ABOUT ME
Public history is my passion.
During my twenty years as a public historian, I've had the chance to see how historical scholarship--creatively and engagingly shared with the public--can make a positive impact on people's lives.
I began my career in the museum field, curating exhibitions at the Museum of Jewish Heritage - A Living Memorial to the Holocaust. I was part of the team behind the award-winning Ours to Fight For: American Jews in the Second World, which was named the best exhibit of the year by the American Association of Museums, and I was the lead curator of New York: City of Refuge - Stories from the Past 60 Years about Jewish refugees in New York City post-WWII.
From there I struck out on my own as an independent museum curator and archivist. I managed archives projects for the New York Public Library, Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame, Museum of Chinese in America and Yeshiva University, and curated exhibitions and films at the New-York Historical Society, Center for Jewish History and St. Thomas University Museum & Library.
That work led me to the U.S. Library of Congress. I worked at the Library of Congress for seven years; first at the Veterans History Project collecting the stories of America's veterans, then at The John W. Kluge Center, the Library's scholars center. At the Kluge Center I worked with Members of Congress, diplomats, embassies, think tanks, government agencies, media and universities to bring the scholarly work of the Library to broader audiences. It was through the course of that work that I introduced the idea of History Communicators and began to build the sub-field of History Communication. I was also selected for and completed a 15-month executive leadership training program during my time on Capitol Hill.
In 2017, I was selected from a nation-wide search to serve as the founding director of the Lepage Center for History in the Public Interest. The Lepage Center began as an empty office and a sign on the wall. In four years under my leadership, the Center established a robust public programming calendar; a national web, social media and traditional media presence; an 11-member Advisory Council; a student fellowship program; a grant-making program; and a partnership between historians and journalists funded by the Lenfest Institute for Journalism. I twice participated in diplomatic exchanges with the U.S. Department of State as part of my tenure as director.
I returned to Washington, D.C. in 2021 to reunite with my wife and complete my first book manuscript, History, Disrupted. I also created History Club on Clubhouse, now with more than 100,000 members and launched a Substack newsletter now with more than 20,000 lifetime views. I've also established the History Communication Institute and currently reside as a Global Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, one of the world's preeminent think tanks. I also launched the first cryptocurrency devoted to history, $JASON coin.
In my career I've had the fortune to work extensively with:
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Tech;
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Media;
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Policymakers;
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Museums;
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Universities;
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Non-profits;
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Scholars
On how to communicate history content for public audiences.
As a manager, leader, fundraiser, curator, archivist, oral historian, researcher, lecturer, registrar, film director and Board member, I've devoted my career to sharing history with the world and advocating for a more intelligent and informed citizenry based on knowledge of our past.
I love to think, write, and communicate about the future of public history in America, and I work every day to make a better, more inspired, and more educated world. I earned my B.A. in American Studies from The George Washington University and my M.A. in History and Archival Management from New York University. I'm originally from White Plains, New York.