Meet the Mayor's New Chief of Staff: Tera Piece

Meet Tera Pierce. She is the new chief of staff to Portland Mayor Charlie Hales.

Pierce takes over for Josh Alpert, who left to take a job with the London-based C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group.

She had been serving as Alpert's deputy.

"Tera has been a key member of my team, leading with intelligence, strength and humor," Mayor Hales said. "I’m excited to have her join me at the helm for these last, critical six months."

Before starting work for Hales, Pierce had worked in the House Majority Office in the Oregon State Legislature, served as chief of staff for state representative Jennifer Williams and managed successful elections for Williams and State Representative Jessica Vega Pederson.

Before getting into Oregon politics, Pierce had worked in South Florida where she managed a Chevrolet dealership.

She got her bachelor's in social work from Portland State and lives in Sunnyside with nine-year-old son, Elliot, an their two dogs, Cookie and Otis.

Pierce says she is excited to help Hales in his last six months in office.

"Our goal is to leave Portland an even better place through our agenda, and by providing a seamless transition to the next administration," she said.