran also is reported to have had a longstanding personal and ideological dispute with Loret Ruppe, director of the Peace Corps.