Valdez City Clerk Sheri Pierce was elected vice president of the International Institute of Municipal Clerks (IIMC) in late April.

Pierce will be officially sworn in as vice president during IIMC’s annual conference on May 22nd. She will serve a total of four years on the international organization’s leadership team – First as vice president, then president elect, then president, and finally as immediate past president.

In IIMC’s history, only one other Alaskan municipal clerk has been elected to lead the organization.

Founded in 1947, IIMC is the leading professional organization serving the needs of municipal clerks from cities and towns worldwide. IIMC’s membership of over 9,500 represents municipalities ranging from 250 people to more than 100 million people in North America and 15 other countries. IIMC is governed by a 26 member board of directors.

Pierce has served in municipal government for over forty years. Hired as Valdez deputy city clerk in 1989, she was then appointed Valdez city clerk in 1994. Prior to moving to Alaska, Pierce worked 12 years as an identification technician for the Portland Police Bureau in Oregon.

Pierce holds the designation of Master Municipal Clerk from IIMC, the profession’s highest certification. She served two non-consecutive terms as one of two IIMC Region IX directors, representing municipal clerks from Alaska, Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, and California on the organization’s board of directors.

An active member of the Alaska Association of Municipal Clerks (AAMC), Pierce served in a multitude of leadership roles over the past 20 years, including president, past president, education director, and chair for several different committees. In 2009, AAMC named Pierce the Alaska Municipal Clerk of the Year.