Zak Richards

Zak Richards leads development for the University of Texas at Austin’s College of Natural Sciences. 

The college’s development team is responsible for working with donors to advance world-changing research and fund student success initiatives. They are playing a leading role in UT Austin’s $6 billion What Starts Here Campaign, including the launch of the UT Machine Learning Lab, Texas Biologics and Texas Field Station Network. They work with donors to provide thousands of students with scholarships and transformative experiences in the classroom, lab and beyond. 

Before joining UT Austin, Zak was Chief Principal Gifts Officer for the University of Virginia’s School of Engineering and Applied Science. He was previously a public relations coordinator for Charleston Area Medical Center and started his career as a cub reporter for the Charleston Daily Mail in Charleston, WV. 

Zak earned his M.A. in Advertising from the W. Page Pitt School of Journalism at Marshall University and a B.S. in News-Editorial Journalism from the Reed College of Media at West Virginia University.