Natalie Evans Harris (she/her)

Natalie Evans Harris serves as Maryland’s State Chief Data Officer. An ecosystem builder at heart, she is a mission-driven data scientist, strategist and speaker with over 20 years of experience advancing the public sector’s strategic use of data. Leading initiatives, coalitions and organizations to powerfully and equitably leverage data to combat economic and social injustice.

As a leading voice in the responsible use of data for social impact, she has spent her career working with a broad network of academic institutions, data science organizations, application developers, and foundations to advance the responsible use of data. Prior to joining Governor’s Moore Administration as the State Chief Data Officer, she was the founding executive director of the Black Wealth Data Center and as a senior policy advisor to the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, Gina Raimondo, under the Biden Administration. Ms. Evans Harris served as a senior policy advisor to the U.S. Chief Technology Officer in the Obama administration and spent 16 years at the National Security Agency. She holds degrees from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore and George Washington University.

Ms. Evans Harris has a master’s degree in public administration from The George Washington University and bachelor’s degrees in computer science and sociology from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. She lives in Maryland with her husband and daughter.