Job Title: Senior Director, Development Programs

Organization: Houston Zoo

Education: Master's in Sociology with a minor in Statistics, Portland State University and a graduate certificate from the UTHealth School of Biomedical Informatics.

Jillian Day, CFRE, CSPG, is currently the Senior Director, Development Programs at the Houston Zoo. She is a philanthropic facilitator with thirteen years of experience in major and planned giving, as well as stewardship. Jillian and her team oversee the Zoo’s corporate and legacy giving programs, as well as the engagement of the Asante Society, the Zoo’s premier donor club. Previously, she was a gift officer who raised millions in major and planned gifts for the Zoo’s Centennial Campaign. She has been at the Zoo for nine years. Prior to that, she spent four years building out the volunteer and fundraising programs at Vita-Living, Inc., a social services charity. Before finding her way to the nonprofit sector, Jillian worked in healthcare consulting for seven years. She specialized in team effectiveness, leadership development, and program evaluation first at UTHealth, then at UT MD Anderson Cancer Center.

Jillian received her CSPG (Certified Specialist in Planned Giving) certification in February 2024 and her CFRE in 2017. She has a Master's in Sociology from Portland State University. She volunteered on the board for AFP-Greater Houston for five years and now serves on the Advancement Committee for the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). While not a native Texan, she got here as quickly as she could by marrying her husband, a native Houstonian.