Congresswoman Teresa Leger Fernández, who represents New Mexico’s 3rd Congressional District, will be guest speaker at this week’s Roswell Rotary meeting.
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Marcos Nava, club president-elect, said: “She is excited to be in Roswell to meet people, to hear their ideas and concerns, and is looking forward to questions from Rotary members.”
Teresa is a 17th-generation Northern New Mexican. Born in Las Vegas, N.M., she attended Head Start before graduating from Yale University and Stanford Law School.
After law school, Teresa worked as an attorney and advocate, winning legal battles to advance voting rights, promote tribal sovereignty, and protect the environment and acequia waters. She also served as an acequia commissioner.
As a public interest lawyer, she has helped secure nearly $1 billion for and then helped build, schools, rural health clinics, broadband, businesses, affordable housing, and critical infrastructure for New Mexico.
“She has worked to protect voting rights and create a more inclusive democracy,” her official biography reports.
She also was a Clinton and Obama presidential appointee and worked as a White House Fellow on housing issues and as vice chair of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation.
In Congress, Teresa serves on the House Natural Resources, House Education and Labor, and House Administration Committees.
She also was elected by her colleagues to serve as chair of the Committee for Indigenous Peoples of the United States, working on various issues for Native American communities, including economic development, health, cultural preservation, and education.
Teresa also serves as vice chair of Communications for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
Her biography says, “as a breast cancer survivor who lost two brothers to addiction, Teresa is dedicated to improving quality, affordable health care and making sure no family goes through what hers did.”
In Congress, she introduced the Campus Prevention and Recovery Services for Students Act to address alcohol and substance use on college campuses.
