Eric Terrazas
Community Advocate & Small Business Enthusiast
Eric Terrazas is a devoted advocate for community welfare, small businesses, and the power of meaningful relationships. His diverse background encompasses sales, real estate, economic development, and small business support, giving him a unique perspective on fostering growth and prosperity.
A graduate of Abilene Christian University, Eric holds a Bachelor's Degree in Integrated Studies, specializing in Business Management and Journalism.
During his recent tenure at the Cen-Tex Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Eric conceptualized and launched a small business support initiative in Spanish called Escalando. Presently, he devotes his time and expertise to the Waco Community, serving as a board member for La Puerta Waco and Ispiracion Waco. He also actively contributes to committees for the Hispanic Leaders Network and plays a pivotal role in local programs such as AIR Collaborative and the LeadershipPlenty Institute. Eric's motivation is deeply rooted in fostering a more interwoven and thriving community in Waco. His ultimate aspiration is to leave behind a legacy for future generations to flourish and relish.
He is married to a native Wacoan, Caelie and they have two Humane Society rescue dogs, Pongo and Yoda. In their spare time, you can find Eric and Caelie enjoying community events, spending time with their pups, and enjoying the Waco food scene.
Jaja Chen
Co-Owner & Chief of Strategic Initiatives & Business Partnerships, Waco Cha
Jaja Chen (she/her) is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker - Supervisor (LCSW-S) specializing in trauma, burnout, racial trauma, and perinatal mental health through her private practice. Alongside her husband Devin Li, Jaja is co-owner and Chief of Strategic Initiatives and Business Partnerships of Cha Community - a boba tea cafe small business located in downtown Waco and Temple, Texas. Prior to work as a trauma therapist and boba tea entrepreneur, Jaja worked in the field of domestic violence and anti-human trafficking through local nonprofit organizations. Most recently, Jaja co-founded Asian Leaders Network - a Waco-based non-profit organization - alongside five fellow Asian American leaders and is the current Chair of the City of Waco Sustainable Resource Practices Advisory Board. Jaja received both her Bachelor and Master of Social Work through the Diana R. Garland School of Social Work at Baylor University. In her free time, Jaja enjoys traveling, swimming, spending time with her English Bulldogs Momo and Mimi, and thrift store shopping.
Dr. Alex Jones Adesina
Medical Doctor and Clinical Lead of Health Equity, Waco Family Medicine
Dr. Jones Adesina is a Waco native who returned to practice family medicine in the fall of 2019. Inspired by her parents’ desire to care for the community by caring for children experiencing the foster care system, she taught with Teach For America to achieve transformational educational achievement in Chicago. While Dr. Jones Adesina greatly enjoyed teaching, she felt called to health care and found that a medical and public health training provide the necessary skills to care for and advocate with communities that have been systemically underserved. Dr. Jones Adesina enjoys caring for people throughout their lives, and so family medicine was a perfect fit. Shortly after returning to Waco, Dr. Jones Adesina joined Waco Family Medicine where she cares for patients at the Martin Luther King, Jr clinic. In the summer of 2023, Dr. Jones Adesina accepted the inaugural role of Chief Equity Officer at Waco Family Medicine where she leverages her insights in providing patient care to inform the work to achieve equity within the organization as well as health equity.
Galen Price
Housing & Community Development Director, City of Waco
Galen Price, Housing & Community Development Director with the City of Waco, has over 24 years of municipal government experience. Mr. Price has been with the City of Waco for over 6 years, serving a few different roles in his tenure, primarily in Housing. Prior to Waco, he worked in Irving for 10 years managing a team of people providing direct client assistance in housing programs, infrastructure, public facility projects, and has worked extensively in the HOME program and with CHDOs. Prior to Irving, Galen worked with CDBG in Fort Worth for 8 years in contract compliance and managing a team of people handling public service contracts, economic development projects, and affordable housing projects. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of North Texas in Business Administration. A native of Fort Worth, he is also a HUD Certified HOME Specialist on Regulations and Administration and an instructor teaching the HOME Basics class and HOME Advanced/Underwriting for NCDA.
Chief Sheryl Victorian, Ph.D.
Police Chief, Waco Police Department
Sheryl Victorian is a native Texan and a 30-year law enforcement professional. After serving nearly 28 years with the Houston Police Department, Sheryl was sworn in as the City of Waco’s first female and first African American Chief of Police on March 15, 2021.
Sheryl holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Administration of Justice from Texas Southern University (1992), a Master of Science Degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Houston – Downtown (2003), and a Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Administration of Justice from Texas Southern University (2013). Sheryl has earned many awards and commendations for her service and dedication as a leader and police professional.
Sheryl is a graduate of the Police Executive Research Forum’s (PERF) Senior Management Institute for Police (SMIP) session #81, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Academy (FBINA) session #267, Discover Leadership Master Graduate of class #252, a current fellow of American Leadership Forum’s class XLVII (47), Law Enforcement Management Institute of Texas (LEMIT) Leadership Inventory for Female Executives (LIFE) class #17, and a graduate of the International Association of Chiefs of Police’s (IACP) Women’s Leadership Institute (WLI). She is also the creator and co-designer of “Building Trust From Trauma,” a course designed in the Summer of 2020 to educate and inspire officers to learn about the trust-eroding events that negatively impact trust between communities of color and the police and to reduce harm, learn from the past, and build meaningful cooperative relationships between the police, the community, and community stakeholders.
In her spare time, Sheryl is a playwright and enjoys traveling, mentoring, public speaking, teaching, and spending time with her family and canine babies, Shelby, and Roxy.
Dr. Jasmine J. Opusunju, Panel Moderator
Clinical Assistant Professor & Director of MPH@Baylor, Baylor University
Dr. Jasmine Opusunju is a Clinical Assistant Professor and Director of the MPH@Baylor online program in the Department of Public Health at Baylor University. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Education (2005) and a Master of Science in Education (2007) from Baylor University. She earned her Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) degree in Health Promotion and Health Education from the University of Texas Health Science Center-Houston with additional training in public health management, policy, and community-based participatory research (CBPR). She is a Master Certified Health Education Specialist (MCHES), and she is Certified in Public Health (CPH).
Dr. Opusunju has worked across the intersections of community health practice, research, academia, and business for almost 20 years. She has extensive experience in authentic community engagement and capacity building, program planning and implementation, and cross-sector collaboration around community-driven solutions to advance health and quality of life. Her health promotion practice and research has focused on health promotion behavior, obesity, the built environment, social determinants of health, food systems, and health equity.