- Email:
- turnerjf@iu.edu
Jillian serves as a member of IU Lab's executive team and provides oversight and strategic direction for IU Lab under the direction of the President and CEO. She leads operations for IU LAB and works across Indiana University and with external partners and industry to identify and implement collaborations to drive innovations in human health.
Before joining IU LAB as its first Senior Advisor and Vice President of Strategy and Operations in January 2025, Jillian Turner was Senior Vice President of Global Investment and Partnerships for the Indiana Economic Development Corporation. In that role, she oversaw foreign direct investment strategy and priority partnerships, including Indiana’s international engagement through Memorandums of Understanding and foreign economic development travel with the governor and secretary of commerce of Indiana.
Prior to moving home to Indiana, Jillian worked for seven years at the U.S. Department of State, serving as the Secretary of State’s Public Affairs Advance Lead, where she communicated U.S. foreign policy objectives around the world, including at the G-20 talks in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 2018, and Osaka, Japan, in 2019. Additionally, Jillian worked in the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA), where she advised leadership on policy and strategic planning initiatives and managed a range of Fulbright Programs throughout South and Central Asia, including Afghanistan and India. Before the State Department, Jillian worked for several nonprofit organizations focused on strengthening cultural exchange and connectivity with Europe, Near East Asia, and South and Central Asia.
Jillian was awarded the Sagamore of the Wabash in 2025. She holds a bachelor’s degree in international studies from Indiana University and a master's degree in international education policy with a concentration in negotiations from Harvard University. She is originally from Shelbyville, Indiana.