How to Get Appointed to Boards & Commissions
Filipina Women in Politics & Nonprofits: Small Town, Big City USA
Filipinas Getting Elected: Changing the Face of Power in America

Tough Choices: The impact of Philippine and U.S. policies on the lives of Filipinas in the U.S.

Congressional Staff Leadership: Careers in Politics, Campaigns, Public Service

Filipina Leaders in the Military:

Overcoming Gender Barriers in Leadership Positions in Non-Traditional Career Paths for Women

• LCDR Christina M. De Leon Davidson, U.S. Coast Guard
  • LCDR Christina M. De Leon Davidson was born in Dagupan City, Pangasinan, Philippines, but was raised in various parts of the U.S. as a Coast Guard dependent. LCDR Davidson is a 1994 honors graduate of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy with a Bachelor of Science degree in Management.

    Following graduation, her first assignment was aboard the 378-foot High Endurance Cutter USCGC RUSH, conducting law enforcement and other multi-mission patrols as a Deck Watch Officer and Combat Information Systems Officer throughout the Pacific Rim. LCDR Davidson then served as Executive Officer aboard the 110-foot patrol boat, USCGC WASHINGTON, providing safety and security for the waters surrounding the main Hawaiian Islands. Continuing her love of the sea, LCDR Davidson was reassigned aboard USCGC RUSH as the Supply Officer Department Head. Once ashore, LCDR Davidson served as the senior Search and Rescue Control at the Joint Rescue Operations Center in Honolulu, HI, coordinating joint maritime rescues over a 12.2 million square mile area of responsibility in the Pacific. She continued her operations ashore duties as the Deputy Group Commander of Coast Guard Group Seattle until transitioning to the Enforcement Division Chief role at Sector Seattle, conducting Search and Rescue, Law Enforcement, and heightened Homeland Security missions in the third busiest maritime port in the nation.

    LCDR Davidson holds a Master’s in Public Administration degree from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. She is currently assigned as a Program Analyst in the Office of Mission and Performance Analysis at U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington D.C., and resides in Alexandria, VA with her husband, Troy and children, Gabriella (5) and Harmon (3).
    

• Major Juliet Beyler, U. S. Marine Corps

• Major Juliet Beyler, a native of Palatine, Illinois, was born on 22 March 1967. Upon graduation from High School, she enlisted in the Marine Corps and served as a Korean Cryptologic Linguist and Intelligence Analyst for ten years prior to being commissioned a Second Lieutenant from the University of Illinois via the Marine Corps Enlisted Commissioning Program.

  After graduation in May 1995 as the Reserve Officer Training Corps Distinguished Naval Graduate, and with a degree in Economics, she transferred to Okinawa, Japan as a Combat Engineer Officer. First Lieutenant Beyler served there for three years with 9th Engineer Support Battalion, Marine Air Ground Task Force Service Support Group-31, and 3rd Maintenance Battalion as an Engineer Platoon and Detachment Commander, and twice as a Company Commander.

  In April 1999, Captain Beyler reported to Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, South Carolina, where she served in the 4th Recruit Training Battalion as a Series Officer and Company Executive Officer. She also served as Aide-de-Camp to the Commanding General of Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island and the Eastern Recruiting Region.

  Captain Beyler transferred to 8th Engineer Support Battalion in May 2002 where she was initially assigned as the Commanding Officer, Company B. Following deployment to Operation Iraqi Freedom I, she became the Battalion Logistics Officer responsible for coordinating all logistical requirements for ten overseas operations to Guatemala, Iraq, Bosnia, and Africa. In February 2004, she directed logistics activities for the emergency deployment of Combat Service Support Detachment (CSSD)-21, Regimental Combat Team-8 to Port-Au-Prince following the overthrow of Haiti’s President Aristide. During this assignment, she was promoted to the rank of Major and reassigned as Future Operations Officer where she led the mission analysis and developed the CSSD detailed plan for transfer of authority from Marine to United Nation forces.

  Upon return from Haiti, Major Beyler was assigned as Operations Officer, 8th Engineer Support Battalion and deployed to Iraq for a second time. Throughout this seven month deployment, she directed over 70 large-scale engineer operations in thirteen locations across 84,000 square miles of the Al Anbar Province. Operations included: construction of Iraqi Security Force and election worker basecamps and entry control points; offensive combat ambush operations; bulk fuel operations; and explosive ordnance disposal support. She also tactically employed a Bosnian explosive ordnance disposal platoon, the first combined Federation/Republika Serbska unit in Bosnia Herzegovina.

  In November 2005, Major Beyler was assigned to the Marine Corps Combat Development Command in Quantico, Virgina where she served as the Explosive Hazards Branch Head responsible for integration of Counter Improvised Explosive Device capabilities for the Marine Corps. She is currently the Legislative Affairs Officer for the Deputy Commandant of the Marine Corps for Combat Development and Integration.

  Major Beyler is a graduate of the Amphibious Warfare School and her personal awards include the Meritorious Service Medal, the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal (three awards), the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, and the Good Conduct Medal (three awards).
  

• Lieutenant Linekan Quijano, Judge Advocate, U. S. Coast Guard   

• LT Lineka N. Quijano was born in Melbourne, Florida and grew up in Palm Bay. She graduated summa cum laude from the University of Florida in May 2001 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science. She also minored in International Relations and Business Administration. In May 2002, she received a Master of Arts degree in International Business, again from the University of Florida. In December 2004, LT Quijano was awarded a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Miami School of Law. While attending law school, LT Quijano worked at Randall L. Sidlosca, P.A., a boutique immigration law firm located in Coral Gables.
  After a direct commission into the United States Coast Guard, LT Quijano attended Direct Commission Officer school in New London, Connecticutt and graduated in May 2005. Immediately thereafter, she was assigned to an afloat orientation tour aboard the USCGC VALIANT, homeported in Miami Beach, Florida. She reported to her first duty station as a staff attorney in the Office of Claims and Litigation, U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters, Washington, D.C. in May 2005. In this office, LT Quijano handled federal tort litigation and worked closely with the Department of Justice defending the United States in civil lawsuits. She also received an appointment as a Special Assistant United States Attorney for the Department of Justice’s Office of Immigration Litigation, where she represented the United States in federal appellate court. During this time, LT Quijano also served as the President of the Asian-American/Pacific Islander Association at U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters.
  In June 2007, LT Quijano reported to the Naval Legal Service Office, Washington Navy Yard. She currently serves as a Criminal Defense attorney and represents military members at both administrative proceedings and courts martial.
  LT Quijano is a licensed to practice law in the State of Florida. She is also qualified and certified under Article 27(b) of the Uniform Code of Military Justice and sworn under Article 42(a). LT Quijano is also a member of the American Bar Association (Young Lawyers Division, Litigation Section, and Criminal Justice Section). She and her husband, LT Sean Baer, USCGR, live in Washington, D.C.
  
  
• PS1 Lorna Mae Devera, USN, Asian American/Pacific Islander Diversity Outreach Lead

• Captain Paz Gomez, U. S. Navy   
  • Captain Paz B. Gomez was born in Waukegan, Illinois, and grew up in various locations in the United States and overseas as a Navy dependent. She graduated from San Diego State University in May 1983 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering. In June 1988, she received a Master of Science degree in Civil Engineering (with a Construction Engineering and Management emphasis) from Stanford University. In December 1989, she was awarded a Master of Science degree in Management from Troy State University. She is also a graduate of the Naval War College Nonresident Seminar Program and the University of California, San Diego Professional Certificate in Hazardous Materials Management Program. She also completed the Advanced Executive Program at the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, in May 2005.

After a direct commission into the Navy Civil Engineer Corps, Captain Gomez attended Officer Indoctrination School, Newport, Rhode Island, and graduated in August 1983. She reported to her first duty station as the Senior Activity Civil Engineer, Naval Station, Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico, on temporary duty prior to attending Civil Engineer Corps Officers School, Port Hueneme, California, from October to December 1983. She then returned to Puerto Rico to complete the remainder of her tour. In March 1985, she reported to Naval Technical Training Center, Corry Station, Pensacola, Florida, as the Staff Civil Engineer. Her next tour was temporary duty at Naval Air Station, Moffett Field, California, from April to August 1987 while awaiting start of graduate school at Stanford University.

In July 1988, Captain Gomez reported as Officer in Charge of Naval Construction Battalion Unit 416 at Naval Air Station, Alameda, California. She transferred to the Resident Officer in Charge of Construction, San Francisco Bay Area, office in December 1990 as Assistant Resident Officer in Charge of Construction. In January 1992, she reported to Naval Air Station Miramar, San Diego, California, where she worked as the Environmental Officer, Assistant Staff Civil Engineer, and Staff Civil Engineer. She transferred to Commander, Training Command, U.S. Pacific Fleet, San Diego, California, in July 1995 as the Facilities Management Officer. In August 1996, she reported to the Officer in Charge of Construction, Far East Contracts Office, Okinawa, Japan, as the Resident Officer in Charge of Construction.

Captain Gomez transferred to the Chief of Naval Operations, Director of Naval Reserve staff, Washington, DC, in December 1998 as Head of the Military Construction, Naval Reserve Budget Branch. In May 2000, she reported to the Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Installations and Environment) staff in Washington, DC, as the Military Assistant to the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, then Executive Assistant to the Assistant Secretary, and finished her tour as Special Assistant to the Deputy Assistant Secretary (Infrastructure Analysis). She reported to the Navy Public Works Center, Pensacola, Florida, as Executive Officer in July 2002. In September 2003, she was on full-time additional duty to Navy Region Gulf Coast, Pensacola, Florida, as Chief of Staff. She transferred to Naval Facilities Engineering Service Center, Port Hueneme, California, as Executive Officer in June 2004. In June 2006, she reported to her current duty station at the Office of the Secretary of Defense, where she is the Deputy Director, Installations Requirements and Management, for the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Installations and Environment) at the Pentagon in Washington, DC.

Captain Gomez has the following personal decorations and awards: Meritorious Service Medal (3 gold stars), Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal (2 gold stars), Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal (gold star), National Defense Service Medal (bronze star), Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Humanitarian Medal, Overseas Service Ribbon (2 bronze stars), and the Navy Expert Rifleman Medal. She is qualified as a Seabee Combat Warfare Officer and is a member of the Defense Acquisition Corps.

Captain Gomez is a registered Professional Engineer in the state of California. She is also a member of the Society of American Military Engineers (National Director for 2007-2010), American Society of Civil Engineers, and is a lifetime member of the Tau Beta Pi, National Engineering Honor Society; Chi Epsilon, National Civil Engineering Honor Society; and the Phi Eta Sigma, National Freshman Honor Society.

• Colonel Rebecca Samson, U. S. Army 

Col. Samson was born in Angeles City, Pampanga, Philippines and moved to the United States in 1973. She enlisted in the Army shortly after she graduated from San Diego State University in 1981 with a BA degree in History. She went to basic training at Fort Jackson, SC then to the Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning, GA where she was commissioned as an Ordnance Officer in Nov 1982. Her first assignment was with the 3d Armored Division (Spearhead) in Frankfurt, Germany as the Battalion Maintenance Officer for the 533d Military Intelligence Battalion (Combat Electronics Warfare Intelligence), then as Battalion Motor Maintenance Platoon Leader of 62 soldiers. She later served as the Automotive Ground Support Equipment Materiel Officer at Division Materiel Management Center, Division Support Command.

Col. Samson joined the Active Guard Reserve program in 1986 in San Diego, CA as the Executive Officer and Water Supply Officer of 316th Quartermaster Company (Water Production and Distribution). While there, she earned a Master’s Degree in Public Administration with emphasis in Human Resource Management at National University in 1989 before going to the Ordnance Officer Advance Course. In 1990 she served as a Maintenance Officer, Logistics Operations, for 171st Corps Support Group in Garner, NC. She deployed with the unit for Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm from Sep 1990-Apr 1991 under 1st Corps Support Command and spent 6 1/2 months in Saudi Arabia and Iraq in support of the 24th Infantry Division, XVIII Airborne Corps. In 1993 she was the Sacramento Recruiting Battalion USAR Operations Officer in CA. Two years later, she served as Plans Officer in the Security, Plans and Operations Section of the 377th Theater Support Command in New Orleans, LA. In 1997 she PCS’d to Fort Leavenworth, KS for a year to attend the Command and General Staff College prior to her assignment to the United States Army Reserve Command, Fort McPherson, GA. She served in the Force Programs Directorate as an Ordnance and Quartermaster Systems Integrator, and later as a Detailed Inspector General in the Assistance and Investigations Division of the USARC IG Office, and as the Operations Officer and Executive Officer in the same office. COL Samson attended the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle Barracks, PA in residence and received a Master of Arts Degree in Strategic Studies in June 2006. As of July 2006, COL Samson serves as the Troop Support Division Chief, Headquarters, Department of the Army Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, Logistics (G-44S) at the Pentagon.

Her awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal with one silver Oak Leaf Cluster, the Army Commendation Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Army Achievement Medal, the National Defense Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Southwest Asia Service Medal with three Bronze Service Stars, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Armed Forces Reserve Medal with Hour Glass, the Overseas Ribbon, the Kuwait Liberation Medal – Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Kuwait Liberation Medal-Government of Kuwait, the Meritorious Unit Commendation, the Army Superior Unit Award, and the Department of the Army Staff Badge.

Col. Samson resides in Springfield, VA with her son Brandon (12) and daughter Paula (7).

 

• Major Rosadel Dominguez Hoffman, U.S. Air Force

Major Rosadel Dominguez Hoffman was born in Norfolk, VA and grew up in Jacksonville, FL. She graduated from the United States Air Force Academy, was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant on May 29, 1996, and began active duty service in the US Air Force.

As a personnel officer, she served as the squadron section commander for both the 11th Bomb Squadron and the 2nd Munitions Squadron located at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. As section commander, she was directly responsible for all matters affecting morale, welfare, readiness, resources, training, and executive support. She then transferred to Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama, where she served as the Assistant Chief of the Air Force’s ROTC Field Training Program, overseeing a budget of over $12 million supporting 350 military personnel and 8,000 cadets yearly to satisfy 60% of the Air Force’s commissioning requirements. She was then chosen to serve as the Executive Officer for the 42nd Support Group, where she assisted in the management of a 1,930-person organization occupying two military installations covering over 3,895 acres.

Following this assignment, she separated from active duty and joined the Air Force Reserve (AFR). She served as a traditional reservist with the 908th Airlift Wing and then entered inactive status. For the next 18 months she enjoyed civilian life as a stay-at-home mom. She was then assigned as an Individual Mobilization Augmentee with the 11th Wing, Air Force District of Washington and then, 18 months later, returned to full-time active duty status in the Active Guard-Reserve (AGR) program, assigned to the Air Staff as the Chief of the Support Division, AFR General Officer Management. Currently in this capacity, she oversees all aspects of career management for the AFR’s 75 general officers. Her duties include formulating and implementing personnel policy affecting senior leadership, executing the senior leader professional development program, and centrally managing approximately 150 AFR general officer positions.

Her awards include the Air Force Commendation Medal (2), Air Force Achievement Medal, AF Outstanding Unit Award, AF Organizational Excellence Award, National Defense Service Medal, and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.

She and her husband, Major Louis Hoffman, Chief of the AFR Force Enhancement Policy Section, reside in Alexandria, VA with their two children, 6-year-old Krysten and 4-year-old Daniel.

 

• Lieutenant Colonel Shirley Raguindin, Arizona Air National Guard

Lt Colonel Raguindin served as Cadet Corps Commander for Detachment 175, Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps, University of Hawaii. Following her graduation as Distinguished Military Graduate on May 17, 1986, she was commissioned a Second Lieutenant and began active duty service in the US Air Force (USAF).

Her initial assignment began with the 475th Air Base Wing, Yokota Air Base, Japan where she served as Weather Wing Office and in 1989 served as Chief, Social Actions, 92nd Air Base Wing, Fairchild AFB, WA. Her staff earned the 1991 Strategic Air Command (SAC) Outstanding Social Actions of the Year award.

Joining the Arizona Air National Guard in 1992, Lt Col Raguindin was assigned to the 162nd Fighter Wing as Chief, Social Actions, and earned the ANG Outstanding Social Actions of the Year award. In 1994 she served as State Equal Employment Manager, Human Resources Office (HRO). Subsequently she served on the Governor’s Equal Opportunity and Diversity Council, and served as Adjunct Instructor for the Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute at Patrick AFB, FL. In 1998 she was assigned as State Classification Specialist, HRO and in 1999 was hand-picked as Chief, Expeditionary Combat Support to develop and stand up of the newly established USAF Aerospace Expeditionary Forces (AEF) at Langley AFB, VA, Air Combat Command. She also served as Joint Staff Personnel Officer, US Pacific Command, HI. In 2000, she took command of the 162nd Fighter Wing Military Personnel Flight (MPF). During her tenure there, the Wing experienced its highest military readiness for their timely deployments as a result of the 9-11 terrorist attacks: Operations Noble Eagle & Enduring Freedom, Homeland Defense mobilizations, and Aerospace Expeditionary Force deployments. Through her leadership, the MPF earned “Excellent” ratings during the Air Education and Training Command’s Operational Readiness Inspection and Unit Compliance Inspection, both in 2001, and received national recognition with the receipt of the ANG Outstanding 2001 MPF of the Year award. During 2002, she served as Director, United States Property & Fiscal Office, Joint Task Force for exercise COPPERDOME, ensuring continuity of Arizona State Government Executive Branch operations through successful accomplishment of the operation plan. In her full time duties, she serves in the Arizona National Guard Human Resources Office as the Supervisory Human Resources Specialist in charge of Labor Relations. Militarily, she serves as State Diversity Officer and is responsible for preparing and implementing statewide plans, strategies and goals to address the management and development of over 7000 personnel through diversity initiatives. Under her leadership the AZNG achieved a 300% increase in Department of Defense and National Guard Bureau nationwide recognition for diversity initiatives in 2007.

Lt Col Raguindin holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Meteorology and earned a Masters degree in Public Administration from the University of Oklahoma. Lt Col Raguindin is a 2004 USAF Air War College graduate. Her military awards include the Meritorious Service Medal (4 awards), USAF Commendation Medal (2 awards), Achievement Medal (3 awards), USAF Organizational Excellence Award and the Joint Services Meritorious Service Medal.

In civilian life, Lt Col Raguindin also worked as a Pharmaceutical Engineer for Procter & Gamble from 1991 to 1994. She and her husband, Lieutenant Colonel Joe Berlanga, 162nd FW Senior Intel Officer and currently on a tour to Iraq, make their home in Casa Grande, AZ. They have a 16-month old son, Jesse.