Face Value

Money is power. But who is on our money—or isn’t—can be just as powerful. While Lady Liberty has graced American coins and dollars for most of our history, it wasn’t until the 1970s that a real woman appeared on a circulating American coin. But that's about to change. In 2020, the U.S. Congress authorized the creation of twenty new quarters featuring American women from history. But how do we decide whose likeness gets engraved in our national story? And who makes these decisions? We’ll follow the money to find out.

Transcript

Guests:

• Jennifer Schneider, former program manager at Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum, current assistant registrar of outgoing and government loans at the Smithsonian American Art Museum
• Tey Marianna Nunn, former director of the American Women’s History Initiative at the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum, current associate director for content and interpretation at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Latino
• Ellen Feingold, curator of the National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History
• Joseph Menna, chief engraver at the United States Mint
• Tim Grant, public affairs manager at the United States Mint
• Dave Clark, supervisor of blanking annealing and upsetting at the United States Mint