CENTROMED - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Chief Development Officer
- Vice President
Ana Maria Garza Cortez serves as the Vice President & Chief Development Officer at CentroMed, a Federally Qualified Health Center in San Antonio. She is responsible for marketing, fundraising, public relations, customer service, event planning as well as overseeing the eligibility and outreach & enrollment departments. Ana Maria received her Bachelor of Arts in Public Administration from Our lady of the Lake University in San Antonio and her Master of Arts from Webster University - Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio. She serves as a leader on the Enroll SA/Get Bexar Covered Coalition, which is comprised of a group of local hospitals, community agencies, faith based organizations and many non-profits working to increase awareness about the Affordable Care Act and help people find healthcare options to meet their budgets. In March of 2016, Ana Maria was recognized by The White House as A Champion of Change for her leadership in promoting and assisting families to enroll in health coverage through the Affordable Care Act. She has served on several non-profit boards and currently serves on the board of directors with the Madonna Neighborhood Center and the Good Samaritan Center. Ana Maria and her husband Andres Cortez have two children.
Angelica Padilla became a part of CentroMed's executive team in June 2023, assuming the role of Associate Vice President of Human Resources. With a career spanning over 16 years, she has garnered extensive expertise in Human Resources across a wide spectrum of industries, including retail, healthcare, business services, logistics, metal manufacturing, and food manufacturing.
Angelica's educational background includes a bachelor's degree in business administration with a specialization in Accounting, as well as a Master of Business Administration, both earned from Texas A&M International University in Laredo, Texas. Her commitment to professional excellence is evident through her certification as a Professional in Human Resources by the HR Certification Institute (HRCI) since 2014 and her certification from the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) since 2015. She maintains active membership in SHRM, and she is currently affiliated with the San Antonio SHRM chapter.
Job Titles:
- Associate Vice President - Regional Operations
Job Titles:
- Associate Vice President - Finance
Job Titles:
- Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for El Centro Del Barrio D / B / a
Chuck Walzel serves as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for El Centro del Barrio d/b/a CentroMed. In this capacity, he manages the financial strategy and accounting operations of a company with assets in excess of $61 million and an operating budget of more than $54 million which provides services to over 75,000 patients per year. Walzel is committed to maximizing profitability, productivity and efficiency, securing assets, assuring regulatory and GAAP compliance and developing strategies which support growth, liquidity, contingency reserves and conservative fiscal practices.
Walzel joined CentroMed in 1998 from The Center for Health Care Services where he served as the Chief Financial Officer. He joined the Center for Health Care Services in 1994 as Budget Manager and was promoted to Chief Financial Officer in 1996. Previously he spent 7 years at BancPlus Mortgage Corporation as a Senior Financial Analyst specializing in long range forecasting and portfolio acquisition modeling. Prior to that, he spent 3 years at Commerce Savings Association as an Accountant II in the Real Estate Owned / Commercial Foreclosure division and 2 years at American Mayflower Moving and Storage as a Staff Accountant.
Job Titles:
- Associate Vice President - San Antonio Pediatrics
Job Titles:
- Associate Vice President - Assistant Chief Information Officer
Job Titles:
- Associate Vice President - SA Pediatrics
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Patient Care Technician
Ms. Torres is a Patient Care Technician that has worked for the University Dialysis for over 10 years. She is responsible for assisting patients with vital signs and their dialysis treatments. She has over 17 years of experience working with dialysis patients for the following companies; University Dialysis, Dr. Schef's Office, Davita Dialysis Center and Fresenius Dialysis Center.
Ms. Torres graduated from Homer Hanna High School in Brownsville Texas and completed some college hours at Southmost Community College in Brownsville Texas.
Ms. Torres has been a consumer board member since June 1994.
Job Titles:
- Chief
- Vice President
- Vice President & Chief Population Health Officer
Dr. Anna Serrano is the Vice President & Chief Population Health Officer for El Centro del Barrio dba CentroMed, responsible for the agency's Population Health Management program focused on the coordination of care delivery across populations to improve clinical and financial outcomes through disease management, case management and demand management. She also manages all aspects of the agency's Compliance/Performance Improvement Program, grant procurement, existing service contracts to ensure compliance with performance, reporting and regulatory requirements and all activities related to organizational certifications and accreditations, including The Joint Commission and NCQA. Additionally, Dr. Serrano manages the agency's Navigation Center, which houses the Nurse Triage Line, Medical Records Department, Referrals Department, Patient Appointment Line and Patient Care Coordination.
Inclusive of her time at CentroMed, Dr. Serrano has been working for FQHCs for over 20 years, serving in various roles along the way. She earned her Bachelors in Social Science through Florida State University, majoring in Sociology and Criminal Justice; her Master of Public Health through UTHSC-Houston School of Public Health, Master of Business Administration through Webster University, and her Doctorate of Public Health from the UTHSC-Houston School of Public Health.
Job Titles:
- CEO
- President
- Founder of El Centro Del Barrio
Ernesto Gómez, Ph.D., is founder of El Centro del Barrio, now doing business as CentroMed. Dr. Gómez has served as the President and Chief Executive Officer at CentroMed since its inception in 1973 and now presides over a primary health care system that operates 27 ambulatory clinics in Bexar and Comal Counties and two (2) Fitness Centers. In 2022, CentroMed served 121,647 unduplicated patients involving 396,302 patient visits.
Job Titles:
- General Counsel
- General Counsel at El Centro Del Barrio D / B / a
Graciela A. Cigarroa is the General Counsel at El Centro del Barrio d/b/a CentroMed. Ms.Cigarroa provides in-house counsel to the Board of Directors and staff members; reviews CentroMed's legal documents, policies and contracts; designs and implements trainings for CentroMed staff; conducts federal and state statute, regulation, and policy analysis; performs privacy officer duties overseeing the organizations privacy policies and procedures; and assists with the implementation of the corporate compliance program addressing a variety of legal issues to enable compliant and efficient operations.
Ms. Cigarroa joined CentroMed in April of 2011 from the Law Office of Graciela A. Cigarroa. She has over 25 years of legal experience with a focus for the last 15 years on nonprofit and health law. She has been published and has been a frequent speaker in the area of HIPAA privacy law.
Ms. Cigarroa holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from St. Mary's University, a Juris Doctor degree from St. Mary's University School of Law and a Master of Laws degree in tax law from Boston University School of Law. She is a fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation and sits on several community boards.
Job Titles:
- First Vice Chair
- Chairman and CEO of Avanzar Interior Technologies GP
Mr. Guerra is Chairman and CEO of Avanzar Interior Technologies GP, LLC, an automotive interiors manufacturing company and Co-Owner of Toyota of Boerne. He retired as Vice President-Legislative and Constituency Affairs for SBC (now AT&T). Mr. Guerra began his career with Southwestern Bell in 1978 as a business office supervisor. He progressed through a number of positions in customer services and external affairs. Prior to his last assignment, Guerra was Executive Vice President-National Constituency Relations overseeing minority, disabled, education, consumer and senior constituent groups. He also served as Executive Vice President-External Affairs for Southwestern Bell Telephone Company, managing director-corporate development for SBC Communications Inc. and as President of Southwestern Bell International Development. Before joining the SBC family of companies, Guerra served in an owner or manager capacity for various hotel, restaurant and movie theater businesses in Texas.
Mr. Guerra has long been active in many professional, civic, and scholastic organizations. He is the Chairman of San Antonio Water Systems (SAWS). He also serves: on the UTSA Development Board, as a Senior Advisor to Texas A&M University-San Antonio, as past chair for the Free Trade Alliance Executive Committee of San Antonio, as 1st Vice Chair of CentroMed of San Antonio, on the Board of Directors of MTC, Inc., (Mi Tierra Café), on the Board of Directors of M.T.C. Real Estate (a real estate development company), as a director for Cinemark, USA de Mexico Inc. (second largest theater company in Mexico), on the Board of Trustees for Abilene Christian University, as Deacon at Northside Church of Christ, on the Board of Trustees for Younglife ( Global), on the Board of Directors for ¡Adelante! a U.S. Education Leadership Fund, on the Board of Directors for SAMMinistries, on the Board of Directors for Conceptual MindWorks Inc., and on the Board of Directors for After School All Stars.
Mr. Guerra was awarded as a Distinguished Alumnus from Texas State University in 2007 and Business Owner of the year in 2007 by the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Guerra received a Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences Degree in Interdisciplinary Management from Texas State University in 1984. He also completed the Penn State Executive Management Program in 1991. He and his wife, Tammy, have four children and nine grandchildren.
Mr. Guerra has served on the board of directors of CentroMed since January 1999.
Dr. Juan Antonio Chavira, has a strong educational and social service background. In 1966 he received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Literature from the University of Houston. After graduation he entered in the Peace Corps serving his country in the cause of peace by living and working in developing countries for two years. After the Peace Corps he served one year with the Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) a volunteer program that places individuals with community-based agencies to help find long-term solutions to the problems caused by urban and rural poverty. Continuing to enhance his education in 1972, Dr. Chavira enrolled in Graduate School at the University of Texas at Austin where he obtained his Master's Degree and PHD both in Medical Sociology.
Dr. Chavira has written numerous research articles and a book entitled, Curanderismo: Mexican American Folk Healing, published in 1981 by the University of George Press. He has eleven years' experience as a professor teaching at such institutions as Colorado College, The University of Texas-Pan American, and the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. In 1983 Dr. Chavira was awarded his Juris Doctorate Law Degree by the University of Texas, School of Law. After graduation he worked as an Assistant Criminal District Attorney from April 1983 until January 1990. He has a brief three month interruption as a private attorney, but returned to the District Attorney's Office, to serve as Chief of both the Family Violence and the Career Criminal Units. Dr. Chavira was also appointed to serve as an Assistant District Attorney for the 81st Judicial District, prosecuting primarily in Frio and La Salle Counties. While practicing law he continued to serve as a part-time professor at the University of Texas in San Antonio, Southwest State University and Trinity University.
In May 1993, Dr. Chavira was appointed Court Master for Child Support for the Fourth Administrative Judicial Region. During this appointment he sat in six South Texas counties to include Bexar, Dimmit, Frio, La Salle, Maverick, and Zavala. He retired from the bench in December 2006.
Dr. Chavira, as he is warmly addressed, is frequently called upon by the legal, education and social service communities to lecture on his legal and sociological experiences. He was born and raised on the border in Eagle Pass, Texas, he is fluent in reading, writing and speaks Spanish.
Dr. Chavira has served on the board of CentroMed since May 2006.
Ms. Alaniz is a graduate of Harlandale ISD and has worked as a school psychologist for 12 years in the district. She primarily works with students that have special needs and their parents. One of her primary goals is connecting parents with community resources. Every year she helps her department connect with CentroMed to organize a symposium called "What's Next". The goal of the program is to connect parents with resources once students have graduated from Harlandale ISD. Ms. Alaniz has been a patient of CentroMed for several years and joined the CentroMed board of directors in 2021.
Luz Cano is a Bilingual Elementary school teacher in the Harlandale Independent School District. She received her Bachelors in Interdisciplinary Studies from Texas A&M University- San Antonio. While at Texas A&M, she worked as a Peer Mentor with first-time college students. She also received the University Ring Award and the 2019 Outstanding Senior Award. She graduated from Harlandale High School and is proud to teach in the community where she grew up in. Mrs. Cano was a teen mom while in high school but she persisted to further her education. She has two children. Mrs. Cano is the first to graduate college in her family. Mrs. Cano has been a long-time patient of CentroMed and began serving as a consumer board member in April of 2015. During her time with the board, she has served on the Health Services and Planning Committee as well as the Gala and By-lays committees.
Job Titles:
- Executive
- Associate Vice President - Strategic Operations
Margarita Seaman joined Centromed's executive team in August 2016. She has over 18 years of health care management experience, including practice management, healthcare consulting and hospital administration. Prior to Centromed, she served as Chief Operations Officer at Bandera Family Healthcare, Chief Operations Officer at Allerta Corp, and Director of a division of the Nix Healthcare System. Ms. Seaman has a strong background on financial management, revenue enhancement, business development, and compliance with federal and state requirements.
Ms. Seaman holds a degree in dentistry from Universidad Javeriana Escuela de Odontologia in Bogota, Colombia and a Masters in Health Care Administration from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas.
In 2005, Dr. Seaman was selected as "40 under 40 Rising Stars of San Antonio" by The San Antonio Business Journal.
Mrs. Perez is a consumer board member that rejoined the board of directors in 2020. She currently works for an elementary school at Southside ISD. She's responsible for ensuring every student is registered and attending school daily. Her job entails various duties, such as communication with parents, students, staff, and administration. She is a former employee and board member of Centro Med. She has been a patient of CentroMed since 2015 and is familiar with the needs of the community. Mrs. Perez had the privilege of taking care of her elderly parents who have passed, and understands the challenges that elderly persons encounter. Mrs. Perez is honored to serve on the board and looks forward to making a positive difference at CentroMed.
Job Titles:
- Chief Operations Officer
- Vice President
- Board Chair for the Healthcare Access San Antonio
Mr. Macaulay presently serves as Vice President and Chief Operations Officer for CentroMed, a Federally Qualified Health Center providing medical and dental care, behavioral health services and other supportive health services through a network of 24 clinic sites that include Bexar and Comal Counties. Mr. Macaulay is responsible for the clinical operations for medical, dental, and behavioral health services throughout the organization. Other responsibilities include: optometry, WIC, adult day care, CentroMed's Fitness Center, facilities management, and management of construction projects.
Prior to joining CentroMed, Mr. Macaulay held several management positions in hospitals with Humana and Columbia/HCA.
Mr. Macaulay presently serves as the board chair for the Healthcare Access San Antonio a non-profit organization that is the Health Information Exchange (HIE) for South Central Texas that includes a 22 county service area. Mr. Macaulay has served on the board since October 2011.
Mr. Macaulay earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Phoenix.
Job Titles:
- Program Director in the Nuclear Medicine Science / Technology Division With the Ila Faye Miller School of Nursing
Mrs. Norma Green serves as the Program Director in the Nuclear Medicine Science/Technology Division with the Ila Faye Miller School of Nursing and Health Professions at the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, TX since June 2000. Ms. Norma Green is a consumer Board Member that join the board in June 1991. She and her family have been patients of CentroMed for over thirty years. During her time on the board, Ms. Green has served on the following committees: Finance, Nominating, Program Audit, Program Planning and Executive. Ms. Green received her Masters of Business in Healthcare Management in May 2000 from Our Lady of the Lake University in SanAntonio, Texas. Mrs. Green received a Bachelors of Science in Nuclear Medicine Science/Technology with Summa Cum Laude in 1995 from Incarnate Word College.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Consumer Board Member
Ms. Arlene Williams-Brown is a consumer board member that joined the board in April of 2019. She has been a patient of CentroMed since 2012 and is very familiar with the needs of the community. Ms. Williams-Brown retired from CPS and is an active member of First Baptist Church. She wants to be active and give back to the community.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Certified Dental Assistant
- Consumer Board Member
Ms. Elsa Gamboa is a consumer board member that joined the Board of Directors in 2020. Mrs. Gamboa is a Certified Dental Assistant and a Registered Dental Assistant in Texas. For the past 39 years she had worked as a dental assistant and has served as a member of the Dental Assistant National Board for the past 30 years. She joined the board to be involved and contributing to something bigger than oneself. She has enjoyed seeing the growth of the organization first hand as a patient and a board member. Mrs. Gamboa enjoys attending community events, craft shows and creating arts and crafts herself. She enjoys being involved in community events.
Job Titles:
- Secretary
- Local Business Owner
Ms. Elsa Martinez is a local business owner with over 21 years of experience in the garment Dry Cleaning and Laundry service industry who provides Dry Cleaning and Laundry services to individuals, commercial, school districts and government clients. Expertise in all technical and management operations of the company. As an entrepreneur she acquired the A & M Cleaners now D.C. Clean Inc., doing business as A & M Cleaners and expanded the company by adding a second location within six years of operations. Ms. Martinez is an expert with hands-on industry experience and manages all aspects of Human Resources, Payroll, Personnel Training, Purchasing and Marketing. Ms. Martinez maintains positive on-going relationships with store customers and vendors in the industry. She has been recognized by both individual and commercial customers as providing exceptional quality and service to the community and the U. S. Army Medical Command. Ms. Martinez received a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from the University of Texas at San Antonio in 1996 and completed and passed the CPA Examination in the same year. Ms. Martinez has been a patient of CentroMed for over 20 years and joined the CentroMed board of directors in 2014.
Nicolas Rangel is a CPA with over 25 years of experience leading multidisciplinary finance and accounting teams in various industries, including financial services, oil field services, hospitality and high technology. He worked as an expatriate in Mexico City for two years and in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for six years. Nick is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He enjoys volunteering and joined the board of directors at CentroMed in March of 2017. He also serves as an officer on the board of the Children's Chorus of San Antonio.
Ms. Eling is a practicing attorney with the Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid, Inc, in San Antonio, Texas were she has worked since 1983. She graduated from the School of Law from the University of Texas at Austin. Ms. Eling was a Fulbright American Lecturer Grantee in Lima, Peru. She received her License from State Bar of Texas in November 1983 and is a member of the San Antonio Bar Association. She is fluent in Spanish.
Ms. Eling has served on the Board of Directors of El Centro del Barrio dba, CentroMed from 1984-1990. She returned in 1992 to serve as the Board Chairperson and continues to serve in that role.
Job Titles:
- Chief Medical Officer
- Vice President
- Family Practice Physician
- Member of Texas Academy of Family Practice
Dr Norma Parra is a Family Practice Physician. She joined CentroMed in 1991 and became Chief Medical Officer for CentroMed in 1993. CentroMed is a Federally Qualified Healthcare Center with 23 sites providing Primary Care in primarily medically underserved areas.
Dr Norma Parra received her Bachelor of Science degree from Yale University and her MD degree from Texas Tech Health Science Center. She fulfilled her Family Practice Residency requirements at University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Texas.
After Residency and prior to joining CentroMed, Dr Norma Parra worked with homeless population at Venice Family Clinic in Venice, California.
Dr Norma Parra is a member of Texas Academy of Family Practice, American Academy of Family Practice, Mexican American Hispanic Physicians Association and National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA).
She currently serves as Board Member of NHMA and also serves on Utilization Review Committee and Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee for Superior Health Plan.
Dr Norma Parra was born and raised in Corpus Christi Texas. She is married to Dr Ernesto Parra and they have 3 children - Sonia, Elsa and Jaime.
Job Titles:
- Chief Information Officer
- Vice President
- Fellow of the American College
- Vice President & Chief Information Officer for El Centro Del Barrio
Raymond currently serves as Vice President & Chief Information Officer for El Centro del Barrio (CentroMed), a Federally Qualified Health Center located in San Antonio, Texas. He is responsible for managing the Information Technology and Health Informatics areas. Before assuming the role of CIO, he managed the Patient Navigation Center, pharmacy, and laboratory operations. Prior to joining CentroMed in 2010, Mr. Wei was Director of Strategic Planning and Physician Contracting for a major hospital system in San Antonio, Texas, with 14 years of progressive responsibility in areas including planning and business development, physician recruitment and contracting, operational and financial analysis, and social accountability and community benefits.
Mr. Wei is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Biochemistry from Rice University in Houston and a Master of Science degree in Health Care Administration from Trinity University in San Antonio. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Good Samaritan Community Services, and he previously served as Board chair of The Bexar County Community Health Collaborative and served on the Board of Directors for the San Antonio Area Chapter of the American Red Cross. On the home front, Mr. Wei enjoys spending quality time with his wife Christina and their five children.
Mr. Perez served as the President and CEO of the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce. He was the 18th President to lead the 2,000-member organization in its 117-year history.
Richard grew up in San Antonio and attended South San Antonio ISD schools. As a young student, Richard got his first taste of business experience working at his family's landscaping company, Fairway Landscape and Nursery, during junior high and high school.
Following graduation from South San High School in 1985 he received his Bachelor's degree with a major in Urban and Regional Planning from Texas State University in San Marcos. He then went on to attain a Master's degree in Public Administration from the University of Kansas. He often says that he felt that studying public administration and urban planning is the best way to give back to the community that gave so much to him.
Following graduate school, Richard served as Assistant to the City Manager for the City of Laredo. It was during this time that he witnessed the challenges facing cities along the South Texas border due to the exploding population and changing demographics.
His ability to work well with constituents led him to his next career step. In 1998, Richard was appointed by the Clinton Administration as the Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, where he served until January 2001.
Richard then returned to San Antonio and rejoined the family business from 2001 - 2004, when he was elected to the San Antonio City Council for District 4. While on City Council, Richard quickly became a go-to leader for important tasks. He:
• chaired the San Antonio Military Transformation Task Force - which continues to help facilitate and implement post-BRAC plans, the largest single development project in the history of the City, worth up to $2 Billion in construction, and adding thousands of jobs for San Antonians,