Grace Lee

Executive Director

Grace has a life-long passion for America’s parks and the outdoors. As a young girl, Grace and her family spent summers camping and hiking at national parks across the country and has continued this tradition with her own family. Grace holds an AB degree in chemistry (biologic specialization) from Duke University, worked as an analytical chemist at the National Institutes of Health, and then as an editor for Analytical Chemistry published by the American Chemical Society. For ten years, Grace served on the board of the Bullis School, an independent school in Potomac, MD, where she played a leadership role in the school’s strategic plan and development initiatives including two capital campaigns and the annual fund.

She has overseen the strengthening and diversification of the NPT Board, the significant expansion of its mission and park preservation programs, including the creation of NPT's innovative school program, Where's Buddy Bison Been?, which currently engages 40 schools across the country. In addition, she has overseen the rebuilding of NPT’s staff and operations, the development of foundation/corporate partners and collaborators, and the redesign of its website and communications strategy. She is also responsible for the enhancement and the development of key partnerships with government, conservation, education and health organizations, including the Department of the Interior, First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move Outside! initiative. National Park Service, Children and Nature Network, For Love of Children, American Academy of Pediatrics, National Education Association, US Army Corps of Engineers, and numerous independent, public charter, and public schools across the country.