Sonia Winner

Sonia Winner has been the president and CEO at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History since 2018, having previously served as the acting CEO and executive director for six months and chief advancement officer for one year.

Winner has an extensive background in development within educational institutions. Before joining the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, she served as vice president for university development at Columbia University. During her time there, she was part of the leadership team that raised a record-breaking $6.1 billion in a single campaign for an Ivy League university. Winner also held positions at Case Western Reserve University. Prior to her career in education, she was among the first lawyers in the US to serve in a career service capacity.

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History has completed a transformation project that lasted over a decade. The newly redesigned museum opened on 15 December 2024, after expanding to 375,000 square feet. It now features two extra acres of redesigned outdoor areas and a completely refreshed visitor experience. Guests can visit three new galleries, creating an engaging series of exhibits. This addition complements the already renovated Visitor Hall, which opened in 2023.

Speaking to blooloop in 2024, she shared a new design approach: “The traditional model for natural history museums was just to show objects. And that was great when people couldn't see lions or different kinds of minerals, but now they can. And so, what we're trying to show in our new museum is that integrated story of life, the fragility of life, the beauty of life. But also how we survive with other living things. That we’re all part of this large web of life that started really with the Big Bang Theory.

“We're telling those stories, but we want the visitor to have a 3D experience, so that not only are they seeing objects, but they're able to touch them and be immersed in different areas of self-discovery."