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Laurie Sowd Named Huntington’s Vice President for Operations

Sowd Ready to Take On New Responsibilities

Published on Wednesday, June 15, 2011 | 8:18 pm
 

Laurie Sowd has been named vice president for operations at The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. Sowd, a member of the Huntington’s senior staff, has been directing operations for 19 years; her promotion to vice president reflects her significant and growing portfolio of responsibilities, says Steven S. Koblik, Huntington president.

“She is among the most extraordinary of colleagues the president of any institution could ask for,” he said. “Her passion for The Huntington is renowned and her skill set absolutely remarkable. There is no challenge she doesn’t take on with sheer delight.”

Sowd is responsible for managing The Huntington’s facilities, all construction projects, security, emergency planning, and information systems. She is also in charge of the institution’s risk management program, heading up contract negotiations, overseeing property, liability and fine arts insurance, and related matters.

In addition, she oversees The Huntington’s Building and Grounds Committee, composed of Trustees and Overseers who guide decisions having to do with institutional planning for development, preservation, and conservation of the Huntington property.

Sowd currently heads The Huntington’s new Education and Visitor Center project, a $60 million complex of gardens and facilities that will replace the existing ticketing area. That project, being designed by Architectural Resources Group, the firm that led the historic renovation of the Huntington Art Gallery, is now undergoing environmental review by the City of San Marino. In tandem with the new complex, Sowd is overseeing the institution’s role in updating the San Marino ordinance that governs The Huntington’s operations.

“Laurie is ubiquitous,” said Stewart Smith, chair of The Huntington’s Board of Trustees. “Everywhere I turn, and in every project I work on, Laurie is there, and often leading the way. She has the remarkable capacity to lead calmly and bring people together around a common cause to get spectacular results. She is a quintessentially gifted project manager.”

“There is also the Laurie I know on a personal level,” said Koblik. “She is the essence of The Huntington’s remarkable culture—extraordinarily warm, giving, and affirming.”o

Before coming to The Huntington in 1992, Sowd held positions in operations and special projects at the J. Paul Getty Museum. Before that, she worked at the de Young Museum in San Francisco and for the San Francisco Opera. She holds a Bachelor of Music Education and Master of Music from Bowling Green State University, and a Master of Business Administration from the University of California, Los Angeles.

She is on the board of directors for the Pasadena Conservatory of Music.

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