Governor Abbott Names Chair And Appoints Five To The Texas Commission On The Arts
Governor Greg Abbott has appointed Felix Noel Padrón, Jr. and Marci Roberts and reappointed Mila Gibson to the Texas Commission on the Arts (TCA) for terms set to expire August 31, 2021. Additionally, he reappointed Shawn Stephens and appointed Kevin Yu for terms set to expire August 31, 2019 and August 31, 2017, respectively. He also named Dale Brock chair of the commission. The mission of TCA is to advance our state economically and culturally by investing in a creative Texas.
Felix Noel Padrón, Jr. of San Antonio is an independent cultural sector advisor. He most recently served 15 years as the executive director of the City of San Antonio Department for Culture and Creative Development, where he managed a portfolio in five creative areas including arts funding, public art, film, cultural facilities, and strategic initiatives. Prior, he was responsible for developing San Antonio’s first public art program and served six years implementing city-wide capital art projects. He currently serves on a number of boards including, Americans for The Arts, DataArts, Texans for the Arts and LuminariaSA. He holds the distinguished Taiwan Ambassador Award presented by the Taiwan Council for Cultural Affairs, in Taipei. He is an accomplished artist and curator with his artwork published widely. Padrón received a Bachelor of Arts in Fine Arts from the School of Visual Arts, and an associate’s degree from the Fashion Institute of Technology, both in New York City.
Marci Roberts of Marathon is executive director of The Marathon Foundation and owns and operates a number of local businesses including The French Co. Grocer, Evans Gallery, Desert Critter Wear, Marathon 2 Marathon, and Meo Design. She is president of Marathon Primary Care Services and former president and treasurer of the Marathon Chamber of Commerce. She is the past vice president of the South Lamar Neighborhood Association in Austin and past president of the Marathon Public Library. She is licensed by the Texas Board of Architectural Examiners as an architect and interior designer. Roberts received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from North Texas State University.
Mila Gibson of Sweetwater is founder and former director of the Amarillo Opera and is a retired music professor at Amarillo College. She is a board member of Rolling Plains Memorial Hospital and Amarillo Opera Board of Trustees and an ex-officio board member and consultant for Sweetwater Municipal Auditorium, where she produces and directs the APPLAUSE Music Series, visual art shows, and other arts events. She is a past board member of Sweetwater Rotary Club, Rotary Club of Amarillo, Catholic Charities, National Association of Teachers of Singing and the Association of Professional Fundraisers. Additionally, she taught music at West Texas A&M University and in various public schools across Texas. Gibson received a Bachelor of Music Education and Master of Arts in Music from West Texas State University.
Shawn Stephens of Houston is an attorney and partner with the King & Spalding LLP. She is a board member of the Texas Supreme Court Historical Society, Litigation Counsel of America, Houston Ballet Foundation and the Houston Museum of Natural Science and president of the Texas Association of Trial & Appellate Counsel. Additionally, she is a former board president of the Houston Zoo, Inc. and Zoo Friends of Houston. Stephens received a Bachelor of Arts in political rhetoric from Baylor University, a Juris Doctor from South Texas School of Law and a Latin Legum Magister in International Economic Law from the University of Houston Law Center.
Kevin Yu of Dallas is the founder and CEO of Coregami, and previously served as the senior vice president of Business Development at Zeit Energy. He has also served as the principal violinist of the Masters Sinfonia and Las Colinas Symphony. He is a board member of the Greater Dallas Youth Orchestra and member of Texas Music Educators Association. He is a former board member of the Greater Dallas Asian-American Chamber, Multi-Ethnic Economic Development Center and the Chamber Music International. In 2011, he was one of 55 Americans chosen for the Marshall Memorial Fellowship, an initiative of the German Marshall Fund of the United States. Yu received a Bachelor of Business Administration in Management Information Systems from The University of Texas at Austin and a Master of Science in Accounting from The University of Texas at Dallas.
Dale Brock of Fort Worth is the president and owner of Visiting Angels, a licensed private-duty home care agency. He is a board member of the Arts Council of Fort Worth and Tarrant County and Downtown Fort Worth, Inc., president of the Fort Worth Downtown Neighborhood Alliance as president and member of the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce and the steering committee of Plan 2023. Brock received a Bachelor of Business Administration from Southern Methodist University and is a graduate of the Stonier Graduate School of Banking at the University of Delaware.