Glenda Gracia-Rivera, MPA

Glenda Gracia-Rivera is a skilled trainer with 25 years of experience in designing programs and delivering content to learners of all ages. Glenda’s work focuses on expanding leadership opportunities for all and elevating equity-minded policies and practices in today’s classrooms and workplaces. She accomplishes this by developing/implementing programs directed at bringing about institutional change in various arenas including academic, nonprofit, and corporate institutions.

Her clients cover a broad spectrum of industries throughout the region. She provides extensive services to school districts all over NJ, as well as higher education institutions such as Raritan Valley Community College, Hunter College, and St. Joseph’s University. Glenda has also partnered with multiple state government agencies such as the NJ Department of Education, Labor and Workforce Development, NJ Department of Children and Families – Division on Women, and the Office of Legislative Services. Some of her corporate clients include LG Electronics, Provident Bank, Johnson & Johnson, and Atlantic Healthcare System, to name a few.

In addition to her expertise in building equitable and inclusive practices, Glenda also has an extensive background in leadership development, strategic planning processes, and qualitative research. She has co-authored local research studies on identifying needs and priorities to increase equity for women in New Jersey, and the economic development of Latina immigrants. On a national level, her research has included advancing equity in career and technical education, and examining the role of employee ownership in building the assets of low-income workers.

Glenda holds a Bachelor of Arts in sociology, and a Master of Public Administration in non-profit management, both from Seton Hall University. Outside of her responsibilities at Rutgers, she has also served on various boards and committees in her community that focus on empowering women/girls and addressing educational disparities for minoritized populations. These include Mercer Street Friends in Trenton, Girl Scouts of Eastern PA, and Chi Upsilon Sigma National Latin Sorority, Inc.