Sonja L. Banks

Sonja L. Banks brings nearly 25 years of experience in patient advocacy, community outreach and non-profit leadership, and she is deeply respected for her grassroots work in the rare disease and sickle cell disease communities. Ms. Banks is currently the chief executive officer of the International Dyslexia Association. Prior to that, she served in various leadership roles at the Sickle Cell Disease Association of America (SCDAA), including as a senior advisor, president, and chief operating officer. In her time at SCDAA, she played a key role in advocacy efforts to designate sickle cell disease as a national priority, and spearheaded grassroots efforts to secure the reauthorization of the Sickle Cell Treatment Act to continue federally funded programs for the prevention and treatment of sickle cell disease. She also oversaw the National Sickle Cell Newborn Screening Program and helped pioneer programs to improve patient outcomes, including a patient-empowered registry and certification programs for community health workers. Prior to joining the SCDAA, Ms. Banks was a director of community service and outreach at the St. Vincent’s Health System in Alabama and held key leadership roles at the United Negro College Fund and the United Way of Central Alabama. Ms. Banks has previously served on the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s Sickle Cell Disease Advisory Committee, Community Health Charities Board, and the American Society of Hematology’s Sickle Cell Disease Coalition. She is currently the first vice chairman for the 6:52 Aids Project Foundation.