The Da Vinci Science Center has announced that Lin Erickson, who led the organization 1997 - 2005, has begun her second tenure as Executive Director and CEO.

Erickson was elected unanimously by the Da Vinci Science Center's Board of Trustees after a national search of nearly 175 candidates. She began her second tenure March 18.

She has more than 25 years experience spearheading educational initiatives for students from kindergarten through college, raising more than $46 million from public and private sources.

Erickson was Chief Development Officer of the Air Force Museum Foundation, Dayton, Ohio, June 2011 - February. 2013, and Director of Government, Corporate and Foundation Relations at Wittenberg University, Springfield, Ohio, 2006 - 2011.

Erickson stepped down as CEO of the then Da Vinci Discovery Center, Bethlehem, August 2005, soon after her husband, Mark Erickson, became President of Wittenberg University.

Mark Erickson returned to the Lehigh Valley in 2012 to become President of Northampton Community College (NCC), Bethlehem Township, motivating Lin Erickson to seek a position in Lehigh Valley region.

The search for the Da Vinci Science Center's next CEO, which began in January, provided a poignant homecoming opportunity.

Troy A. Thrash, who had led the Da Vinci Science Center starting in March 2009, in January became President and CEO of the Air Zoo museum, a Smithsonian Institution affiliate in Portage, Mich.

MaryAnn Woods Przekurat, Da Vinci Director of Finance and Human Resources, was interim CEO since Jan. 24 and has returned to that role.

"The Center's Board of Trustees is excited about the appointment of Lin Erickson to lead the next chapter of the Center's development," said Chairman Frank K. Schweighardt, Ph.D.

"I am deeply honored to be chosen as the next CEO of the organization that has provided me with the most rewarding experience of my career," Erickson said.

"For me, this opportunity is not about returning. It is about moving forward," she said.

"The Da Vinci Science Center has grown remarkably since 2005, and I embrace the challenge of working with its exceptional staff to build upon the sizable momentum it has created, especially over the past two years," said Erickson.

In her work at the Air Force Museum Foundation, Erickson oversaw a $48-million campaign for a new 224,000-square-foot building for the museum's presidential aircraft collection, space-related artifacts, and global reach transport aircraft.

At Wittenberg University, she raised more than $7 million to support capital projects; science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) programs; teacher training programs; and community outreach initiatives.

With what was then the Da Vinci Discovery Center, she directed campaigns of $1.9 million and $10.8 million, with the latter supporting the construction of the Center's facility in Allentown. The Center re-established its operations in Allentown in October 2005.

Along with achieving a record number of 93,503 participants in its 2012 fiscal year, the Center has posted a 60.1 percent increase in total participation and a 23 percent membership sales increase in its 2013 fiscal year to date, as of Feb. 28.

The Center has established integrated workforce development initiatives as its signature experiences. These initiatives integrate a limited-engagement exhibit experience with community programming that highlights industry workforce development needs and opportunities.

The Center has positioned itself as a leading authority on science, technology and education for eastern Pennsylvania and western New Jersey.