Paulette Harris-Gross, MS is senior community program specialist for the University of Maryland, Baltimore’s (UMB) Office of the President. She joined UMB in October 2018 and two months later completed her Master of Science in Management with a human resources management specialization from the University of Maryland Global Campus.

Harris-Gross serves as an ex officio for the Diversity Advisory Council (DAC) and works with the DAC chair to coordinate meetings and special projects. She’s a member of the DAC Marketing and Communications Committee and coordinates efforts to publicize the monthly DAC Spotlight. She serves as chair of the  new DEI Resources Committee.

Harris-Gross also works with UMBrella (UMB Roundtable on Empowerment in Leadership and Leveraging Aspirations), where her role entails organizing advisory board meetings, managing scholarship applications, maintaining the UMBrella webpage, and coordinating the annual daylong Women’s History Month Symposium. Harris-Gross co-manages the UMBrella Coaching Program and curated the program’s first resources toolkit for program participants. The toolkit includes over 400 articles, videos, and books on an array of career-related topics such as intersectionality, leadership, and sponsorship.

Prior to coming to UMB, Harris-Gross worked as an administrative professional at Baltimore City Community College (BCCC) within the Workforce Development and Continuing Education Division, where she helped execute administrative, financial, and personnel-related functions. In this position, Harris-Gross also gained valuable experience working with immigrant and refugee students of diverse backgrounds. During her tenure, she was recognized with the 2011 BCCC Employee Excellence Award for her work ethic, productivity, and dependability. Her career background also includes teaching in Baltimore City Public Schools; coordinating services for Head Start families in West Baltimore, and cultivating community partnerships for a nonprofit helping individuals overcome barriers to employment.