Responsible for the overall management of the College's public relations program, Carla joined the administration at Messiah in 1996. She supervises the public relations staff and the functions they perform as a team—including media and community relations, traveling music ensembles, strategic communication initiatives, and special events, including the Messiah College Cultural Series. Carla also works closely with the College Web Staff to manage the content, strategy and project load for the College's web site.

Carla also serves a dual role with the Office of the President as Special Assistant to the President for Communication. In this role she assists the president with a variety of research, writing and special projects related to both internal and external communication. In this capacity she serves as co-chair of the College's Commencement Committee and recently chaired Messiah's 2005 Presidential Inauguration Committee. Currently, Carla is co-chairing the College's Centennial Committee, the team that is planning the celebration for Messiah's 100th anniversary in 2009-2010.

She also serves on the College's Institutional Planning and Finance Committee, College Council, Integrated Marketing Team, and Visual Identity Team. She holds active professional memberships in the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC); the College and University Public Relations Association of Pennsylvania (CUPRAP); and the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE).

Prior to coming to Messiah, Carla worked in public relations in both the government and nonprofit health care sectors. She graduated from Penn State University with a bachelor's degree in advertising and from Syracuse University with a master's degree in public relations. Carla and her husband, Dana, live with their twin son and daughter in Mechanicsburg, PA.

To Contact Carla:
Phone: 717.691.6027
Fax: 717.796.5371
E-mail: cgross@messiah.edu