Former teacher and Portland, Oregon, pioneering police officer and author Sybil Plumlee (Photo Credit: Betty Barker of Hearst Publications)

Many fine educators also pursue careers outside of the classroom. One of these was Sybil Plumlee, an Oregon teacher who also earned acclaim as a police officer specializing in the Portland Women’s Protective Division.

Sybil was born April 29, 1911, in Seattle, Washington. When she was a young girl, her family moved to Portland, Oregon. There she attended from Jefferson High School. After her graduation from high school in 1930, she earned her Bachelor’s degree from Oregon Normal School, now known as Western Oregon University. Once she earned her degree, Sybil accepted a position as a school teacher in a one-room schoolhouse located in Clarno, Oregon. Later, during world War II, she worked as an educator with the Ellis Mining Company in Bourne, Oregon.

In 1946, the former school teacher competed against 300 applicants to fill one vacant position on the local police force, an organization predominantly male-oriented. In fact, Sybil is recognized as a pioneer in the law enforcement field. She served in the unit known as the women’s Protective Division, and worked on cases involving child abuse, rape, and domestic violence. Her service on that unit spanned from 1947 to 1967.

In addition to her careers as an educator and a police office, Sybil was a published author. When she was 96 years of age, she published a collection of family stories and history entitled Stories of Hester Ann Bolin Harvey and Her Family. She also wrote Badge 357, an unpublished memoir of her career on the police force.

This amazing educator passed away on January 6, 2012. She was 100 years old. To read more about Sybil Plumlee, see her obituary published by The Oregonian.