Beth Van Duyne

TOPIC:
“Staying strong in a weak world”

Beth Van Duyne was appointed Regional Administrator of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Southwest Region in April 2017. Based in the Fort Worth Regional Office, she oversees HUD programs and operations in the Region’s five states of Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.

Prior to her appointment, Van Duyne was Mayor of the City of Irving, Texas from 2011-2017 and was an Irving City Council Representative from 2004-2010. She was a board member of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, National League of Cities and Texas Municipal League and served as Texas Chair of Community Leaders of America. In addition, Van Duyne is a past member of the Dallas Fort Worth International Airport Board, chaired the Economic Development Advisory Council and served on the Executive Boards of both the North Texas Commission and the Irving-Las Colinas Chamber of Commerce.

A member of the International Womens Foundation and first female mayor of Irving, Van Duyne has mentored and promoted women's leadership in business and politics.

Throughout her 25-year career, she has worked with small startup companies, mid-size private companies and Fortune 500 corporations including Burson-Marsteller, American Airlines and SAP. She ran a consulting business assisting executives to develop strategic business plans as well as negotiation strategies, grassroots coalition building and marketing campaigns.

She is the recipient of numerous honors, including the 2016 National Security Patriot Award; 2016 Alain Bellet Award; 2016 Great Women of Texas Award; 2015 Community Bridge Award and the 2015 Defender of Freedom Award. Van Duyne is on the Board of Trustees for the Hatton Sumners Foundation and The Study, a woman and veterans-focused entrepreneur center.

Van Duyne is a magna cum laude graduate of Cornell University, where she earned a bachelor of arts degree with studies in city and regional planning, government and law.