VELVETA GOLIGHTLY-HOWELL
Director of the Office of Civil Rights, USEPA Washington, D.C.
Velveta Golightly-Howell was appointed as Director of the Office of Civil Rights, United States Environmental
Protection Agency, in February 2014, and in this role, leads the EPA’s Title VI, Title VII, Affirmative Employment and
Reasonable Accommodations programs. Before assuming her current position, Velveta served as Regional
Manager of the Office for Civil Rights (OCR), United States Department of Health & Human Services (HHS),
Region VIII, where she led operations for a six-state region responsible for civil rights and HIPAA enforcement and
compliance. Before joining HHS/OCR, Velveta served as HHS’ Chief Regional Civil Rights Attorney in the Denver
Region. At HHS, Velveta was recognized as Executive of the Year and Distinguished Regional Administrator. A
former criminal prosecutor and civil litigator, she graduated with honors from Tuskegee Institute from which she
earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science. Velveta received a Juris Doctor from the University of
Colorado (CU) School of Law and a Master’s in Public Administration from CU’s Graduate School of Public Affairs.
She is an alumnus of Leadership Denver, the Federal Executive Institute, and HHS’ Senior Executive Service
Candidate Development Program. Licensed to practice law in New York, Velveta is admitted to practice before the
United States Supreme Court.
Velveta founded, and served as the first president of, the Colorado Chapter of the National Association of
Black Women Attorneys (NABWA) and as NABWA’s Regional Representative and First Vice-President. Strongly
committed to public service, she has contributed to positive change through appointments to the Colorado
Women's Bar Association Board of Directors; the inaugural Colorado Bar Association's Diversity in the Legal
Profession Steering Committee; and the inaugural Colorado Supreme Court's Ad Hoc Diversity in the Law
Committee. Velveta, a gubernatorial appointment to the State Judicial Performance Commission, Second Judicial
District (Denver), served five years. She served as a mayoral appointee to her local Personnel Merit Commission, a
Colorado State Legislature appointee to the Colorado Blue Ribbon Healthcare Reform Vulnerable Populations Task
Force, and an appointee to CU’s Dean’s Committee on Law School Diversity. In addition, she held appointments to
the Victim Assistance Law Enforcement Board, Second Judicial District (Denver), and the Colorado Federal
Executive Board. As a child advocate, Velveta volunteered with Partners, Adopt-a-School, and Jack & Jill of
America, where she served on the Executive Board.