Jennifer C. Gibbs joined the faculty at Penn State Harrisburg in 2013. After finishing a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Keuka College and a Master’s degree in Criminal Justice Administration from Niagara University, Dr. Gibbs earned her Ph.D. in Criminology and Criminal Justice from the University of Maryland, College Park, where she completed her dissertation focusing on the influence of police and state legitimacy on terrorist attacks targeting police in 82 countries – research that won the Homicide Research Working Group 2012 Richard Block Outstanding Dissertation Award.

Dr. Gibbs’ research interests include recruitment and retention in policing, police wellness, and terrorism. Notably, her research with Dr. Jonathan Lee on “Race and attitudes toward police: the mediating effect of social distance” was selected as a Highly Commended Paper in the 2016 Emerald Literati Network Awards for Excellence. Dr. Gibbs is a member of the American Society of Criminology and the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences, and she is the recipient of the American Society of Criminology Division of Policing 2024 Teaching and Mentorship Award.

On May 30, 2023, Norman Bristol Colón was appointed by Governor Josh Shapiro as the first Commonwealth Chief Diversity Officer for the Shapiro-Davis Administration to lead diversity, equity, belonging, and inclusion (DEBI) programs across Commonwealth agencies. The Commonwealth chief diversity officer (CDO) partners with cabinet members, senior leaders and employees across the Commonwealth to continue to build a capable, accessible, and diverse Administration that represents all Pennsylvanians.

His extensive career in public service includes serving as Executive Director of the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Latino Affairs, Director of Special Projects for the PA Department of State, Assistant to PA Secretary of State, Executive Director of the Governor’s Census 2020 Complete Count Commission, and Special Assistant to Deputy Secretary for Community Affairs and Economic Development.

Norman is the Founder and President of the Pennsylvania Latino Convention, the most comprehensive and inclusive initiative covering all aspects of Latino life, community, policy, and agenda in Pennsylvania. This initiative is creating the statewide agenda for the more than 1.1 million Latinos in the state covering business and entrepreneurship, education, health, housing, social justice, politics, the environment, civil rights, immigration, workforce training, and leadership/professional development.

Michaela has been a quantitative data analyst at the Center for Rural Pennsylvania since early 2024 and provides data and analysis on rural policy issues in service to Pennsylvania’s 3.4 million rural residents. In addition, she updates and maintains the Center's long-held rural database which hosts publicly available data on communities across the Commonwealth. Formerly, Michaela worked in state government as a fiscal analyst for the Pennsylvania Independent Fiscal Office. Michaela is a Penn State Harrisburg alumni and has a bachelor's degree in Public Policy with a minor in Applied Economics. In her spare time, Michaela enjoys playing tabletop and board games with her husband as well as spending time with her two dogs, Fergus and Meelo.

Dr. Ed Fuller is a Professor in the Department of Education Policy Studies at Penn State’s College of Education. Dr. Fuller is a former secondary math teacher, program evaluation specialist, Director of Research at the Texas State Board for Educator Certification, and Associate Director for Policy and Advocacy for the University Council for Educational Administration. He has served as an expert witness in five school finance court cases, including one in Pennsylvania. Dr. Fuller focuses his work on educator shortages, supply, and demand. Further, he examines how access to well-qualified educators differs for students with different characteristics.

Ryan Unger joined the Harrisburg Regional Chamber & CREDC in July 2021 as President & CEO, bringing with him over 20 years of community and economic development experience on the local, regional, and state levels. Ryan provides vision and strategic direction for the Harrisburg Regional Chamber & CREDC, including responsibility for all administrative and management functions and executing the overall mission of the organization. Ryan directs the organization’s strategic and operating planning in conjunction with the Chamber & CREDC Board. Ryan strongly believes in serving as a champion and advocate for our region and its business community.

Prior to joining the Chamber & CREDC, Ryan served as the CEO of Team Pennsylvania, the commonwealth’s public-private partnership for economic and workforce development, consisting of business and government leaders, chaired by the Governor. Ryan’s experience in regional economic and community development includes time spent at SEDA-Council of Governments based in Lewisburg, PA, and the Greater Susquehanna Valley Chamber of Commerce based in Shamokin Dam, PA.

In 2022 Ryan was awarded the Distinguished Alumni Award by the Department of Communications at his alma mater, Elizabethtown College. Ryan is the past president of Elizabethtown College’s Alumni Council and currently serves on the College’s Board of Trustees & Executive Committee.

Debbie currently serves as Senior Director of Research and Analytics for BusinessPA, supporting DCED’s business development and expansion activities across the Commonwealth. She joined DCED in 2015 after 20 years in the private sector providing consulting services in various aspects of community, economic, and real estate development planning.

Michael currently manages the Municipal Statistics Department, which centers around the collection of several annual reports from municipalities, counties, school districts and municipal authorities. He has spent the past 25 years within the Department and has overseen the transition from receiving and hand-processing paper copies of all reports, to a mandatory e-filing format. Over the years he has designed, tested, and implemented countless enhancements to the e-filing system, based on legislative requirements and user feedback.