In January 2018, Marita Garrett was sworn in as Mayor of Wilkinsburg, after serving on Wilkinsburg Borough Council from 2014-2018. In her role as Mayor, she has re-established the Public Safety Forums, which is a monthly series that highlights updates in the Wilkinsburg Police Department and provides an opportunity for community members to express their safety concerns.

While on Council, Mayor Garrett started “Wilkinsburg Community Conversations,” an initiative to connect and empower residents to work together for neighborhood improvement. Since then, Marita founded CIVICALLY, an umbrella nonprofit that focuses on literacy programming, building healthy communities through free, fresh produce distribution, and health education, and the Free Store Wilkinsburg, where donations of new and slightly used material goods are available to residents and families.

Ms. Garrett is the co-owner and managing partner of Admintrinsic, a for-profit company that provides a wide range of outreach and engagement services to non-profits and mid-level corporations. She has successfully coordinated small business educational events, including the 2016 Wilkinsburg Vacant Home Tour and Dollar Bank’s first ever 2017 Black History Month Celebration, and has served as the Program Facilitator for Coro Pittsburgh’s Women in Leadership Program and Launch Wilkinsburg.

Building on her mission of promoting women empowerment, Marita is the co-host of Shattered Glass Podcast, which highlights stories of extraordinary women shattering the glass ceiling. She also was featured in Pittsburgh Magazine’s Women & Business, September 2018.

Ms. Garrett received a Bachelor’s in Psychology from the University of Pittsburgh. She continued on to receive a Master’s in Psychology from Chatham University, where she has been a panel speaker on several occasions for the Center for Women and Politics. She has been recognized for her diligence in civic and community engagement by numerous organizations and media outlets such as the Pittsburgh Magazine’s 40 Under 40, City Paper, The Incline’s “Who’s Next in Politics,” NAACP – Greater Pittsburgh chapter, and named “Young Democrat of the Year” by the Allegheny County Democratic Committee in 2017.

Currently, she serves as Immediate Past Chair of the Congress of Neighboring Communities (CONNECT) and as a member of the advisory boards for Emerge Pennsylvania, Allegheny Regional Asset District (RAD), National Leaders Council – Pittsburgh chapter, and Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s Strategic Partnerships & Community Engagement Advisory Committee, among other organizations.

In 2017, she was selected to attend the NextCity Vanguard conference held in Newcastle, Australia. Additionally, Ms. Garrett has served on panels at the Brookings Institution and United Nation’s World Urban Forum 9.