The next president and CEO of the St. Louis Zoo will be an accomplished leader who is dedicated to caring for wildlife, zoo officials announced Tuesday.
Dwight Scott, executive director of the , will take over in St. Louis when longtime leader Jeffrey Bonner leaves in January.
![Dwight Scott will come to St. Louis after leading the San Diego Zoo since 2013. [10/5/21]](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/3e70675/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1500x2250+0+0/resize/840x1260!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F69%2F04%2F68115b24462fbe85ddbd396f0d39%2Fdwight-scott-photo-courtesy-of-san-diego-zoo-wildlife-alliance.jpg)
Scott took the helm in San Diego in 2013. The Missouri native previously served as executive director and CEO of the , and as assistant director of the . He also worked at Disney鈥檚 Animal Kingdom in Florida.
The search committee was impressed with Scott鈥檚 30 years of experience in the field, said Cynthia J. Brinkley, chair of the St. Louis Zoological Park Subdistrict Commission, which has oversight of the zoo.
鈥淗e鈥檚 had tremendous passion for wildlife conservation and certainly feels that diversity, equity, accessibility and inclusion programs are really critical to the organization and to the community,鈥� Brinkley said.
Bonner has led the St. Louis Zoo since 2002. His accomplishments include creation of the zoo鈥檚 , which works to save endangered animals at 17 locations around the globe.
During Bonner鈥檚 tenure, the private fundraising group St. Louis Zoo Foundation in Spanish Lake. The zoo plans to build a wildlife park and breeding facility there, which could open as soon as 2026. In 2018, voters in St. Louis County approved a sales tax increase to raise additional annual funds for the zoo.
鈥淭rying to sum up his success in 19 years in just a few sentences is really challenging,鈥� Brinkley said of Bonner. 鈥淗e has made a lasting impression on the St. Louis Zoo, and we hope to take his legacy and not only build from it but grow it and add even more. He鈥檚 had a very successful career, and we鈥檝e been very fortunate to have him as our leader.鈥�
Scott is a native of Chillicothe, in Livingston County. He received his bachelor's degree in liberal arts with a concentration in anthropology from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He got his start in the zoo field as an animal keeper at.
鈥淕rowing up in Missouri, I was inspired by visits to the Saint Louis Zoo,鈥� Scott said in a statement. 鈥淚 look forward to taking the Saint Louis Zoo to new heights just as Dr. Bonner, Charlie Hoessle, Marlin Perkins, George Vierheller and all the past leaders of this world-class organization have done over the years.鈥�
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