Patricia Diaz Dennis

Patricia Diaz Dennis was born in Santa Rita, New Mexico on October 2, 1946,[7] the daughter of Porfirio Madrid Diaz and Mary Romero.[7] She attended the University of California, Los Angeles, graduating with an A.B. in 1970.[7] She then attended Loyola Law School and received a J.D. in 1973.[7]

After law school, she joined Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker as an associate attorney.[7] She practiced there until 1976, when she took an in-house job in the law department of the Pacific Lighting Company.[7] In 1978, she joined the labor law department of the American Broadcasting Company.[7]

In 1983, President of the United States Ronald Reagan appointed Dennis to the National Labor Relations Board.[7] She served there until 1986, when Reagan named her as a commissioner on the Federal Communications Commission.[8]

She returned to the private practice of law in 1991, joining Jones Day as a partner.[7] In 1993, she joined Sprint as a vice president.[7]

In 1992, President George H. W. Bush nominated Dennis to be Assistant Secretary of State for Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs[8] and, after Senate confirmation, Dennis held this position from August 24, 1992 until January 20, 1993.

Upon leaving the United States Department of State, Dennis joined Sullivan & Cromwell as special counsel for telecommunications matters.[9] She joined SBC Communications as a vice president in 1995, and worked there until 2005. In 2015, she was elected to the board of US Steel Corporation.[10]

Long active in the Girl Scouts of the USA, in 2005, Dennis was elected as that organization's chairperson.[11]