Larry Dubinski
President & CEO
The Franklin Institute
Larry Dubinski is the President & CEO of The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, one of the nation's premier and celebrated science centers, founded in 1824. Today, it holds the distinction of being the most visited museum in Pennsylvania.
Since assuming the role in 2014, Dubinski has introduced experiences designed to engage diverse new audiences, increase attendance, bring science into the community, and significantly raise the profile of The Franklin Institute while upholding its educational mission.
Dubinski is a recognized national and international leader in the museum industry. In October 2021, he completed a two-year term as Chair of the Association of Science and Technology Centers (ASTC), a global organization representing science centers and museums with over 600 members in over 40 countries dedicated to furthering the public understanding of science among increasingly diverse audiences.
At the Franklin Institute, Dubinski led two major capital campaigns totaling $120 million: Turning the Key and Inspire Science, which resulted in the construction and completion of the 53,000-square-foot, $41 million transformative expansion—the Nicholas and Athena Karabots Pavilion—in 2014. In preparation for TFI’s bicentennial in 2024, Dubinski is leading the planning, development, and activation of a comprehensive master plan and strategic vision that will transform and redefine the science center.
Under his leadership, The Franklin Institute has grown as a national leader in informal science education through its direction of grant-funded programs, including Leap into Science, GSK Science in the Summer™, and Mission2Mars that garner national acclaim for combining impactful programming, professional training, and broad participant reach.
The development of strategic partnerships and a string of curatorial and exhibit exchanges have led to the procurement of artifact loans and subsequent world-class traveling exhibitions, including Terracotta Warriors of the First Emperor, Vatican Splendors, Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes, the 2022 world premiere of Harry Potter™: The Exhibition, and the 2023 world debut of Disney100: The Exhibition.
Over the years, TFI has significantly enriched its digital landscape, recently unveiling a digital content platform to debut its first-ever podcast and video series and launching a Franklin Institute Roblox game in 2022. In early 2020, at the onset of the pandemic, TFI developed Franklin@Home, a comprehensive digital suite of science programming. In 2015 organization experienced a substantial upsurge in millennial interest as a result of Dubinski’s push for engaging experiences like escape rooms, virtual and augmented reality, after-hours adult 21+ programming, and speaker events that, together with the internationally-celebrated Franklin Institute Awards program, have delivered notables such as Jane Goodall, Bill Nye, Indra Nooyi, Alan Mulally, Frances Arnold, and Jennifer Doudna to the Institute’s expanded audience.
These initiatives, which focus on a new strategic business model approach while maintaining support for the Institute’s mission to inspire a passion for learning about science and technology, have earned Dubinski global recognition. In 2021, he was elevated to the “Power 10” of the international Blooloop 50 Museum influencer list. In 2022 and 2023, he was named to the Philadelphia Business Journal's “Power 100” list for superior leadership of the organization through the global pandemic, consecutive successes with world premiere exhibitions, and reimagining TFI in advance of its bicentennial. Previous honors include “Fundraising Executive of the Year” by the Greater Philadelphia Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, “Circle of Excellence Award” from SmartCEO, “Most Admired CEO” from the Philadelphia Business Journal and a three-time Mid-Atlantic Regional Emmy Award winner.
Dubinski serves on the board of Vanguard Charitable, a leading nonprofit that sponsors donor-advised funds, the Deutsches Museum in Germany, and the American Alliance of Museums (AAM), the only organization representing the entire scope of the museum community. In Philadelphia, he is currently on the board of the PHLCVB, the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, and the Satell Institute, where he is also Vice-Chair. He is also a Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) member.
Previous board affiliations include ASTC, the Parkway Council of Philadelphia, the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, and Rodeph Shalom.
He holds a B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin and a J.D. from the Temple University Beasley School of Law. Dubinski spent four years (2000-2004) at Morgan Lewis, one of the largest law firms in the world, and returned to The Franklin Institute in 2004.
Before beginning his role as President & CEO in July 2014, Dubinski served as Senior Vice President of External Affairs and General Counsel, Executive Vice President, and Chief Operating Officer of The Franklin Institute.
As the most visited museum in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and a top-five tourist destination in the City of Philadelphia, The Franklin Institute is one of the leading science centers in the country and serves as both a prominent educational and cultural resource, and as an anchor of the local economy.