Elizabeth L. Hillman

President & CEO

Beth Hillman is a nationally recognized leader in education, service, and military justice. Since 2022, Dr. Hillman has been president and CEO of the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, which has expanded museum visitation, educational outreach, and professional training programs. She began her career as a space operations officer in the U.S. Air Force and served on active duty for seven years, including two as an instructor of history at the U.S. Air Force Academy. 

Dr. Hillman chairs the independent, congressionally-chartered Military Justice Review Panel, which conducts comprehensive reviews of the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the military justice system. Previously, she served on the study and leadership groups of the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine’s workplace sexual harassment initiatives; the Department of Defense’s Response System Panel on Sexual Assault in the Military; as president of the National Institute of Military Justice; and as reporter for the first Cox Commission.

Before coming to the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, Hillman was the 14th president of Mills College, the first women’s college west of the Rockies. At Mills, she reduced tuition in response to the rising cost of college, spearheaded a transformative merger with Northeastern University, and led the college through the COVID-19 crisis. Earlier, Hillman served as provost and academic dean at the University of California Hastings College of the Law (now UC Law San Francisco), where she was also a professor of law. Prior to joining Hastings, Hillman was a law professor at Rutgers Law School. She earned a BS in electrical engineering from Duke University, an MA in history from the University of Pennsylvania, a JD from Yale Law School, and a PhD in history from Yale University.

Dr. Hillman serves on the board of the Alliance of Downtown New York and is a member of the American Law Institute, Council on Foreign Relations, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Hillman is the recipient of the U.S. Department of Defense Medal for Exceptional Civilian Service, the CalVet Trailblazer Award from the California Department of Veteran Affairs, and the Pace University Changemaker Award. She lives with her wife Trish in Jersey City, where they spend time marveling at their five children’s college exploits.