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Job Description
Description
Do you have a passion for leadership, education, animal care, and creating memorable experiences for children and families? Do you thrive in fast-paced, mission-driven environments that blend hands-on learning, zoo operations, and public service?
The City of Palo Alto Community Services Department is seeking an experienced, collaborative, and visionary professional to serve as the Executive Director for the Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo (JMZ) - one of the Bay Area’s most unique and beloved institutions.
This leadership role provides strategic oversight, operational management, and long-term planning for a dynamic and highly visible division that includes an accredited zoo, children’s museum, educational programs, camps, special events, birthday parties, and community engagement initiatives.
The Junior Museum & Zoo serves thousands of children and families annually through hands-on science learning, animal experiences, camps, classes, outreach programs, and community events. The facility currently is open to the public six days per week, generates more than $3 million annually in revenue, and includes over 35 staff members across education, animal care, guest services, operations, and administration.
Some key responsibilities include:- Department Leadership: Provide strategic leadership, operational oversight, and long-range planning for the Junior Museum & Zoo.
- Staff Management & Culture: Lead and support multidisciplinary teams while fostering a collaborative, inclusive, and high-performing culture focused on safety, accountability, innovation, and exceptional guest experiences.
- Program & Operations Oversight: Oversee the planning, implementation, evaluation, and continuous improvement of zoo, museum, educational, conservation, and community engagement programs.
- Community & Stakeholder Engagement: Develop and maintain partnerships with schools, community organizations, volunteers, donors, sponsors, and professional organizations, and represent the organization within the community.
- Financial & Resource Management: Manage departmental budgets, financial resources, grants, contracts, and capital improvement projects to ensure fiscal sustainability and operational effectiveness.
- Strategic Planning & Continuous Improvement: Analyze operational and program data, identify opportunities for improvement, and implement strategies that enhance services, efficiency, and community impact.
- Compliance & Accreditation: Ensure compliance with City policies, safety standards, regulatory requirements, and Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) accreditation standards.
- Safety & Animal Welfare: Promote a safe, welcoming, and engaging environment for staff, volunteers, guests, and animals.
The ideal candidate will be a professional, solutions-oriented, and highly collaborative leader with strong operational and people management skills, experience leading multidisciplinary teams, and a passion for education, conservation, and public service. The successful candidate will bring experience working with educational programming, community engagement, zoo animals, conservation initiatives, and/or youth-focused services. They will demonstrate the ability to lead through change, build strong internal and external partnerships, and support a positive workplace culture focused on accountability, communication, innovation, and continuous improvement.
Bring your experience leading complex, fast-paced, mission-driven operations across education, animal care, and public engagement. Apply today!
Compensation (MGMT): Comprehensive compensation plan. To learn more, click here .
Benefits: The City offers a fantastic benefits package including:- Schedule: Option of a 9/80 work schedule with every other Friday off
- Professional development: Tuition reimbursement, leadership training, and career growth opportunities
- Education benefits: Potential enrollment for dependents in the Palo Alto Unified School District (pilot program, subject to change)
- Childcare support: $10,000 in childcare subsidies (pilot program, subject to change)
- Commute benefits: Incentives for walking, biking and taking transit to work. The City of Palo Alto participates in the Clipper Bay Pass program (Employee Cost: $5 per month).
- Defined-Benefit Retirement Plan: with competitive pension benefits
To learn more about benefits, clickhere.
Essential Duties
Essential and other important responsibilities and duties may include, but are not limited to, the following:- Supervises staff to include: prioritizing and assigning work; conducting performance evaluations; ensuring staff are trained; and making hiring, termination and disciplinary recommendations.
- Coordinates, supervises, and evaluates day-to-day operations of an assigned major program; ensures compliance with applicable internal and external requirements.
- Coordinates the development, implementation, and supervision of program goals, objectives, policies, procedures, activities, and strategic initiatives; assesses consequences and outcomes of program initiatives.
- Performs regular inspections of program sites to ensure the safety of staff and patrons.
- Develops and recommends program plans and priorities.
To review full job description, click here.
Minimum Qualifications
Sufficient education, training and/or work experience to demonstrate possession of the following knowledge and skills, which would typically be acquired through:- Bachelor's degree in a related field and five years of progressively responsible, directly related experience; or, an equivalent combination of education and experience sufficient to successfully perform the essential duties of the job such as those listed above.
- Master's degree in a related field preferred.
Desired Qualifications- Master’s Degree in degree in Recreation, Museum Studies, Zoology, Biology, Education, Public Administration, or Environmental Science.
Licensing Requirements:
Depending on area of assignment, positions may require:- Valid California Driver's License.
- First Aide/CPR Certification (Must be obtained within first 6 months of hire)
Supplemental Information
Recruitment Timeline:- Applications Close: Wednesday, July 1st
- Panel Interviews: Week of July 13th
- Final Interviews: Week of July 27th
The Selection Process:- Recruitment status notifications will be sent via email or text (please enroll in text alerts when applying).
- Updates can also be found on your governmentjobs.com account.
- Applicants will be screened throughout the posting process and highly qualified candidates may be invited to interview at any time.
- The screening process for this position may include a virtual recorded interview and/or panel interviews preceding final interviews with the hiring manager or their designee.
- More than one position may be filled through this posting.
Our online application system is provided by NeoGov. If you have problems while applying online, please contact NeoGov's Live Applicant Support at (855) 524-5627 between 6:00 AM and 5:00 PM Pacific Time, Monday - Friday.
The City of Palo Alto is an Equal Opportunity Employer. In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the City will provide reasonable accommodation to qualified individuals with disabilities and encourages both prospective and current employees to discuss potential accommodations with the employer.
See our Benefits at a Glance Bookletfor more details.
Learn more about our Compensation Plan HERE.
Closing Date/Time: 7/1/2026 11:59 PM Pacific -
ABOUT THE COMPANY
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City of Palo Alto
Show moreThe Community
The birthplace of Silicon Valley, Palo Alto, is a community of approximately 68,000 residents and nearly 100,000 jobs. Located on the mid-Peninsula between San Francisco and San Jose, Palo Alto is recognized worldwide as a leader in cutting-edge technology, medicine, and green innovation. The community's treelined streets and historic buildings reflect its California heritage, and, at the same time, many world-class businesses maintain or started offices here, such as Stanford Health Care and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, Amazon, Broadcom, Hewlett-Packard, Houzz, Rivian, SAP and SAP Ariba, Tesla, and Varian Medical Systems. Numerous start-ups are also at home in Palo Alto, arguably making it the start-up capital of the world. Stanford University is foundational to the history and prestige of Palo Alto, reflected in the community's dedication to lifelong learning. Stanford's cultural and educational offerings are integral to the vibrancy and charm of Palo Alto, while the City's exceptional K-12 school district ranks among the top public-school systems in the country. With more than 50% of adult residents holding a graduate degree or higher, Palo Alto is frequently listed as one of the most educated cities in the nation. Palo Alto boasts a genuine sense of community and an active citizenry with strong environmental values. Beautiful neighborhoods are complemented by vibrant commercial corridors and a bustling economy featuring premium shopping and dining options. Excellent healthcare facilities, performing arts, and diverse recreational opportunities are some of the community's incredibly desirable and cherished amenities. To learn more, visit https://www.paloalto.gov/Departments/City-Manager/Latest-NewsCity Government
Palo Alto is a full-service charter city with a council-manager form of government. The seven-member City Council is elected at large, and the City Council annually selects the Mayor and Vice Mayor from among its members. The Mayor and City Council appoint the City Manager, City Attorney, City Clerk, and City Auditor. The City Manager is responsible for the strategic direction and day-to-day operations of the City. Palo Alto is organized into 15 departments/offices with 1,093.10 authorized positions in FY 2025. There is also a FY 2025 capital budget of $316.2 million. Palo Alto owns and operates its own utilities, including electricity (carbon-neutral), gas, water, wastewater, and an expanding fiber network. This dynamic municipal environment ensures an ever-engaging platform for unique problem-solving and advances new initiatives, including sustainability, broadband, and effective service delivery. Community assets also include five libraries, 36 parks, five community centers, a museum and zoo, youth centers, a general aviation airport, an 18-hole golf course, a regional water treatment plant, and wildland open space preserves at the San Francisco Bay and in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains offering 41 miles of walking/biking trails in addition to its police, fire, and ambulance services. Palo Alto has long been a leader in sustainability, and the City's ambitious greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction goals are part of what sets it apart. Since the City's first Climate Protection Plan was passed in 2007, Palo Alto has set goals that exceed State and Federal targets. Today, the City's goal to reduce emissions 80% below 1990 levels by 2030 (the "80x30" goal) and achieve carbon neutrality by 2030 guides sustainability efforts. An award-winning City, Palo Alto is recognized nationally as innovative and well-managed. City services and performance also receive impressive marks from community members in the Palo Alto Community Survey.
Many of those ratings put City programs and services in the highest percentiles among the hundreds of benchmark cities. Palo Alto makes decisions through comprehensive processes and proactively seeks to involve its extremely informed, educated, and engaged residents. Projects are naturally a cooperative effort among the City Council, Boards, Commissions, Committees, engaged residents, neighborhoods, businesses, property owners, and staff.
Join an Award Winning Team
Palo Alto is an award-winning City recognized nationwide as innovative and well-managed. Palo Alto is one of a small number of California cities with a AAA bond rating. Recently, Palo Alto became one of the most livable cities in the U.S. by Livability.com. It's the only city to receive the Platinum Beacon Award in sustainability best practices by California’s Institute for Local Government. We offer a variety of career paths that relate to building and improving communities. The City has fourteen departments employing 1,000 full-time staff. Police officers, fire fighters, paramedics, and building inspectors keep us safe. Engineers and public works staff build and re-build the physical infrastructure. City planners help envision and shape future community growth. Recreation, arts and library professionals enhance community life. Utilities provides electric, gas, water, sewer and other services. Internal services departments help manage, staff, and protect the City.
Want to learn more about our benefits? Learn more by reviewing our "Benefits at a Glance Booklet."
Contact Us
Phone: 650-329-2376
Email: Recruit@paloalto.gov
Location: City Hall, 1st Floor | 250 Hamilton Ave 94301 | View Map
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