Dorothy Dinsmoor has retired from active service on the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation’s Board of Directors. Ms. Dinsmoor joined the Foundation in 1987 and held positions as an officer and chair of many committees. She served as Foundation President from 1991 to 2009.
Henry C. Walter, Foundation Board Member and former President (2009-2020), stated: “Dorothy provided the leadership to engage the Foundation in new areas of support and programming. Her thoughtfulness and careful administration of the Foundation will be her legacy.”
Under Ms. Dinsmoor’s direction, the Foundation started new efforts to support faculty, postdoctoral scientists, and undergraduate students; as well as continued the Teacher-Scholar Awards Programs. While her contributions to the Foundation are broad and deep, the inaugural Dreyfus Prize in the Chemical Sciences was made in 2009, her last year as President.
“I recall my first award from the Dreyfus Foundation in 1996 and atop the letterhead was Dorothy Dinsmoor’s name. I met her some years later at a Foundation Symposium in New York City and was struck by her deep appreciation for the impact the Foundation is having to help shape the careers of future leaders in the chemical sciences” said, Dr. Milan Mrksich, Chair of the Foundation’s Scientific Affairs Committee and Henry Wade Rogers Professor of Chemistry, Northwestern University.
Ms. Dinsmoor held executive-level positions at Consolidated Edison in New York City and the Long Island Lighting Company. She served the Church of the Ascension in City of New York as a member of the vestry, as co-chair of the Buildings and Grounds Committee, a member of the Altar Guild and the Acolytes Guild. Ms. Dinsmoor has a degree in art history from Vassar College and a Master of Science in Historic Preservation from Columbia University.
“Dorothy Dinsmoor will be named Director Emerita as of June 1, 2026, said: H. Scott Walter, President of the Dreyfus Foundation. “Dorothy’s wisdom and intelligence was evident in the way she approached the opportunities of keeping the Foundation relevant and effective. Her counsel will be deeply missed.”