Director Elizabeth C. Babcock, PhD, joined the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum in June 2024. A cultural anthropologist and educator with experience in nonprofit and corporate sectors, Babcock has deep expertise in public engagement, education strategies, public-private partnerships, and organizational development. Prior to joining the Smithsonian, she served as the first president and CEO of Forever Balboa Park, where she stewarded capital projects, crafted a multi-year strategic plan, and advanced a multi-million-dollar campaign to restore the park’s iconic Botanical Building and Gardens.

Babcock has served as chief public engagement officer and Roberts-Wilson Dean of Education at the California Academy of Sciences and as vice president of education and library collections at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. She holds a Bachelor of Music in music education and a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from Northwestern University and earned her master’s and doctoral degrees in anthropology from Indiana University.