Mary Patterson McPherson (born c. 1935) is the current Executive Officer of the American Philosophical Society, and former President of Bryn Mawr College.
McPherson received her B.A. and L.L.D. from Smith College, her M.A. from the University of Delaware, and her Ph.D. from Bryn Mawr College. She has taught at the University of Delaware and served as professor and dean at Bryn Mawr before being elected President of Bryn Mawr College, from 1978-1997.
After serving as Vice President of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation from 1997–2007, McPherson was named the Executive Officer of the American Philosophical Society, the oldest learned society in the United States. She had been elected to membership in the society in 1983.