Areas of Focus

Two interconnected areas have defined my career. They are where I bring the most to the organizations and leaders I work with.

My Intellectual Home

What does it take to create learning environments where all young people, regardless of background or circumstance, can imagine something bigger for themselves? That question has driven everything I've built, and it's the expertise I bring to every organization and collaboration I'm part of.

I believe the best learning experiences don't deliver knowledge; they open a space for curiosity and creativity to take hold. I believe equity isn't only about access; it's about whether the environments we build feel like they are made for you. And I've learned that R&D, practitioner knowledge, and policy have to be held in genuine partnership if any of it is going to matter in the actual lives of children and communities.

Leading with Purpose

Accumulated judgment—knowing precisely what to leverage, where, and when—is what I bring to every leadership challenge. This strategic clarity comes from decades of guiding complex, mission-driven organizations through high-stakes moments.

I have led institutions through mission-inspired transformations and catastrophic floods, rapid growth and painful contractions. Along the way, I’ve built CEO-board partnerships that became genuine engines of momentum, and learned hard lessons about what happens when that alignment fractures. Ultimately, I know that powerful leadership is about holding an organization steady while moving it forward, listening deeply to the full ecosystem of stakeholders, and cultivating the trust that makes bold work possible.

Children exploring NYSCI’s award-winning Connected Worlds exhibit

Accepting the National Medal for Museum and Library Service on behalf of NYSCI (2015)