Gloria I. Chavez assumed command of the El Paso Sector in March 2020. As a Chief Patrol Agent, she leads all Border Patrol enforcement operations along 264 border miles with Mexico covering West Texas and southern New Mexico. She has management oversight of eleven stations, six permanent immigration checkpoints, and three Forward Operating Bases encompassing approximately 125,500 square miles.
Chief Chavez joined the U.S. Border Patrol in May of 1995, as a member of Class 285. Chief Chavez has successfully served in a variety of senior leadership positions on the northern and southern borders of the United States to include two tours of duty at CBP Headquarters following the creation of OHS. In 2005, Chief Chavez was assigned to the Office of Strategic Policy, Planning and Analysis and the Special Operations Division-Foreign Operations Branch within the U.S. Border Patrol Headquarters. In 2007, Chief Chavez returned to the field as an Assistant Chief Patrol Agent in the San Diego Sector. In 2008, Chief Chavez sought and accepted the position of Patrol Agent in Charge of the Chula Vista Station in San Diego Sector.
In 2010, Chief Chavez assumed command of the Spokane Sector in Spokane, Washington along the U .S./Canada border. In 2015, she accepted the position of Deputy Chief for Operations under the Law Enforcement Operations Directorate at U.S. Border Patrol Headquarters in Washington D.C. In 2016 and 2017, she served as the CBP Commander for the CBP Migration Crisis Team where she monitored and addressed the day-to-day operational requirements and challenges for the CBP enterprise. In recognition of her efforts, she was presented with the 2017 OHS Secretary – Silver Medal Award. In 2018, Chief Chavez once again assumed command in a field post as the Chief Patrol Agent of the El Centro Sector in Imperial, California along the
U.S./Mexico border.
Chief Chavez has over 25 years of law enforcement experience. She is a member of the OHS Senior Executive Service. Chief Chavez earned a Master of Arts degree in Security Studies – Homeland Security and Defense from the Naval Postgraduate School. She graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice Administration from Columbia Southern University. She is a graduate of the Senior Executive Fellows Program at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
