Dr. Jill Sonke

Dr. Jill Sonke is an internationally respected leader in arts and health who has spent more than two decades advancing research, policy, education, and practice at the intersection of creativity and wellbeing. With 30 years of experience and leadership in the field of arts in health and a PhD in arts in public health from Ulster University in Northern Ireland, Jill is active in research and policy advocacy nationally and internationally. She is an artist and a mixed methods researcher with a current focus on population-level health outcomes associated with arts and cultural participation, arts in public health, and the arts in health communication.

Dr. Sonke is recognized for helping advance arts and health as an evidence-based field, building collaborations among healthcare systems, artists, researchers, policymakers, and community organizations while contributing to the growing body of research demonstrating the measurable impact of creativity on physical, mental, and social wellbeing. She served during the pandemic as a senior advisor to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Vaccine Confidence and Demand Team on the COVID-19 Vaccine Confidence Task Force and currently serves on the steering committee and as an Affiliated Researcher in the Jameel Arts & Health Lab, established by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Steinhardt School at New York University, Community Jameel, and CULTURUNNERS.

Career History

• U.S. Cultural Policy Fellow with Stanford University serving in an appointment at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York
• Director of Research Initiatives and Research Professor in the Center for Arts in Medicine at the University of Florida
• Co-director of the EpiArts Lab, a National Endowment for the Arts Research Lab in partnership with University College London
• Director of national research and impact for the One Nation/One Project initiative
• Past president of the Global Alliance for Arts and Health

What Dr. Sonke could bring to Sing for Hope: Drawing on three decades of leadership in advancing arts and health as an evidence-based field, Dr. Sonke brings unparalleled expertise in research methodology, policy advocacy, and building stakeholder collaborations across healthcare systems. Her track record of securing over 125 grants and publications, combined with her current roles at Stanford, the University of Florida, and the WHO's Jameel Arts & Health Lab, positions her to strengthen Sing for Hope's research credibility, expand partnerships with major institutions, and deepen the organization's ability to demonstrate measurable impact of creative interventions on population-level health outcomes—critical assets as the organization scales its work globally.