Commission on Human Rights CommissionersThomas M. Anderson, JD, SPHR - Chair Thomas M. Anderson, JD, SPHR, is a certified human resource professional, Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) and an attorney admitted to the State Bar of Texas. Presently, he is employed by Fort Bend County as the Director of Human Resources and Risk Management. Tom graduated with a degree in Psychology from Purdue University and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Untied States Marine Corps after graduation. After completing the Marine Corps Basic Officers Course in Quantico, Virginia, Tom was transferred to Pensacola, Florida to train to become a Naval Aviator. He received his wings and flew as a helicopter pilot. Shortly after transitioning to a new aircraft, he spent a tour of duty in the Republic of Vietnam as a Marine Corps helicopter pilot. After leaving the Marine Corps with the rank of Captain, he attended DePauw University and earned a Masters Degree in Education. While attending DePauw he also was an assistant coach in football and baseball and head swimming coach. Prior to working in the public sector he worked in private industry for over 25 years, most recently for Reynolds Metals Company and Tredegar Industries. While working for Reynolds in Texas, Tom attended and graduated from South Texas College of Law. He is also an American Arbitration Association trained and certified mediator. He is currently a mediator with Fort Bend County Dispute Resolution Center. He has extensive experience in labor relations-negotiating labor contracts, handling grievances and arbitrations; health and safety issues; workers compensation hearings; training; recruiting; compensation; benefits; investigations dealing with a wide variety of legal and administrative issues, including EEO, sexual harassment, ERISA, OSHA, workers compensation and unemployment claims. In addition to his work, Tom has been involved in leadership roles with the following activities: Appointed by Governor Perry as Chair of the Texas Commission on Human Rights; Board of Directors, HR Houston; President, HR Houston; Legislative Action, Career Services and Senior HR Leadership Committee Chair (HR Houston); Member, Legislative Action Committee, Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM); Texas (SHRM) State Council, Legislative Action Co-Chair, Certification Chair and Chair for Texas Legislative and Employment Law Conference; Member, Panel of Arbitrators, American Arbitration Association; Mediator with the Fort Bend Dispute Resolution Center; Member, Texas Association of Business Workers Compensation Jobs for Texas Task Force; (Former) Employer Representative to Medical Review Committee of Texas Workers Compensation Committee (TWCC); Past Member, American Bar Association; Past Member, Employment and Labor Law section of American and State bar; Member, State Bar of Texas; Member, Fort Bend County Bar; Past Member, National Safety Council; recipient of the 200 HR Houston Tom Burke Distinguished Professional in Human Resources award; active in many other various local and civic activities. Tom and wife Brenda, an HR Manager, have two grown children and two grandchildren. Patricia V. Mares Asip - Commissioner After a 24-year rewarding career with the JCPenney Co., Inc., Patricia V. Mares Asip formed a new firm, Mares Inter-Americas Corporation, specializing in International Affairs and Business Development in the Americas. Until March 31, 1997, as the National Manager of Multicultural Affairs for the JCPenny Co., Inc., Ms. Asip managed the development and implementation of multicultural affairs programs and external communications directed at targeted priority markets. Today, JCPenney numbers among the country's leaders targeting the Hispanic, African-American and other minority consumer markets. Their first acquaintance with the Hispanic market occurred in 1978. It was then that Asip, while working as Editor for the JCPenney catalog, presented the facts and figures to the managers of her department and argued a convincing case for cultivating Hispanic business. Her initial strategy was to develop a Spanish-language guide to catalog shopping, Guía Práctica. It was a first for JCPenny, and a first for the American retail industry, as well. Today the guide is still regarded as breakthrough in U.S. Hispanic marketing, and Asip is still advancing on that opportunity and now other international priority markets. Following the success of the catalog guide, she persuaded JCPenney senior management to make an ongoing commitment to the Hispanic Market by creating a corporate-level program under her leadership. In addition to managing corporate TV, radio, print advertising and special events for the company's major Hispanic and minority markets, the department reached visibility as a positive, welcoming force in minority population centers. An acknowledged innovator in Hispanic business and minority consumers' affairs, Asip began her career with a corporate law firm in Argentina, and convinced the firm to send her to the U.S. as their representative. Subsequently, she became a partner in the business and opened a branch office in New York, where she prepared market studies, offered legal and tax counsel for U.S. businesses participating in ventures with South American companies, and instituted franchise and import/export programs for a diverse range of services and products. In addition to her prior corporate responsibilities, Asip is active in several major national civic and business organizations, political clubs, and currently serves as a Member of the Advisory Committee to the U.S. Senate Republican Conference, Task Force on Hispanic Affairs; Chairwoman of the Hispanic Policy Development Project, and a Member of the AMA's Sales & Marketing Council. In 1992, she was appointed by President Bush to the Federal Glass Ceiling Commission. She served for the life of the commission. She also served as a member of the Federal Communication Commission's Small Business Advisory Committee (SBAC), and the board of Advisors to the Superintendent of the Naval Postgraduate School at Monterey, California. In 1981, Secretary of Defense, Casper Weinberger, appointed her to a 3-year term on the Defense Advisory Committee of Women in Services (DACOWITS); she served one year as the Vice Chair. Ms. Asip was recently named to the prestigious "100 Hispanic Influential" by Hispanic Business magazine, and is frequently asked to address business and civic organizations on a broad range of subjects dealing with Hispanic marketing and Glass Ceiling Diversity issues. Ms. Asip credits her husband, Tom, and daughter, Helena, with much of her career success, and has found their pride in her to be inspiring. John H. James - Commissioner John H. James is the CEO for TOMCAT USA, Inc. where he oversees domestic and international sales, production operations, and company financial management for four offices located in Midland, Texas; Las Vegas, Nevada; Guadalajara, Mexico; and TOMCAT's sister company LOGICOAT also located in Midland. Mr. James earned his Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing from St. Mary's University and holds a Masters of Public Administration degree he received from Texas A&M University. He serves as President of the Midland Development Corporation, the city of Midland's economic development arm and as President of the Midland Community Healthcare Services Board of Directors, who manages the community's clinic system. In 2001, he was elected to the Midland College Board of Trustees, where he currently serves as Secretary to the Board. Previously, Mr. James was a member of the Board of Directors for the Midland Chamber of Commerce, Casa de Amigos Board of Directors, and the John Ben Sheppard Public Leadership Foundation. Anwar A. Khalifa - Commissioner Anwar Khalifa is President of Pyramid Homes, where he deals with new home design and construction and land development. He has also worked for Howe-Baker Engineers and Champp International where he served as the International Sales Engineer. Mr. Khalifa received his Bachelors degree from Texas A&M University in Chemical Engineering and received his Masters in International Business from the University of South Carolina. Mr. Khalifa is involved with the Tyler Chamber of Commerce, Texas Association of Business, the Better Business Bureau and other organizations. He volunteers his time with the Tyler Police Department, the ET Islamic Society and the Tyler Ministerial Alli. Shara Michalka - Commissioner Shara Michalka is currently the Assistant Regional Counsel for the United States Department of Health and Human Services and is also the Regional Attorney for the Oklahoma City Area Indian Health Service. She provides legal advice and training; reviews proposed legislation and writes comments to proposed legislation; litigates cases in federal district courts; provides consultation regularly with senior level officials within the Indian Health Service on sensitive legal and program issues. She was previously a Trial Attorney for the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Ms. Michalka has a Bachelor of Business Administration in Economics and a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from Texas Tech University. She received her Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Texas School of Law. Ms. Michalka is a member of the State Bar of Texas, the United States District Courts for the Northern, Southern, and Western Districts of Texas, and the William "Mac" Taylor American Inn of Court. She is Precinct Chairman for the Dallas County Republican, the Former Chairman of the Board of Management for the YMCA Texas Youth and Government Program, and serves the Board of Management for the Lakewest Family YMCA. She is a member of Habitat for Humanity and Junior League of Dallas, and is a Former Board Member of the Park Cities Republican Women's Club. Jose E. de Santiago, Sr. - Commissioner Jose E. de Santiago has been described as a self-made man by many who know him. His rise from humble beginnings in Monterrey, Mexico where his family was poor, to become the owner of a business in the Aldine community that has been listed as one of the 500 fastest growing businesses in the nation, may account for that acclaim. In addition, Jose was named National Minority Small Business Person of the Year in 1985 with that honor being bestowed by then Vice-President George Bush, the Houston Minority Business Development Agency, and the U.S. Department of Commerce. The next year, he was named Hispanic Businessman of the Year by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Additional honors have come from the Houston Northwest Chamber of Commerce and the Weslaco Chamber of Commerce as well as the city of Dallas which proclaimed him an honorary citizen. Jose was encouraged by his parents, Florentino and Jovita de Santiago, to obtain an education although it meant sacrificing the little money they had to purchase books which were very expensive. Seeking to improve his life and that of his parents, Jose came to the United States to find work at the age of 17. His earliest opportunities for employment proved difficult and, as an older teen, he enrolled in school in the border town of Weslaco. There he received training as a welder. After his marriage to Gloria Morquecho, a licensed vocational nurse, they began a trek in search of better opportunities for their family. That trek would bring them to Houston and the Aldine community. Although there were many struggles during the early years, good things did occur. In the mid-seventies, Jose realized his dream of becoming a U.S. citizen and in 1979 he made the decision to enter into business for himself. In the first year of operation, DESCO Steel Building, located in the Aldine community, grossed $250,000. The business has continued to grow with its earnings now into the millions and with the number of employees continuing to grow as well. It has also expanded into new areas-the Rio Grande Valley, Louisiana, and Florida. Jose also opened Sergio's, a restaurant with two locations in the Aldine community. There are three de Santiago children who are all Nimitz graduates as well as four grandchildren who are destined for Aldine ISD schools. During his years as an Aldine resident, Jose has served as a coach and sponsor for the North Houston Little League Association and has been a member of the Houston Chamber of Commerce, and served on the Board of Directors for the Houston Northeast Chamber of Commerce, of which he was one of the 10 original founders. He is also a member of the Aldine Optimist Club and the advisory council for North Harris College, where he also served on the Business Industrial Council. Jose is an advocate for education and believes that everyone-parents and educators-is responsible for preparing the next generation. Nila T. Wipf - Commissioner Nila Wipf is a Registered Nurse and the President of Wipf Chiropractic Clinic P.C. She is also the President of JNW Property Holdings, Inc. Ms. Wipf earned her Bachelors of Science in Nursing from the University of Santo Tomas, and her Masters in Education from the University of the Philippines at Clark Air Base. Ms. Wipf is a member of the American Nurses Association, Texas Nurses Association, National Association of Female Executives, Philippine Nurses Association of America, National Association of the Self Employed and the Texas Chiropractic Association Auxiliary Division. She is an active choir member for the St. Anthony Parish and served on the School Council for the St. Anthony Church. She served on the Rio Grande Valley Filipino American Association and is a past board member of the Harlingen Performing Arts Theatre. Ms. Wipf has two children and enjoys numerous activities. |
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