For immediate release
PORTLAND, OREGON – The City Auditor’s Office announced today that Jennifer Croft has been selected to serve as the new City Ombudsman. Croft will succeed long-time Ombudsman Margie Sollinger, who is leaving at the end of the year.
The Ombudsman’s Office conducts independent and impartial investigations of community member complaints against the City. It is a division of the Auditor’s Office.
Croft comes to the City after more than two decades in international diplomacy, where she focused on human rights, gender equality and democratic governance. She worked abroad for many years, including stints in Bulgaria, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan, and in positions focused on the Eastern Europe/Eurasia region while based in Poland and the Netherlands. Croft received her undergraduate degree from Columbia University and her Master's in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University in the Boston area.
Croft served as a Presidential Management Fellow with the State Department before moving on to roles at USAID and at intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations. She was nominated for a Human Rights and Democracy Achievement Award from the State Department in recognition of her role in the dramatic transformation of Kyrgyzstan during a time when events included the first democratic transition of presidential power in the history of Central Asia.
“The Ombudsman’s Office performs a vital watchdog function for the public, and I am pleased to be hiring someone with Croft’s formidable skills and experience,” said Auditor Mary Hull Caballero, who also is departing the City when her term ends at the end of the year.
Auditor-elect Simone Rede said, “Croft brings a wealth of knowledge and talent that will help us conduct independent and impartial investigations, challenge power structures, and advocate for a fair and just City government.”
Sollinger is winding down 11 years as the City Ombudsman. She investigated numerous complaints during her tenure and produced reports that highlighted systemic problems in the City with recommendations on how to address them. Two Ombudsman reports focused on problems with the 911 system. One described how the 911 system dropped emergency calls from cell phones. Another detailed how callers were left on hold much longer than managers publicly reported and below acceptable industry standards.
Sollinger led a team in the Auditor’s Office that found the City’s reliance on complaints to trigger property maintenance inspections and related fines led to disproportionate enforcement in diverse and gentrifying neighborhoods.
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