Hon. Sarah Saldaña

Board Member

Sarah Saldaña most recently served as Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Washington, DC, having been nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in 2014.  She led the agency with 20,000 employees in 400 offices in the United States and in 46 foreign countries and a budget of approximately $6 billion. The agency enforces federal laws governing border control, customs, trade and immigration to promote homeland security and public safety.

She had previously served as U.S. Attorney for the Northern
District of Texas (Dallas, TX).  Her office had 200 employees, including approximately 100 prosecutors. She was selected by U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to serve on his Advisory Committee. The Committee gives United States Attorneys from across the country a voice in Department policies and advises the Attorney General with respect to issues within the jurisdiction of the Department of Justice.  Before becoming the United States Attorney, Ms. Saldaña was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the same office, serving first as a line prosecutor and then as Deputy Criminal Chief managing the Fraud/Public Corruption Section. She prosecuted a variety of criminal cases on behalf of the United States, including bank and mortgage fraud, civil rights, human trafficking and public corruption.

Ms. Saldaña was in private practice in Dallas, first with Haynes and Boone, LLP and then Baker Botts, LLP, where she was a partner in the Trial Department. Her practice focused on commercial and employment law litigation. While at Baker Botts, she formed and managed the Labor & Employment Group in the Dallas Office. Straight out of law school, she served as law clerk to the Honorable Barefoot Sanders, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas.

Before becoming an attorney, Ms. Saldaña worked at several federal agencies, including the U. S. Dept. of Labor, Housing and Urban Development and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

During her legal career, Ms. Saldaña has received a number of awards and recognitions, including the 2017 DWLA Louise B. Raggio Award, 2015 SMU Distinguished Hispanic Alumna; 2014 Trailblazer of the Year, Hispanic Women’s Network of Texas; 2014 Protect Her Award, New Friends New Life; 2012 Most Influential Hispanics in the Nation, Poder Hispanic Magazine; 2012 SMU Law Distinguished Alumna – Government Service; 2012 La Luz Achievement, Dallas Hispanic Bar Association; 2012 Mujeres en Acción (Women in Action), UT Chicano/Hispanic Law Students Association; Al Día’s 2011 People of the Year; 2011 Hispanic National Bar Association, Latina Attorney of the Year. She is a member of the Dallas and Texas Bar Foundations and the William Mac Taylor Inn of Court.