Sheila Martin appointed PSU Vice President of Public Affairs and Chief of Staff

Portland State University announces the appointment of Sheila Martin to the position of Vice President of Public Affairs and Chief of Staff to the president. Incoming President Ann Cudd chose Sheila for her proven track record in economic development and her dedication to building community connections in higher education.

Martin was a member of the PSU faculty from 2004-2018 in the School of Urban Studies and Planning. During her time at PSU, she was also the director of the Institute of Portland Metropolitan Studies and the Population Research Center. She has a Doctorate of Philosophy in Economics from Iowa State University; a Master’s of International Studies from University of Kentucky; and a Bachelor’s of Arts in Economics and Political Science from Southern Illinois University.

As Vice President of Public Affairs, she will oversee the offices of University Communications, Community Impact and Government Relations, as well as serving as Chief of Staff to President Cudd.

“I am excited to rejoin Portland State and to work with incoming President Ann Cudd, my PSU colleagues, and our community partners to shape the future of PSU,” said Martin.

Martin is the founder and principal of Triple Helix Partnerships, LLC, and is highly regarded in the region and internationally for developing strategic economic and community initiatives that engage with higher education. She is a Senior Fellow at the Center for Regional Economic Competitiveness (CREC) and, from 2018-2021, was the Vice President for Economic and Community Engagement at the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities.

Prior to her time at PSU, Martin was the economic development advisor to Washington State Governor Gary Locke and a Senior Economist at RTI International.

Martin returns to PSU on July 17.