Gabrielle Lyon received her BA and MA in history from the University of Chicago and her PhD in Education from University of Illinois Chicago. She is a nationally recognized nonprofit leader, educator, and public speaker with experience in launching and leading social impact organizations and initiatives focused on leveling the playing field of educational access and opportunity. She joined Illinois Humanities as the Executive Director in June 2019. Prior to that she served as Vice President of Education and Experience at the Chicago Architecture Center and as a senior researcher at the Great Cities Institute at University of Illinois Chicago. She is the founding executive director of Project Exploration, a nonprofit dedicated to changing the face of science for youth and girls of color, which was recognized locally and nationally, including with a Presidential Award for Excellence.

Her honors include being named a 2023 Notable Leader in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion by Crain’s Chicago Business, a National After School Champion by the After School Alliance, Chicagoan of the Year by Chicago Magazine, and a Leadership Fellow with the Chicago Community Trust. Lyon has served as a social impact coach at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and as an adjunct professor of entrepreneurship at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management. Her current research and writing focus on the ways in which community-driven design and participatory humanities experiences bridge civic identities and strengthen social fabric. Lyon is the author of the graphic novels No Small Plans and Washington By and By and served as coeditor for A Simple Justice: The Challenge of Small Schools.

Erica G. Griffin-Fabicon has served as the Elizabeth F. Cheney Director of Education at the Chicago History Museum (CHM) since 2021. As the director, Erica leads our school programs and public and community engagement efforts. She’s committed to designing meaningful programs, sharing resources, and optimizing experiences, all to inspire learners of all ages and backgrounds to investigate Chicago’s rich histories and understand the ways we can all impact our city in the future. Erica holds that actively contending with history will contribute to shaping an urban society that is inclusive, empathetic, and primed for civic action. She has a BA in Anthropology from the University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign, an MA in museum studies from Johns Hopkins University, and over 18 years of experience in the museum field. Prior to her tenure at CHM, Erica served as director of education at DuSable Museum of African American History where she developed and facilitated innovative public engagement and K-12 learning programs focused on accessibility, equity, and object-based engagement for over 65,000 participants annually, co-curated South Side Stories: The Art & Influence of Dr. Margaret Burroughs, 1960-1980, the widely recognized National Museum of African American History and Culture’s Community Curation Chicago Project, and represented the DuSable Museum in the award winning Chicago 1919: Confronting the Race Riots project.

She has also presented at conferences around the country including the Communicating the Museum Conference, the Global Diplomacy Lab Summit, and the Association of Midwest Museums. Erica serves locally as a board member for the Hull House Museum and Honey Pot Performance. Erica is also an advisor with the Humphrey’s County Cultural Museum (HCCM) in Belzoni, MS. The HCCM is dedicated to the amplifying African American lives in Humphrey’s County and the Mississippi Delta region.