EEOC Houston District Office Welcomes  Rayford Irvin as New Director

HOUSTON - Rayford O. Irvin has been named director of the Houston District Office of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.

Irvin started with EEOC in 2007 as deputy director and, since 2010, director of EEOC's Phoenix District Office, which has enforcement jurisdiction over Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. He supervised over 150 employees and oversaw the receipt and investigation of approximately 7,000 employment discrimination charges filed yearly. The Houston District has enforcement jurisdiction over 27 counties in the southeastern part of the state and all of Louisiana.

Irvin, a native of Gladewater, Texas, is a 1984 graduate of Texas A&M University with a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial engineering and later earned a master's degree in business administration from Southern Methodist University in Dallas.

Irvin has over 25 years of global management experience and has held various positions in the private sector and federal government. Prior to joining EEOC, he served 28 years (combined active duty and reserves service) in the U.S. Air Force, serving in many regions in the world. He also has over 20 years of service as a military and federal investigator.

"I am pleased to return home to Texas and take on the responsibility of guiding EEOC's mission of fighting employment discrimination in this all-important region," said Irvin. "I am completely committed to enforcing anti-discrimination laws as well as educating the employer community to prevent such injustice from occurring in the first place."

Martin Ebel, EEOC's director of field management programs, said, "Rayford Irvin has a strong and diverse business executive acumen with proven abilities in investigations, negotiations, strategic planning, managing complex projects, customer relationships, and improving operational efficiency - in government, private and international settings. He has many years of experience in managing and negotiating in some of the most austere conditions and even hostile environments. We are fortunate to have him in such an important position."

EEOC enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Further information about EEOC and the laws it enforces is available on the agency's website at www.eeoc.gov.