kiryn hoffman

Kiryn Hoffman joins National Children’s Museum to lead the strategic vision for and day-to-day operations of the institution. Most recently, Kiryn was New York Hall of Science (NYSCI)’s Interim Deputy President and CEO and Chief Advancement Officer. She was responsible for all private fundraising for the institution. As part of this work, she managed partnerships with philanthropists, foundations and corporations, and oversaw fundraising initiatives including the annual gala and the NYSCI President’s Council. She joined NYSCI in 2014 after a decade in program development and fundraising at science- and education-based non-profit institutions. Prior to joining NYSCI, she served as Vice President and Chief Development Officer at the New York Academy of Sciences, where she led the ground-up redesign of the organization’s fundraising infrastructure, resulting in growth from a long period of fiscal deficit to a sustainable annual budget of more than $15 million. Prior to her work at the Academy, she served as Director of Major Giving and Capital Campaign at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, where she led a $200 million capital and endowment campaign, resulting in funding for six new laboratory buildings and endowments to support research and education in the areas of cancer and neurological and psychiatric disorders.

Kiryn is trained as a physical chemist and holds a bachelor’s degree from Barnard College and a master’s from New York University. Between her undergraduate and graduate studies, she assisted Nobel laureate James D. Watson in writing and editing his book, DNA: The Secret of Life, and curated an international touring exhibit about his writing career. She is also a published science writer, with articles in Scientific American Mind, The National Academies Press, and Nature Nanotechnology, among others. She has two young children, 6 and 11.