Sonia (Gutierrez) Harvey completed a Bachelor of Science in microbiology in 1996, and a Bachelor of Art in graphic design in 1998, from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. While an undergraduate, she studied abroad in Salamanca, Spain, and attended the Universidad de Salamanca to study art history and graphic design with a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship. She completed a Master of Fine Art in Design and Technology at Parsons School of Design New School University in New York, New York in 2002.

In 2003, she returned to Fayetteville and founded the nonprofit New Design School in 2006 and a sister for-profit graphic design studio, Atelier NDS, in 2007.

In May 2009, she was invited by Fayetteville Mayor Lioneld Jordan to lead the Creative Economy Action Group. In February 2020, she co-founded and served as CEO of Salsa for Change Benefit Corporation, donating $1 of every jar to benefit transitional housing for people experiencing homelessness in South Fayetteville. Harvey became the first Latina elected to the Fayetteville, Arkansas City Council in 2018 and served for over 4 years. In addition, she has taught design and technology at Parsons School of Design in Manhattan, New York, Monroe College in the Bronx, New York, the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and the Northwest Arkansas Community College in Bentonville, Arkansas.