Museums Alaska: 2024 Conference

Lisa Sasaki is currently the deputy under secretary for special projects, where she provides leadership to the Institution as it plays a key role in America’s semiquincentennial celebration and in efforts that cut across organizational lines to maximize the Smithsonian’s impact, not only in Washington, DC, but also online and in communities across the country.

Previously, Sasaki was appointed the interim director of the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum in March 2021 and served in that role until 2023. She also served as the director of the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center. Sasaki has worked in the museum field for more than 25 years for organizations like the Oakland Museum of California, the Japanese American National Museum, and the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. 

She has  provided further service to the field as President of the Western Museums Association’s Board of Directors and as a member of AAM’s Facing Change working group, the Center for the Future of Museum’s Horizon Initiative steering committee, and the Advisory Council for the Council of Jewish American Museums.