James Grossman is Executive Director of the American Historical Association. Formerly Vice President for Research and Education at the Newberry Library, he has taught at the University of Chicago and the University of California, San Diego. He is the author of Land of Hope: Chicago, Black Southerners, and the Great Migration and A Chance to Make Good: African-Americans, 1900-1929, and project director and coeditor of The Encyclopedia of Chicago (2005; online edition, 2006).

Grossman recently stepped aside as editor of the multiple-award winning series, "Historical Studies of Urban America" (50 vols, 1992-2015). His articles and short essays have focused on various aspects of American urban history, African American history, ethnicity, higher education, and the place of history in public culture. His book reviews have appeared in the Chicago Tribune and New York Newsday in addition to various academic journals. Land of Hope received awards from the Gustavus Myers Center for Human Rights and the Illinois State Historical Society. A Chance to Make Good won awards from the New York Public Library and the National Council for the Social Studies. Grossman was chosen in 2005 as one of seven "Chicagoans of the Year" by Chicago Magazine.

Grossman’s consulting experience includes history-related projects generated by the BBC, Smithsonian, and various theater companies, film makers, museums, and libraries. Professional service has included elected offices in the American Historical Association and Organization of American Historians, ethics committees for both organizations, and advisory boards for the National Park Service, Center for New Deal Studies at Roosevelt University, Illinois Historical Society, City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs, and Chicago Public Library. He serves on the boards of the Association of American Colleges and Universities, Center for Research Libraries, and National Humanities Alliance (Vice-President).

Grossman tweets @JimGrossmanAHA.