A native Detroiter, Portia Roberson is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Focus: HOPE, a racial and social justice nonprofit. At Focus: HOPE, she leads a team of nearly 200 in the areas of workforce development, early learning, and a senior food program. She previously served as the Group Executive of Civil Rights, Inclusion, and Opportunity for the City of Detroit.
Prior, Roberson spent several years working for the Department of Justice. She was appointed Director of the Office of Intergovernmental and Public Liaison by President Barack Obama and served as Detroit Lead for the White House Domestic Policy Office’s Strong Cities, Strong Communities (SC2) initiative.
She has also served as Associate General Counsel for the Detroit Medical Center, Assistant Prosecutor for the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office, and her own private practice. Roberson is a member of numerous legal and nonprofit organizations including the Wolverine Bar Association and the Black Women Lawyers of Michigan and sits on many boards. She recently co-chaired the Jobs, Talent, and People working group to identify how to increase Michigan’s population by 2050.
Roberson earned her Juris Doctor from Wayne State University Law School and her Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Michigan.