Alumna appointed as Director of President’s Commission on White House Fellowships

Judge Rose Vela (B.A. ‘85) has been appointed Director of the President’s Commission on White House Fellowships, U.S. Office of Personnel Management. The commission, which provides emerging leaders with first-hand experience in the process of governing the nation, was established by fellow Texas State alumnus President Lyndon B. Johnson in a 1964 executive order.

After graduating from Texas State, Vela earned her J.D. from St. Mary’s School of Law in San Antonio. She served as Briefing Attorney in two Texas Courts of Appeals before going into private civil practice in Corpus Christi. Vela’s judicial experience includes two four-year terms as State District Judge in Nueces County, during which time she was elected to serve as Nueces County Presiding Administrative Judge, and a six-year term as an Appellate Justice on the 13th Court of Appeals. In the latter role, she presided over appeals from 20 Texas counties and authored hundreds of legal opinions.

A San Antonio native, Vela has also given back to Texas through her service on various boards, including the Food Bank of Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi Crime Control and Prevent District, Nueces County Appraisal District, Nueces County Court Appointed Special Advocates, the Corpus Christi Young Lawyers Association, and the Corpus Christi Bar Association.