The Military Basketball Association (MBA) has inducted Yvette V. Harris, Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity director at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, into the 2024 MBA Hall of Fame. Harris, a United States Marine Corps veteran, was inducted during a ceremony on May 23 in Philadelphia.
Harris joined the Marines Corps in 1985, and the day she checked in at Camp Lejeune she became a member of the All-Camp Basketball Team. There were 10 female basketball teams on the installation, and the All-Camp Team consisted of the best 12 players.
For the next 14 years, regardless of her duty station, Harris played for Camp Lejeune. She was stationed with the Navy from 1989 to 1991 and was team captain on that team. They won several tournaments. While stationed at the Marine Corps Air Station in Cherry Point, North Carolina, from 1991 to 1993, Harris was named Female Athlete of the Year for that base, named Tournament Most Valuable Player, and received various All-Camp Awards.
Prior to Harris’ arrival at the Marine Corps Logistics Base in Albany, Georgia, in 1996, there was no women’s basketball program at the installation. Harris began recruiting players and a coach, and she was the team captain from 1997 to 2001.
