Speaker Biography

Dr. Louise Mirrer is President and CEO of The New York Historical, New York’s first museum. Under her guidance, the institution has reinvigorated its commitment to greater public understanding of history and its relevance today, as well as to the support and encouragement of historical scholarship, and the education of young people.

During her tenure, The New York Historical has launched groundbreaking exhibitions such as Slavery in New York, Nueva York, Chinese American: Inclusion/Exclusion, The Vietnam War 1945-1975, and Black Citizenship in the Age of Jim Crow. Dr. Mirrer oversaw a $100 million capital campaign completed in 2011, and the inauguration of the first-ever Center for Women’s History within an American museum in 2017. She has also initiated special projects on Citizenship and the Presidency and has overseen the expansion of the institution’s visitorship to nearly 500,000 annually. Dr. Mirrer also guided the museum through its first ever rebranding, where the New-York Historical Society became The New York Historical, helping to encourage accessibility to the 220-year-old institution.

Before joining The New York Historical in June 2004, Dr. Mirrer was the Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs of the City University of New York, where she established American History as a center of excellence, introduced coursework in American History as a graduation requirement, and designed the CUNY Honors College. Mirrer holds a double Ph.D. from Stanford, a graduate Diploma from Cambridge, and a BA magna cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania. She has received honorary degrees from Marymount and Fordham, and was awarded the Order of Civil Merit by the Spanish Crown.