September 18, 2019
Page 5
New Leader
in Justice
c ontinued froM p age 3
Her mother was the first African Ameri-
can woman hired as a police officer by the
City of Portland and the state of Oregon
in 1973. She was also one of the first five
women placed on street patrol. Even with
a demanding job, Preuitt’s mother volun-
teered as a coach, was active in her church
and served as “officer friendly” in local
schools.
Preuitt’s father is award-winning blues
musician and community activist Norman
Sylvester who currently is a leading advo-
cate for a statewide Health Care for All or-
ganization.
“The example they set put me on a path
of wanting to build community and influ-
ence the lives of those involved or impact-
ed by community violence,” Preuitt said of
her family.
“My mother modeled courage and per-
severance. She exhibited what it meant to
care about the community and engaged
us in these efforts at an early age. I love
northeast Portland and wanted to be a part
of making a difference in the community
where I lived,” she said.
Preuitt said she was exposed to social
justice issues early in life as a student at St
Mary’s Academy.
“These experiences led to focusing my
career on making a difference in my com-
munity, particularly working with women,
photo by M otoya n akaMura /M ultnoMah c ounty c oMMunications
The new director of the Multnomah County Department of Community Justice, Erika Preuitt (center), poses with her family,
including her father, Norman Sylvester (on her left) and mother Carmen Sylvester (on her right).
families and gang-involved individuals,”
she said.
Preuitt was first assigned to Multnomah
County’s Department of Community Jus-
tice Intensive Case Management Program
working with justice-involved women. She
also spent significant time assigned to the
Adult Gang Unit, helping gang members
change their behavior. Her talents were
quickly noticed as she was promoted to
community justice manager, then district
manager, and then director of the Depart-
ment’s Adult Services Division. She was
promoted to deputy director of the Depart-
ment of Community Justice in April 2018.
In 2017, Preuitt was also sworn in as
the first African American president of the
American Probation and Parole Associ-
ation, the international advocacy organi-
zation for pretrial, probation, parole and
community-based corrections profession-
als. She served as president of the group
for two years.
During last week’s ceremony marking
her appointment, Preuitt thanked the coun-
ty managers who had mentored and sup-
ported her career including Elyse Clawson,
Joanne Fuller, Carl Goodman, Truls Neal
and Scott Taylor.
Preuitt said she will remain steadfastly
committed to ensuring staff feel supported
in their work. She also wants the depart-
ment to continue learning, and always
looking to the latest evidence-based best
practices. And she plans to grow its work
to better emphasize trauma-informed care.
“The work of community corrections
is so important because of its multiplying
effect. We are change agents,” she said.
“When our staff helps people to change
their lives, a family is restored and com-
munities grow stronger.”