In 1982 he was appointed chairman of the Department of Molecular Biology, then five years later assumed the directorship. In 1991, when the TSRI was established as a nonprofit entity, Lerner became its first president.
In 1982, he became the head of the Molecular Biology Department; five years later, he took on the directorship. In 1991, when TSRI transformed into a non-profit organization, Lerner was appointed as its first president.