Background
Nikiya Harris was born and raised in Milwaukee.
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Nikiya Harris
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Education
A former pre-school teacher and pre-college coordinator, she graduated from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee with a bachelor’s degree in community education and a master’s degree in adult education.
Career
She was elected to the Senate in November of 2012 and began serving in the Wisconsin State Legislature on January 7, 2013. She previously served as a County Supervisor in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin from 2010 through 2012. She is a graduate of Washington High School.
Prior to serving in elected office, Harris worked in fund development for the Urban Ecology Center.
Through her work, she empowered families to take back their neighborhoods and communities through environmental initiatives such as urban gardening, safe and clean parks, and involvement in recreational activities. Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors
On May 25, 2010, Nikiya Harris was elected 2nd District County Supervisor in an eleven-candidate race.
After her election to the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors, she led the fight for voters" rights by opposing Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker"s Voter Idaho law. She eased voter access to the polls by pushing forth an initiative that allowed thousands of Milwaukee residents to receive a free birth certificate.
She also proposed and executed a successful plan to remove oversight of the Milwaukee House of Corrections from the County Sheriff.
Under the new plan, oversight shifted to a superintendent appointed by the Milwaukee County Board. Wisconsin Senate
In 2012, Supervisor Harris ran for state senate in Wisconsin"s 6th Senate District in a heavily-contested five-way primary after former senator Spencer Coggs was elected as County Treasurer. She was sworn into office on January 7, 2013.
During the 2013-2014 legislative session, Harris served on a number of committees in the Wisconsin State Legislature, including Education, Government Operations, Public Works, and Telecommunications, Judiciary and Labor, and Law Revision.
She also served on the Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules. Harris Dodd currently serves on the Legislative Council Study Committee on Adoption Disruption and Dissolution, which is scheduled to have its first meeting in July of 2014.
During the 2013-2014 legislative session, Harris pushed for an increase to the minimum wage, access to job training, and affordable healthcare. She also put forth initiatives to repair Milwaukee"s foreclosure crisis and reform Wisconsin"s broken criminal justice system and mental health system.
In April 2014, Harris" bill creating the Milwaukee County Emergency Detention Pilot Program was signed into law.
The program puts the authority to initiate emergency detentions into the hands of qualified mental health professionals rather than solely in the hands of the police. The law will help stop negative police interjection into mental health crisis situations.
