For the Illinois politician born Gregory S. Harris, see Greg Harris (politician).
Greg S. Harris
Birth dateOctober 6, 1965 (age 60)
Birth placeWest Trenton, New Jersey, U.S.
OccupationMuseum executive
Known forPresident of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Alma materTemple University
SUNY Oneonta

Gregory Scott Harris (born October 6, 1965) is an American museum executive. He is currently the president of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio.[1]

Biography

Harris was born West Trenton, New Jersey.[2] His family moved to Morrisville, Pennsylvania, when he was 10 years old. [2] He graduated from Temple University with a B.A. in history in 1989, and earned a Master’s in history and museum studies from the Cooperstown Graduate Program at SUNY Oneonta.[3]

Harris was a senior executive at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum for 14 years.[1] Harris co-founded the Philadelphia Record Exchange in 1985 with Jacy Webster, a notable retail outlet which specialized in hard-to-find vinyl records.[4] He also worked in the live music business as the road manager for Ben Vaughn.[5][6]

Harris joined the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (HOF) in 2008, starting out as vice president of development; he was named president and CEO in late 2012 and started those roles in 2013.[4] Harris has expanded programming at the HOF, partnering with more traditional museums such as New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2019 to create a gigantic collection of musical instruments and photographs to accompany them.[7] During the COVID-19 pandemic, the HOF expanded its educational outreach and put more of its programming on YouTube where they were able to reach hundreds of teachers daily.[8]

Harris was instrumental in planning an expansion of the HOF scheduled to break ground in 2022.[9]

References

  1. ^ "Rock Hall CEO on Change, Controversy -- and Whitney Houston's Induction". Variety. January 30, 2020. Retrieved 2021-03-03.
  2. ^ Cosentino, Matt. "Rock Star". South Jersey Magazine. Retrieved 2021-03-03.
  3. ^ "Greg Harris". Temple Now | news.temple.edu. 2015-04-23. Retrieved 2021-03-03.
  4. ^ "Greg Harris Named President/CEO of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame". The Hollywood Reporter. 2012-12-03. Retrieved 2021-03-03.
  5. ^ Perry, David (2021-02-09). "Rock & Roll Hall of Fame President: Music, Entrepreneurship A Natural Combo". UMass Lowell. Retrieved 2021-03-03.
  6. ^ DeLuca, Dan (2015-09-18). "The Philadelphia Record Exchange celebrates 30 years with outdoor party". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2021-03-03.
  7. ^ Meszoros, Mark (2019-12-04). "Rock Hall rocks out with massive exhibition 'Play It Loud: Instruments of Rock & Roll'". The News-Herald. Retrieved 2021-03-03.
  8. ^ Meszoros, Mark (2020-06-17). "Rock & Roll Hall of Fame CEO talks reopening, feeling confident in the new coronavirus-related protocols". The News-Herald. Retrieved 2021-03-03.
  9. ^ "New York architect tapped for Rock & Roll Hall of Fame expansion". Real Estate Weekly. 2020-12-22. Retrieved 2021-03-03.