The Portland State University (PSU) Center for Public Service is an academic center housed within the Hatfield School of Government at Portland State University in Portland, Oregon. The Center conducts research and consulting activities for state nonprofits and local governments, while housing several programs and initiatives including the Institute for Tribal Government and the Initiative for Community and Disaster Resilience. In 2017, the center co-organized the inaugural summit of the Election Science, Reform, and Administration Conference, an academic conference funded by the left-of-center Democracy Fund, with the Elections and Voting Information Center. ^{1 2 3} ESRA speakers tend to focus on left-coded topics such as “misinformation” about the election system.⁴

Background

The Portland State University (PSU) Center for Public Service was formed in 1996 through the merger of local government public service programs that had been developed at Portland State University and Lewis and Clark College in the 1970s. The center is located within the Hatfield School of Government, named for former U.S. Senator Mark O. Hatfield (R-OR). The Center argues its mission is about “empower[ing] people from a diverse array of industries with new ways of creating robust, human centered solutions in Oregon and beyond” while alleging a commitment to “[p]rotect and promote justice and democracy” and “Balance liberty and equity.” The center’s core values also list “Fairness, Equity & Social Justice” and “Sustainable Development.” ³

In 2009, the center became a “permanent part” of Portland State’s Mark O. Hatfield School of Government, and several long-standing programs were housed under it including the Executive Leadership Institute, the Institute for Nonprofit Management (later renamed the Nonprofit Institute), and the Institute for Tribal Government. ⁵

Activities

The Portland State University (PSU) Center for Public Service conducts research on behalf of local government institutions and state nonprofit organizations on government efficiency as well as on topics such as diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). ^{5 6 3}

Programs operated by the center include the Nonprofit Institute, which offers a masters degree in nonprofit leadership; First Stop Portland, created in 2007 to “offer custom-designed study tours for outside groups wishing to learn more about the Portland region’s innovative approaches to planning, transportation, and urban sustainability” and the Initiative for Community and Disaster Resilience (ICDR) co-founded in 2018 by Drs. Masami Nishishiba (Public Administration) and Hiroyuki Ito (Economics) to focus on issues of emergency management and community recovery. ⁵

The center also operates the Institute for Tribal Government, which was created in 2001 with $1 million in federal grant money that operates a certificate program in tribal relations. As of 2025, the Institute raises funding to aid local tribal communities. ⁷

The Center for Public Service has an environmentalist consulting program through which it helps local governments and organizations develop “climate action plans” and strategies for reducing waste and recycling.⁸ The Center for Public Service also offers various research publications on sustainable development and good governance.⁹

Election Science, Reform, and Administration Conference

In 2017, the Portland State University Center for Public Service co-organized the inaugural session of the Election Science, Reform, and Administration Conference. The session was funded by several left-of-center organizations including the Democracy Fund, the National Science Foundation, the MIT Election Data and Science Lab, and the Elections and Voting Information Center. ¹ The event was co-sponsored by the MIT Election Data and Science Lab (MEDSL), the National Science Foundation, and the Democracy Fund, and was held at the University Place Hotel and Conference Center in Portland, Oregon. ¹⁰

Steve Trout, the director of elections for the State of Oregon, spoke at the event, as did Portland State University academic and former Oregon Secretary of State Phil Keisling (D). Topics discussed included the “butterfly effect” of voter ID laws on voter turnout, reforms to promote youth voter turnout, automatic voter registration, and “e-democracy.”¹⁰

Leadership

As of 2025, Sara Saltzberg was serving as the director of the Center for Public Service. She had previously worked for the City of Portland’s Bureau of Human Resources.¹¹¹²

1. 2017 Conference. Election Sciences, Reform, and Administration (ESRA). Accessed September 17, 2025. https://esra-conference.org/2017-conference
2. Portland State University, Center for Public Service. Centers and Units. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.pdx.edu/center-for-public-service/centers-and-units
3. Portland State University, Center for Public Service. About. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.pdx.edu/center-for-public-service/about
4. “About.” Election Science, Reform, and Administration Conference. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://esra-conference.org/about.
5. Portland State University, Center for Public Service. CPS 10 Year Report: A Decade Dedicated to Public Service Excellence, 2009-2019. Portland State University, 2019. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.pdx.edu/center-for-public-service/sites/centerforpublicservice.web.wdt.pdx.edu/files/2021-01/CPS_10_Year_Report.pdf
6. Portland State University, Center for Public Service. Centers and Units. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.pdx.edu/center-for-public-service/consulting-and-research-services
7. Portland State University, Center for Public Service. Institute for Tribal Government. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.pdx.edu/tribal-government/
8. “Local Government Services & Resources.” Center for Public Service. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.pdx.edu/center-for-public-service/local-government-services-resources-0
9. “Research & Publications.” Center for Public Service. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.pdx.edu/center-for-public-service/research-publications.
10. “Conference Agenda w/ Linked Presented Materials.” Election Sciences Reform and Administration Conference, July 2017. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://esra-conference.org/files/election-science-conference/files/esra_2017_conference_papers_for_attendees.pdf.
11. “Staff.” Center for Public Service. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.pdx.edu/center-for-public-service/staff.
12. “Sara Saltzberg.” Center for Public Service. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.pdx.edu/center-for-public-service/profile/sara-saltzberg.