Smithsonian names founding director of American Women’s History Museum

The Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum has named Nancy Yao as founding director, even as the new foundation remains homeless amid a standoff over adding buildings around the National Mall.

Smithsonian Institution officials said Monday that Ms. Yao, president of the New York City-based Museum of Chinese in America, will lead the new museum’s 14-person staff starting June 5. They said the museum had raised $55 million in contributions in addition to its federal budget of $2 million since Congress established it to honor the historical contributions of women in December 2020.

“Nancy’s proven experience, skill and leadership will be crucial in bringing to life the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum and enabling it to creatively tell a more robust and complete story about who we are as a nation,” Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch said.

The Smithsonian missed a deadline to establish locations for the women’s museum and the National Museum of the American Latino by the end of last year after insisting on two “optimal sites” within the Reserve, an area of undeveloped National Park Service land surrounding the mall.

A provision in the 2020 law establishing the two museums, supported by Sens. Joe Manchin III, West Virginia Democrat, and Lisa Murkowski, Alaska Republican, bans construction in that area.

Congress failed to act on the proposal during lame-duck budget negotiations after November’s midterm elections. On Monday, Smithsonian officials described the sites as “currently pending congressional approval.”