It all started with American Girl dolls.

Izzy Kasdin, the new executive director of the Historical Society of Princeton (HSP), credits the awakening of her passion for history to the popular dolls that came with detailed, historically accurate background stories. While American Girl has since shifted its focus to a more contemporary model, Ms. Kasdin, whose appointment was announced this month, remains devoted to history — specifically of Princeton, the town in which she was raised. She replaces Erin Dougherty, who left to become the director of the Flagler Museum in Florida.

“I joke about it, but I think it’s true that those dolls really stirred a passion in me for history,” the 24-year-old said last week. “And I was an avid reader of historical fiction as a kid. I wrote to the company to complain when they started to phase out the historical dolls. They didn’t respond, but at least I registered my grievances.”

The daughter of two Princeton University professors, Ms. Kasdin has been involved with the HSP since she was a volunteer docent while a student at Princeton High School. Working in that capacity for three years, she rewrote the entire docent manual. “The HSP had lit this fire in me and showed me what I wanted to do with my life, which is interpret history for the general public,” she said.

Ms. Kasdin went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in history at Princeton University, graduating summa cum laude and earning the Laurence Hutton Prize in history as well as the prestigious Moses Taylor Pyne Prize. A master’s degree in archaeological heritage and museums at the University of Cambridge followed, along with work in other historical organizations and museums. She rounded out her archaeological field school training in Colonial American material culture at the College of William and Mary.

The summer after her 2014 graduation from Princeton, she became a part-time research assistant at the HSP, working on a few exhibitions including the permanent show on Albert Einstein at the organization’s Updike Farmstead on Quaker Road. Most recently, she served as the HSP’s curator of collections and exhibitions.

It was this impressive resume and her familiarity with the town, among other factors, that made Ms. Kasdin the final choice for the job despite her tender age. “People tell me it’s unusual, but I’ve got to tell you that as we looked at the candidate pool, she had the best package of ingredients,” said Scott Sipprelle, president of the HSP Board of Trustees. “She’s been working here in some capacity since 2007, so she knows the place inside and out. She has been our curator of collections full time, and doing such a great job with the inventory.”

Ms. Kasdin’s youth was, in fact, seen as an asset. “Every history organization has an existential challenge to make themselves as contemporary and meaningful and relevant as possible to a new, younger, more easily distracted audience,” Mr. Sipprelle continued. “So having youth is an incredible advantage. You put it all together and she was the top choice, even though we didn’t start out that way and we talked to a lot of very qualified candidates.”

History is important, Ms. Kasdin said, because it teaches a frame of reference that most resembles the human value of empathy. “It teaches you to consider things within their context. It’s so important to understand how and why things happened in the past.”

Her attachment to the local community and her love of history made it impossible for Ms. Kasdin to pass up the curator of collections position when it was offered her last year. Now, as executive director, she is enthusiastic about passing her appreciation on to others. Her future plans include making programs more visible and accessible to local residents. “I want to infuse the organization with a few strategies happening across the museum field,” she said. “I want to bring stories up to a level of relevance for our audiences. There is a lot more community-based storytelling we can do. I would love to see our collection grow to reflect the communities of Princeton.”

“We have fantastic collections here that sometimes go unnoticed,” she added. “Increasing access and connecting to many of the community organizations that already exist are important to me. One of the great things about my having grown up in Princeton is that I know people and organizations and the great work they’re doing. There is a big opportunity for collaboration.”