Mirrer is the head of the benign-sounding but surprisingly controversial New-York Historical Society. (Yes, that's "New-York.")

Great Neck native Mirrer started out in academia, teaching medieval studies at Fordham University and working as vice provost at the University of Minnesota. She returned to New York in 1997 to take a job as executive vice chancellor of CUNY, then left in 2004 to head up the New-York Historical Society following Kenneth T. Jackson's departure. As head of the organization, she oversees a hefty collection of artifacts relating to the history of the city, including millions of maps and documents pertaining to major New York events, from the American Revolution to Sept. 11th. Since taking over, she's also co-authored a book, The New-York Historical Society: A Bicentennial History 1804-2004, with Larry E. Sullivan.

Mirrer's tenure at the NYHS has been improbably contentious. In 2006, while seeking permission from the city's Landmarks Preservation Committee for a $20 million renovation of the organization's historic building, she also petitioned for permission to build a $23 million apartment building (a similar plan was scuttled in 1984). The news upset NYHS's neighbors on Central Park West and the project was officially sunk in 2007. She's also faced criticism over a number of recent exhibitions, including the Alexander Hamilton exhibition in 2004, which some argued reflected a more politically conservative bent at the institution. [Image via Getty]