Beatriz Zavala
Encyclopedia
Mérida, Yucatán
Mérida is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state of Yucatán and the Yucatán Peninsula. It is located in the northwest part of the state, about from the Gulf of Mexico coast...
) is a Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
politician affiliated to the National Action Party
National Action Party (Mexico)
The National Action Party , is one of the three main political parties in Mexico. The party's political platform is generally considered Centre-Right in the Mexican political spectrum. Since 2000, the President of Mexico has been a member of this party; both houses have PAN pluralities, but the...
(PAN) who has served in the lower
Chamber of Deputies of Mexico
The Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of the Congress of the Union, Mexico's bicameral legislature. The structure and responsibilities of both chambers of Congress are defined in Articles 50 to 70 of the current constitution.-Composition:The Chamber of Deputies is composed of one federal...
and upper house
Senate of Mexico
The Senate of the Republic, constitutionally Chamber of Senators of the Honorable Congress of the Union After a series of reforms during the 1990s, it is now made up of 128 senators:...
of the Mexican Congress
Congress of Mexico
The Congress of the Union is the legislative branch of the Mexican government...
. In 2006 Felipe Calderón
Felipe Calderón
Felipe de Jesús Calderón Hinojosa is the current President of Mexico. He assumed office on December 1, 2006, and was elected for a single six-year term through 2012...
designated her as Secretary of Social Development.
Personal life and education
Zavala, born in Mérida, YucatánMérida, Yucatán
Mérida is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state of Yucatán and the Yucatán Peninsula. It is located in the northwest part of the state, about from the Gulf of Mexico coast...
, holds a bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in antropology from the Autonomous University of Yucatán (UADY) and studies towards a master degree in sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
from the University of Kentucky
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky, also known as UK, is a public co-educational university and is one of the state's two land-grant universities, located in Lexington, Kentucky...
. She has been a professor of the UADY.
Political career
Zavala is an active member of the PANNational Action Party (Mexico)
The National Action Party , is one of the three main political parties in Mexico. The party's political platform is generally considered Centre-Right in the Mexican political spectrum. Since 2000, the President of Mexico has been a member of this party; both houses have PAN pluralities, but the...
since 1995. From 1997 to 2000 she served in the Chamber of Deputies of Mexico
Chamber of Deputies of Mexico
The Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of the Congress of the Union, Mexico's bicameral legislature. The structure and responsibilities of both chambers of Congress are defined in Articles 50 to 70 of the current constitution.-Composition:The Chamber of Deputies is composed of one federal...
during the LVII Legislature
LVII Legislature of the Mexican Congress
The LVII Legislature of the Congress of Mexico met from 1997 to 2000....
; from 2001 to 2003 she served as local deputy in the Congress of Yucatán
Congress of Yucatán
The Congress of the State of Yucatán is the legislative branch of the government of the State of Yucatán. The Congress is the governmental deliberative body of Yucatán, which is equal to, and independent of, the executive...
; then from 2003 to 2006 she served again in the Chamber of Deputies this time during the LIX Legislature
LIX Legislature of the Mexican Congress
The LIX Legislature of the Congress of Mexico met from September 2003 to August 2006. All members of the lower house of the Congress were elected in the elections of July 2003 while members of the upper house were elected in the elections of July 2000.-Chamber of Deputies:-Senate of...
. In 2006 she won a seat in the Senate of Mexico
Senate of Mexico
The Senate of the Republic, constitutionally Chamber of Senators of the Honorable Congress of the Union After a series of reforms during the 1990s, it is now made up of 128 senators:...
representing Yucatán but left that position to joined Felipe Calderón
Felipe Calderón
Felipe de Jesús Calderón Hinojosa is the current President of Mexico. He assumed office on December 1, 2006, and was elected for a single six-year term through 2012...
's presidential cabinet as Secretary of Social Development. In January 2008 she left the cabinet and returned to the senate.