Governor Abbott Names Presiding Officer And Appoints Three To Texas Board Of Architectural Examiners

January 20, 2016 | Austin, Texas | Appointment

Governor Abbott has appointed Jennifer Walker and Bob Wetmore and reappointed Chase Bearden to the Texas Board of Architectural Examiners for terms set to expire January 31, 2021. The Governor additionally named Debra Dockery as presiding officer for a term to expire at the pleasure of the Governor. The Texas Board of Architectural Examiners is a multi-profession regulatory agency that oversees the examination, registration, and professional regulation of architects, interior designers, and landscape architects.

Jennifer Walker, AIA & LEED® AP of Lampasas is founder and president of JNW Architects, L.L.C. Previously, she was a job captain at Barnes Gromatzky Kosarek Architects of Austin. She is a member of the American Institute of Architects as well as the Texas Society of Architects. She serves as president of the Lampasas Public Library Advisory Board, trustee of the Library Foundation Board of Lampasas and treasurer for the Lampasas Association for the Arts. Walker received a Bachelor of Environmental Design and Master of Architecture from Texas A&M University.

Bob Wetmore, AIA of Austin is principal and founding partner of Cornerstone Architects, L.L.P. He has served on the boards of Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children (CASA) of Travis County, Austin Boys’ Choir, the Home Builders Association and Custom Residential Architects Network as an architectural representative. A graduate of the Leadership Austin program, he works with many volunteer and advocacy organizations throughout the city of Austin. Wetmore received his Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the College of Engineering at Texas Tech University.

Chase Bearden of Austin is director of advocacy for the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities.  He serves on the board of Access Empowerment working to assist cities, counties and communities in addressing the issues of disabled parking from education to enforcement. Previously, Bearden has served as a gubernatorial appointee to the Rehabilitation Council of Texas. Bearden received a Bachelor of Arts from Concordia University.

Debra Dockery of San Antonio is president of the architectural firm of Debra J. Dockery, Architect, P.C.  She was past president of the San Antonio Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, vice president of the Texas Society of Architects (TSA) and currently serves on the Government Affairs Steering Committee for TSA. She has served on the Board of Habitat for Humanity San Antonio, the advisory committee for Healy-Murphy Center and as the business representative on the District Educational Improvement Council for Southside Independent School District. Dockery received a Bachelor of Environmental Design and a Master of Architecture from Texas A&M University.