President and Board of Directors

Our esteemed board of directors works to ensure the future of our organization.

This diverse and committed group of scholars, business leaders, educators, and experienced philanthropic leaders serve Facing History and our mission with dedication and distinction. Charged with overseeing the governance and growth of Facing History, each member of our board plays an integral role in helping us execute our work with intention. We are grateful for their contributions to our organization and celebrate their work as advocates for ending bigotry and hate.

Desmond K. Blackburn, PhD
President and CEO

Jill Garling
Board Chair

Kwame Anthony Appiah
Board of Scholars Chair

Abdullah T. Antepli
Senior Fellow of Jewish-Muslim Relations & Co-Director, Muslim Leadership Initiative, Shalom Hartman Institute; Associate Professor, Sanford School of Public Policy and of the Practice of Interfaith Relations at Divinity School, Duke University; Member, Governance Committee, Facing History & Ourselves

Paul H. Berz
Retired Chair, Highland Capital Management; Advisor Emeritus, Boston Symphony Orchestra; Co-Chair, Memphis Benefit (1997, 1998, 2002), Former Chair, Memphis Advisory Board, & Member, Audit and Development Committees, Facing History & Ourselves

Jeffrey J. Bussgang
General Partner, Flybridge Capital Partners; Senior Lecturer of Business Administration, Harvard Business School

Caretha Coleman
Principal, Coleman Consulting; Board Member, The RealReal; Founding Member, The Angels Forum; Co-Founder & Board Member, Black Directors Health Equity Agenda; Chair, The Leverage Network; Board Member, Accion Opportunity Fund; Member, Governance and DEI Task Force Committees, Facing History & Ourselves

Edda Collins Coleman
Managing Director, Cogent Strategies; Co-Founder; The All In Together Campaign; Advisory Board Member, Civic Eagle; Chair, San Francisco Advisory Board and Member, Governance Committee, Facing History & Ourselves

Lisa Conn
Co-Founder & COO, Gatheround; Chair, Los Angeles Advisory Board, Facing History & Ourselves

Reggie Crenshaw
Principal, Crenshaw and Associates Consulting Group; Former Captain, United States Army; Chair, Memphis Advisory Board, Co-Chair, 25th Anniversary Benefit, & Member, Finance Committee, Facing History & Ourselves

Cheryl Strauss Einhorn
Founder & CEO, Decisive; Adjunct Professor, Columbia Business School

Debra Engel
Former Senior Vice President of Corporate Service, 3Com; Board Member, Accion Opportunity Fund; Leadership Council, YWCA; Member, San Francisco Bay Area Advisory Board & Member, Governance, DEI Task Force, and Development Committees, Facing History & Ourselves

Lori R. Fife
Retired Senior Partner, Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP; Member, Trustees' Council of Penn Women & Board Member, Penn Hillel, University of Pennsylvania; Member, Next Generation Council, USC Shoah Foundation; Co-Chair, Funding Committee, UJA Federation of New York; Chair, New York Advisory Board, Co-Chair, New York Benefit (1996, 2014), & Member, Executive and Development Committees, Facing History & Ourselves

Mark S. Fife
Retired Founder, MSF Capital, LLC; Member, New York Advisory Board, Facing History & Ourselves

Wendy Fischman
Research Director, Project Zero, Harvard Graduate School of Education; Vice President, Board of Trustees, Beaver Country Day School; Chair, New England Advisory Board & Member, Development Committee, Facing History & Ourselves

Cristina S. Fockler
Board Member, Circuit Playhouse; Board Member, St. Mary’s Episcopal School; Former Chair, Memphis Advisory Board, Co-Chair, Memphis Benefit (2010, 2013), Chair, Governance Committee, & Member, Executive Committee, Facing History & Ourselves

Kristyn Friske
Leadership Team Member, HEROS; Board Member, Merillac St. Vincent Family Services; Member, Impact100 Metro Denver; Member, Compass Pro Bono Chicago; Chair, Chicago Advisory Board, Facing History & Ourselves

Andrew S. Janower
Managing Director, Charlesbank Capital Partners; Member, Board of Trustees, Dana Farber Cancer Institute; Co-Founder, Pediatric Low Grade Astrocytoma Foundation; Chair, Compensation Committee & Member, Executive Committee, Facing History & Ourselves

Dr. Carol Johnson-Dean
Member, Board of Trustees, City Year; Fellow, 2014 Cohort, Harvard Advanced Leadership Initiative; Member, Memphis Teacher Residency Advisory Board; Board Member, Memphis Symphony Orchestra; Member, Board of Trustees, First 8 Memphis; Member, Memphis Advisory Board, Facing History & Ourselves

Jill Ellen Karp
Vice Chair, Nantucket Film Festival; Board Member, Nantucket Book Festival; Board Member, Boston Youth Sanctuary; Member, Advisory Board, Ploughshares at Emerson College; Founding Member, The Nantucket Project; Member, New England Advisory Board, Co-Chair, New England Benefit (2006) & Member, Development Committee, Facing History & Ourselves

Daniel S. Katz
Former Co-Manager, Apex Capital; Member, San Francisco Bay Area Advisory Board & Member, Finance Committee, Facing History & Ourselves

Eunice Lee
Senior Vice President & COO of Studio Operations, Call of Duty Development, Activision; Member, Los Angeles Advisory Board, Facing History & Ourselves

Julie Abrams Leff
Board Member, Ramapo for Children; Board Member, New York City Center; Former Chair, Board of Directors; Chair, Leadership Council; & Member, Executive, Governance, DEI Task Force, Development, and Compensation Committees, Facing History & Ourselves

Emily Leventhal
Co-Founder, Ebbets Field Capital LLC; Board Member, Combined Jewish Philanthropies; Member, New England Advisory Board, Chair, Finance Committee, & Member, Executive, Audit, and Development Committees, Facing History & Ourselves

Lawrence M. Levy
Retired Partner, Brown Rudnick LLP; Member, Board of Trustees, Linda Loring Nature Foundation; Member, London Advisory Board & Member, Governance and Compensation Committees, Facing History & Ourselves

Rachel Schwartz
President, RCB Capital Corporation; Chair, Canada Board of Directors, Facing History & Ourselves

Richard I. Melvoin
Retired Head of School, Belmont Hill School; Lecturer on Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education; Managing Partner, Strategic School Leadership; Member, Executive, DEI Task Force, and Compensation Committees, Facing History & Ourselves

Saul Pannell
Retired Partner, Wellington Management Company; Vice Chair, Marine Biological Laboratory; Board Member, Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston; Board Member, Analysis Group; Co-Chair, New England Benefit (2014) & Chair, Audit Committee, Facing History & Ourselves

Deborah L. Plummer
Principal Consultant, D.L. Plummer & Associates; Board Member, Grub Street Center for Creative Writing; Board Member, Positive Education Program; Board Member, Reflection Point; Board Member, Nana’s Tribe Foundation; Member, DEI Task Force & Development Committees, Facing History & Ourselves,

Fernando M. Reimers
Ford Foundation Professor of the Practice of International Education & Director, Global Education Innovation Initiative and International Education Policy Masters Program, Harvard Graduate School of Education; Member, Executive Committee, Facing History & Ourselves

Susie Richardson
Member, San Francisco Bay Area Advisory Board & Development Committee, Facing History & Ourselves

Shelly Saltzman
Founder, Citizens Leadership Middle Schools; Board Member, Teach for America - Ohio; Editor, The Borgen Project; Cofounder and Coalition Member, Honesty for Ohio Education; Chair, Cleveland Advisory Board, Facing History & Ourselves

Stacy Sharpe
Senior Vice President, Corporate Brand, The Allstate Corporation; Board Member, Chicago Urban League; Member, Board of Trustees, Arthur W. Page Society; Chair, Chicago Advisory Board & Member, Executive and DEI Task Force Committees, Facing History & Ourselves

MyKhanh Shelton
Board Member, Promax; Member, Los Angeles Advisory Board & Chair, Development Committee & Member, Executive Committee, Facing History & Ourselves

Marcus L. Smith
Retired Manager, MFS Investment Management; Board Member, MSCI Inc.; Board Member, First Industrial Realty Trust; Member, Board of Trustees, Core Knowledge Foundation; Member, Advisory Council on Education, Harvard Medical School; Member, Finance Committee, Facing History & Ourselves

Judy Wise
Board Member, Restore Justice Illinois; Board Member, Chicago Media Project; Chair, Mother Jones Magazine; Founder, London Office, Co-Founder, Chicago Office & Member, Development Committee, Facing History & Ourselves

Alan Yang
CEO and Senior Managing Director, GCP; Chairman, Global Investment Committee, GLP

Effective as of November 22, 2022

Serving as the Chair of the Board of Directors has been incredibly rewarding. … Our work at Facing History & Ourselves is urgent and essential; and I look forward to continuing serving.

— Julie Abrams Leff, Chair Emerita of the Board of Directors

Make a 100% tax-deductible donation today and you'll help us reach even more teachers and students around the world, giving them the tools to fight back against hatred and bigotry.

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Insight

by Adam Strom

Apr 16, 2015

Facing History shares a list of key components for a reflective classroom and provides educators with a number of resources to guide them in building their own.

Gregory Peck (left) and Brock Peters in a pivotal scene from the 1962 film "To Kill a Mockingbird."

Insight

by Kaitlin Smith

Mar 15, 2022

The January 6th investigation has deepened widespread concerns about rising threats of fascism, racism, white nationalism, and other phenomena that undermine justice for all. But in analyses that focus primarily on the role of white nationalism fomented within media echo chambers, for example, commentators have overlooked what may be a more pervasive parallel phenomenon: the widespread crisis of faith in U.S. media and institutions at large.

Photo of Two People Watching the News on TV

Insight

by Kaitlin Smith

Dec 19, 2021

The 26th U.N. Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) that took place in Glasgow, Scotland from October to November 2021 was, in many ways, a historic event. However, even though the COP remains a crucial space for international cooperation in the fight against climate disaster, there is notable consternation over the unique burdens that various policies may place on poorer nations and those most vulnerable to adverse climate events.

Photo of Earth and African continent from space

Insight

by Julie Halterman

Jan 6, 2022

The January 6 insurrection remains important to understand and discuss, as well as the larger questions it raises about the state of U.S. democracy. A recent poll found that 52% of young people between 18 and 29 believe that either U.S. democracy is "in trouble" or "failed," while only 7% agree that it is "healthy," further highlighting the need to teach students about democratic institutions.

Black and white photo of the US State House

Insight

by Kaitlin Smith

Feb 22, 2022

Some members of the Facing History staff are exploring these five new books published within the last year, and we invite you to explore them alongside us and share your reactions with us. These 5 titles cover essential topics from Black history with young audiences and address contemporary experiences of young Black people.

Cover for the book: Ain't All Burned the Bright

Insight

by Kaitlin Smith

Jan 31, 2022

Facing History offers an overview and guide for Jacqueline Woodson's Brown Girl Dreaming, an ideal book to teach in the middle school classroom.

Insight

by Karen Murphy

Jan 28, 2022

After 25 years of distinguished service to our organization, Dr. Karen Murphy, Facing History’s Director of International Strategy, will join our partner organization High Resolves as CEO of an initiative called The Human Responsibility Accelerator. In this article, we invited Karen to share a bit of what she has learned in more than two decades at Facing History.

Insight

by Kaitlin Smith

Jan 26, 2022

Research released by the Claims Conference found that 49% of U.S. millennials and generation Z have seen Holocaust denial or distortion content online—and that one in five U.S. millennials and generation Z surveyed in New York believe that Jews caused the Holocaust. This toxic combination of ignorance allied with antisemitic hatred continue to permeate global consciousness, and teachers have an important part to play in turning the tide.

Auschwitz photos taken of imprisoned children

Insight

by Kaitlin Smith

Jan 27, 2022

International Holocaust Remembrance Day is Thursday, January 27th. This is a day when we remember the 6 million Jews murdered in the Holocaust, their loved ones, and the ways in which this incalculable tragedy has transformed our world. It is also a time for educators to ensure their readiness to integrate instruction on the Holocaust into their annual teaching plans.

An image of a Samuel Bak Painting Man Reading by Giant Spoon

Impact Story

by Kaitlin Smith

Dec 10, 2021

As a United Nations panel of experts is set up to investigate systemic racism and human rights abuses against Black people around the world, we explore a series of African American leaders who have invoked the language of “human rights” to underscore the urgency of their situation here in the U.S.

Olympians on the podium, bowing their heads and raising a fist with a black glove.

Impact Story

by Kaitlin Smith

Feb 15, 2022

These titles cover themes in Black history that are closely connected to the themes of our educator resources including the significant roles of Black people in the construction of the U.S. and the implications of decisions to memorialize (or not memorialize) those events.

Book cover images of The South and Black Hands, White House

Insight

by Facing History & Ourselves

Feb 11, 2022

One way to deepen our understanding of voting rights is to consider the experiences of people who have been disenfranchised over the course of our nation’s history and into the present. The Black community is one that has faced immense barriers to voting, both in the distant past and even into the present.

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President and Board of Directors

Donate now and together we'll build a better world

You might also be interested in…

What Does It Mean “To Kill a Mockingbird”?

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COP26, Environmental Justice, and Human Rights

Teaching about the January 6 Insurrection and its Impact on U.S. Democracy

5 New YA Books on Black History and Life

Why and How to Teach Brown Girl Dreaming

What I've Learned Along the Way

Holocaust Denial: How Teachers Can Turn the Tide

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African Americans and the History of "Human Rights"

5 New Books on Black History

Suffrage Matters: 7 Reads on Black Voting Rights and Activism

President and Board of Directors

A diversity of perspectives, passions, and experiences ensures wise stewardship of our vital organization.

Donate now and together we'll build a better world

You might also be interested in…

What Does It Mean “To Kill a Mockingbird”?

January 6th

COP26, Environmental Justice, and Human Rights

Teaching about the January 6 Insurrection and its Impact on U.S. Democracy

5 New YA Books on Black History and Life

Why and How to Teach Brown Girl Dreaming

What I've Learned Along the Way

Holocaust Denial: How Teachers Can Turn the Tide

7 Classroom Resources on the Holocaust

African Americans and the History of "Human Rights"

5 New Books on Black History

Suffrage Matters: 7 Reads on Black Voting Rights and Activism

Inspiration, insights, & ways to get involved