Leanne White

Director of Education

Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens

Somebody took a chance on me and I’ll never forget that.

About Leanne

I grew up in San Joaquin County, California.
I spent a lot of time in nature as a child and knew that I eventually wanted to go into a career that involved the outdoors.
My goal was to work at a marine mammal rehabilitation center but that was put on hold when my family moved to South Carolina.
I went into college studying biology but was swept up in the computer industry—I got a job as a project manager at a computer company and never ended up finishing my biology degree.
Even though my background was now in technology, I still had a strong desire to work outdoors with animals, so I started volunteering at the Greenville Zoo.
When the education curator position opened up, I decided to go for it.
I worked as the education curator at Greenville Zoo for 13 years before moving on to the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens, where I currently work as director of education.