ASHEBORO, N.C. — Diane Villa, deputy director and chief communications officer for the North Carolina Zoo, has been named interim director following the death of Director and CEO Pat Simmons.
Villa will lead the zoo during a national search for Simmons’ successor, according to the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, which oversees the facility.
“Diane’s many years of experience at the Zoo and her role as a member of the senior leadership team make her uniquely qualified to lead the North Carolina Zoo through this transition period,” DNCR Secretary Pamela B. Cashwell said in a statement…