American Mensa National Office

The American Mensa National Office began in the early 1960s when Margot Seitelman was hired as Executive Director. Originally run out of her apartment in Brooklyn, New York, it later expanded into vacant apartments in the same building until it was moved into more official business premises, still in Brooklyn. In the early 1990s, it was moved to the Fort Worth, Texas area (during the Dick Amyx administration), a move that was accompanied by some political fighting and acrimony, and disgruntlement from employees who needed to be dismissed as a result of this move. Later, it moved within that region to a building owned by the Mensa Educational and Research Foundation, to which American Mensa now pays rent. Dave Remine has taken credit for this latter move.

In recent years there has been an ongoing trend to have more of Mensa's activities be run or coordinated by the paid staffers of the office than had been done before; the Mensa Bulletin now has an office staffer as its editor (instead of a Mensan as used to be done), and the Annual Gatherings have a greater national office presence than before. There has been some internal political controversy over these moves.

Current Executive Director Pam Donahoo is in charge of the national office. She, and all other staff, are required by current policy not to be members of Mensa.