Erin Sullivan Sutton is the assistant commissioner for Children and Family Services for the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS). She is responsible for programs and policies that promote economic stability, child safety and permanency, opportunities for children to develop to their potentials and successful transition for immigrant families.

Named assistant commissioner in June 2010, she previously served as director of the department’s Child Safety and Permanency Division, where she oversaw adoption, foster care, child protection and other children’s services for the state.

An attorney and social worker, Sullivan Sutton has worked for the department since 1987, earning a reputation as an articulate champion of children’s issues at the department, in the community and at the Minnesota Legislature. She has served on numerous task forces with the Minnesota Judicial Branch. She is past president and current Executive Committee member of the National Association of Public Child Welfare Administrators. She has bachelor's degrees in social work and psychology from the College of Saint Teresa in Winona, Minn., and a law degree from William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul.