Joyce Sylvester

Joyce Sylvester
Dutch Senate Member
In office
10 June 2003 – 9 June 2015
Personal details
Born Joyce Juanita Sylvester
(1965-09-19) 19 September 1965[1]
Amsterdam
Nationality Dutch
Political party Labour Party
Alma mater Utrecht University
University of Amsterdam
Free University in Amsterdam
Website www.joyce-sylvester.nl

Joyce Juanita Sylvester (born on 19 September 1965) is a Dutch politician. She is the first female mayor and the first senator of Surinam origin.[2] Since 2009 she has been the ad interim mayor of Naarden.[3] As of 1 January 2016 Naarden will be merged with two other cities: Bussum and Muiden.[4] Between 10 June 2003 and 9 June 2015 she was member of the Senate for the Labour Party (PvdA).[5][6]

Early life and education

Sylvester was born 19 September 1965 in Amsterdam.[6] Between 1977 and 1984 she followed VWO education in Amsterdam. She earned a propaedeutics in cultural anthropology at the University of Amsterdam in 1985.[6]

Sylvester studied communications/information management, partly at Utrecht University, and political science/government finances at the University of Amsterdam. She completed both degrees between 1985 and 1991.[6] In 2000 she was awarded her promotion at the Faculty of Law at the VU University Amsterdam.[6] She worked as a journalist for the newspaper Het Parool between 1985 and 1992, as a financial policy officer at the Ministry of Transport from 1992 to 1994 and the public service of the municipality of Amsterdam between 1994 and 1998.[6]

Career

In 2003 she was elected on behalf of the Labour Party (PvdA) in the Senate. In the Senate, she engaged in Finance, Economic Affairs, Culture and Agriculture. In the Senate elections of 2007, she kept her seat on the basis of preference votes.[7] In 2011 she was in ninth place on the candidate and was reelected again. She resigned as secretary and joined the group directors and committee Social Affairs & Welfare and Vice-President Internal Affairs / General Affairs.

From 1 October 2008 to 31 May 2009 she was acting mayor of the North Holland town Anna Paulowna, replacing the departed Arnoud-Jan Pennink. In September 2009, Sylvester became acting mayor of Naarden after her predecessor, Peter Rehwinkel, traded his mayorship of Naarden with that of the city of Groningen.[6][8]

Sylvester has several other positions. Thus, she is also chairman of the Supervisory Board of RTV Noord-Holland and chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Foundation for Early Music Utrecht.

Publications

Joyce Sylvester wrote several books:

Private life

Joyce Sylvester grew up in a family with three sisters. Her parents came from Suriname to the Netherlands to study in the late fifties. Her mother was caretaker of the Amsterdam mayors Ed van Thijn, Schelto Patijn and Job Cohen.[6] In 1992, Joyce Sylvester was seriously injured in a train accident in Hoofddorp.[9]

References

  1. ↑ "Dr. J.J. Sylvester (PvdA)". Eerste Kamer. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  2. ↑ Rahan, Stuart. "Burgemeester Joyce Sylvester: “Dokter Sophie Redmond inspireerde mij”". Werkgroep Caraibische Letteren. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  3. ↑ "Burgemeester Joyce Sylvester bij tentoonstelling in Pouloeuff" (in Dutch). Dichtbij. 9 March 2015. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  4. ↑ "Brief aan de Stuurgroep fusie Bussum, Muiden en Naarden". Rijksoverheid. 6 January 2015. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  5. ↑ Berentsen, Laurens (6 March 2015). "'Regio's moeten veel meer inspanningen leveren om iets gedaan te krijgen dan de Randstad'" (in Dutch). Financieele Dagblad. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Dr. J.J. (Joyce) Sylvester" (in Dutch). Parlement.com. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
  7. ↑ Marcel van Lieshout (25 May 2009). "Joyce Sylvester: Een betrokken rolmodel van ijzer" (in Dutch). De Volkskrant. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
  8. ↑ "Mevrouw dr. J.J. Sylvester waarnemend burgemeester gemeente Naarden" (in Dutch). Province of North Holland. 3 September 2009. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
  9. ↑ "Joyce Sylvester - First black woman mayor in The Netherlands". Afro-Europe. 4 September 2009. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
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