Adriana Rocha Garcia

Dr. Rocha Garcia  is the President & CEO of the Center for Health Empowerment in South Texas (CHEST), a nonprofit organization focused on closing the life expectancy gap that divides those with access to healthcare access and those without.

Dr. Rocha Garcia was the first woman to be elected to represent District 4 on the San Antonio City Council in 2019, where she served three terms. She is currently a member of the San Antonio Water System Board of Trustees, a Texas Lyceum Director, Vice Chair for the Dee Howard Foundation, and a Board member of the San Antonio Education Partnership, Communities in Schools – San Antonio, and Kitchen Campus.

Dr. Rocha Garcia has worked at organizations SAMMinistries Furniture for A Cause, the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the City of San Antonio, Southwest ISD, and Project QUEST.

She has a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts degree from the University of the Incarnate Word, and a Ph.D. in Advertising from the University of Texas at Austin’s prestigious Moody College of Communication. Dr. Rocha Garcia was a Distinguished Faculty Member at Our Lady of the Lake University, where she was tenured and taught in the School of Business and Leadership for 16 years.

Dr. Rocha Garcia served on the National League of Cities Board of Directors and was the second Texan elected President of Women in Municipal Government. In 2020, she received the Women of Excellence Award from the National Foundation of Women Legislators. Dr. Rocha Garcia also served as a member of the Federal Communications
Commission’s (FCC) Intergovernmental Advisory Committee. She has served as Honorary Commander of the U.S. Space Force and JBSA Air Base Wing Honorary Commander.

In 2022, Dr. Rocha Garcia was inducted to the San Antonio Women’s Hall of Fame. She is also a past Board member of the Hispanic Women’s Network of Texas San Antonio Chapter.

Dr. Rocha Garcia formed part of the Workforce Solutions Alamo’s Workforce Leadership Academy, by the Aspen Institute. She has served on the Boards of Visit San Antonio, Alamo Area Council of Governments (AACOG), Bexar Appraisal District (Secretary), San Antonio Fire and Police Pension Fund Board of Trustees (Secretary), and served
as the President of the San Antonio Housing Trust (SAHT), SAHT Foundation, SAHT Public Facility Corporation, the SAHT Finance Corporation.

She is a Past President of the San Antonio Chapter of the Texas Exes and has served as a Chapter Advisory Board Member for the Texas Exes. In 2018, she was named to the San Antonio Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 and participated in Leadership San Antonio 300.