Elected in 2006, Councilmember Ervin is the first African American woman to serve on the Council. Ervin did not take a traditional path to public service. Ervin got her start in grass roots activism as a union organizer. In this capacity, she fought to ensure that working people knew about their rights in the workplace and that they received appropriate benefits. She was elected to the Montgomery County School Board in 2004 as a result of her long-term advocacy on behalf of struggling students and her work on closing the achievement gap.

Ervin is the chairperson of the Council’s Education Committee, which reviews more than half of Montgomery County’s operating budget. In addition, she serves on the Government Operations and Fiscal Policy Committee, which conducts budget reviews and program oversight for various county departments and offices. She was elected by her peers to serve as Council President for the 2010-2011 term.

Valerie Ervin represents District 5. The district covers the southeast and eastern portion of the County generally surrounding U.S. Route 29, including Silver Spring, Takoma Park and Lyttonsville. White Oak, Burnt Mills, Briggs Chaney, Cloverly, Calverton, Colesville, Fairland, Four Corners and Hillandale are also part of the district. This district also shares boundaries with the District of Columbia, Howard and Prince George's Counties.

Councilmember Ervin has received many awards for her public service including: Washingtonian Magazine’s Washington’s 100 Most Powerful Women Award in 2011; Maryland’s Top 100 Women from the Daily Record in 2008 and 2012; Long Branch Athletic Association’s Community Hero Award in 2010; Phyllis Campbell Newsome Public Policy Leadership Award from the Center for Non-profit Advancement in 2008; John Greeley Award from Liberty’s Promise in 2008; Phenomenal Woman of the Year Award from Community Bridges in 2007. She was also profiled by Bethesda Magazine as one of the county’s “Wonder Women” in 2007. Governor Martin O’Malley named Ervin to the Chesapeake Bay Trust, which is a nonprofit, grant-making organization created to promote public awareness and participation in the restoration and protection of the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. She received a 2008-2009 Rawlings Fellowship from the James MacGregor Burns Academy of Leadership at the University of Maryland.

Prior to Ervin’s service on the Council, she was the Dean of Students at the National Labor College in Silver Spring, Maryland. She also worked as a chief of staff on the Council. Ervin holds a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Baltimore. She is a member of Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Rockville.