Lesley S. Herrmann has been Executive Director of the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History since its founding in 1994. She has spearheaded the Institute's efforts to promote the study of American history and improve the quality of history education. Under Herrmann's direction, the Institute has created summer seminar programs for high school and middle school teachers, National Park Service rangers and museum educators; designed a network of American history programs in high schools across the United States; and produced dozens of American history publications, online resources, and traveling exhibitions for students and teachers. Herrmann has also held a variety of development and planning positions with not-for-profit and educational organizations in New York City, including the Municipal Art Society, Asphalt Green, The New School for Social Research, and Pace University. She holds a master's degree in Russian Area Studies from Harvard University, a Ph.D. in Slavic Languages and Literature from Columbia University, and has taught Russian Literature at The New School for Social Research and Manhattan College. Herrmann is a contributor to the Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives, and serves on the boards of the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, the National Council for History Education, and the National Coalition for History.