Nancy L. Cohen, founding director of the Gender Equity Policy Institute, is an award-winning author, historian, and leading national expert on gender in the United States. She is the author of four books, including Delirium: The Politics of Sex in America, on anti-feminism and political polarization; Breakthrough: The Making of America’s First Woman President, on the history of women and political representation in contemporary America; and The Reconstruction of American Liberalism, 1865-1914, on social unrest and inequality in the formative years of contemporary America. Her reporting and commentary have been published in a wide range of outlets, including the New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and USA Today.

Specializing in the intersection of gender, labor, and environmental policy, Cohen has served on local and state commissions and as a consultant on gender policy to elected officials, government agencies, and some of the nation’s leading labor, feminist, and environmental organizations. Previously she held teaching and research positions in history and political science at UCLA, Cal State Long Beach, CUNY, and elsewhere. She holds a PhD in U.S. history from Columbia University.