Ken Shetter was elected mayor in June of 2004, during his second term on Burleson’s City Council.  His priorities for Burleson include responsible management of the city's explosive growth, maintaining the highest standards in public safety, improving the transportation infrastructure, developing a sound economic development plan, maintaining fiscal discipline and the continued revitalization of Old Town.

He is currently active with the Strengthening Families Initiative, which is based on improving economic success, health and wellness, a safe and vibrant community, and child and youth development in the city. Shetter was recently appointed to the National League of Cities Council on Youth, Education and Families, which is composed of elected officials and youth members and representatives from major national organizations and corporations concerned about children and families.

The mayor is also instrumental in the Burleson Opportunity Fund which he and others hope will provide an endowment to help Burleson students achieve at least a community college education.

Shetter is active in several regional public policy planning organizations and was recently chosen as chairman of the Tarrant Regional Transportation Coalition. He is also a member of the executive board of the North Central Texas Council of Governments.

Mayor Shetter was born and raised in the Burleson, Texas, area, and is a 1990 graduate of Burleson High School. He earned a bachelor of science degree in education from Baylor University in 1994, followed by a master of arts degree in applied sociology from The American University in Washington, D.C., in 1995.  While attending The American University, Shetter was a Dean's Scholar and a sociology department fellow.  In May 1998, he graduated from Baylor Law School with a juris doctorate degree.  As a third-year law student, he was a member of Baylor’s prestigious Mock Trial Team and recipient of the 1998 Scott, Douglass, Luton & McConnico Evidence Award. Following graduation, the mayor practiced law for seven years, concentrating in the areas of civil litigation and real estate transactions.

In addition to being mayor of Burleson, Shetter currently serves as the executive director of Safe City Commission, Inc., a non-profit corporation which develops and supports effective crime prevention and crime reduction programs and provides a framework for collaboration among Tarrant County’s public safety and crime prevention network.

The mayor and his wife, Ashley, have three children, Lexi, Hogan and Olivia.  They are members of the First United Methodist Church of Burleson.

Stuart Gillaspie
Mayor Pro Tem
Councilmember, Place 1

Stuart Gillaspie has been an active part of the City of Burleson government for 15 years.

The Place 1 council member, who was elected mayor pro tem by his peers following the May 2007 elections, served on the City of Burleson’s Planning and Zoning Commission for almost seven years, from October 1992 to June 1999. His last year on P&Z, Gillaspie served as the chairman.

In 1992, the mayor pro tem considered Burleson’s impending growth and decided he wanted to be a part of it. Gillaspie was instrumental in establishing the City’s Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP).

“I wanted to make a positive difference,” he said. “Growth is good, if it is managed properly.”

Since his election to the city council, Gillaspie has been appointed as a member of Burleson’s 4B Community Service Development Committee.

Projects he feels strongly about include the completion of the business park and commercial complex fronting I-35W, which was ratified as an economic development project in September 2007; the construction of the City’s hike and bike trail system; and completion of the new parks and sports complexes.

The mayor pro tem envisions more growth for Burleson and he is looking forward to promoting Burleson as a City of Character. Gillaspie strongly supports the City of Character initiative and currently serves on the Character Council.

Gillaspie was recently appointed to the Small Cities Council of the National League of Cities. This council was created in 1976 to ensure that the interests of small communities are reflected in the NLC’s overall policies and programs, serving as NLC’s “voice for all small cities.”

Gillaspie is a 1981 graduate of Burleson High School. He works as a transportation manager for Union Pacific Railroad. Gillaspie earned an associates degree in business management/ administration from Hill College and a bachelors degree in business administration from Dallas Baptist University.

Gillaspie and his wife, Tina, have three children, Shane, Whitney, and Christin

Jim Wadlow
Councilmember, Place 2

Place 2 on the Burleson City Council is held by Jim Wadlow. After living in Arlington for 37 years, he and his wife moved to Burleson in 1999 and Mr. Wadlow took an active role in the community almost immediately.

Mr. Wadlow has served on the Burleson Park Board since 2000; the last two years as board chairman. During his tenure on that board, he helped develop and promote the Park Pals program, which encourages community members to do volunteer work through the parks and recreation department, helping to put on community events, landscape city parks, and generally get more directly involved in the programs and issues that affect the quality of life in Burleson.

Regarding his decision to seek a City Council seat, Mr. Wadlow says, “I have always been interested in public service and simply doing whatever I can for my community.”

Councilmember Wadlow continues to serve as an active member of the Burleson Heritage Foundation and is a member of the Friends of the Burleson Public Library. He and his wife are members of St. Matthew Cumberland Presbyterian Church.

Mr. Wadlow served in the United States Naval Reserve as a personnel man and is retired from a career in multi-media that included experience directing an advertising agency. Jim and Jill Wadlow have been married for 50 years and they share one daughter and two grandchildren.

Claudia Humphreys
Councilmember, Place 4

Claudia Humphreys has served on the Burleson City Council since May 2000. Prior to her election to city council, she served on the City's Planning and Zoning Commission.

Her  interests include providing the growing community with neighborhood parks, a community recreation center, facilities for youth league programs and the creation of passive parks.  The councilmember says parks improve everyone's quality of life by encouraging families to spend time together. Bringing neighbors together can build relationships that will strengthen the community.  

Humphreys other interest is in expanding economic development in order to  encourage growth in the work force, which will allow families to work, play and live in the same city.

Humphreys and her husband, Gary, have been married since 1985. They have owned and managed their own company in Burleson since 1992. They are members of St. Matthew Cumberland Presbyterian Church where she volunteers as a senior high youth sponsor. The Humphreys have two sons, Eric and Jake.

The councilmember says Burleson's “spirit and character inspire many of us to love our town. My hope is that through service on the city council, I can help guide and manage our community's growth in ways that maintain what is unique and wonderful about Burleson."

During her time on council, Humphreys hopes to ensure that the nature of Burleson's growth reflects the citizens' desires and concerns.

"Our economic development efforts should include all areas of concern for Burleson, including labor growth, housing, infrastructure, and amenities like parks and recreation services,” Humphreys said.

A 1985 graduate of Oklahoma State University, the councilmember earned a bachelors degree in agricultural economics with emphases in marketing and finance.

Chip Stephens
Councilmember, Place 6

Chip Stephens is a life-long resident of the Burleson area. He graduated from Burleson High School in 1991, then attended Texas A&M University and the University of Texas at Arlington.  

Mr. Stephens and his wife, Erika, have two children, Enfiniti and Kyler, who are very involved in school and youth sports activities. In 1995, Mr. Stephens became Officer Stephens with the Fort Worth Police Department. In 2003, he also realized a long-time goal when he obtained his real estate license. Mr. Stephens enjoys helping families find the homes of their dreams as well as helping them in his work as a police officer.

Mr. Stephens was elected to the Burleson City Council in May 2004. He hopes to continue to be a leader in the community by doing all he can to help ensure that Burleson remains the wonderful town in which he grew up.

Dan McClendon, the newest Burleson City councilmember, is a husband, father of four, business owner, and a pilot for Angel Flight, which provides free travel in private aircraft for people with medical and financial needs.

McClendon, 55, was sworn in as the Place 5 councilmember in May 2007.

In 1990, he became the sole owner and founder of McClendon Construction Company, based in Burleson. His company performs municipal street reconstruction. He is also vice president of the Tarrant County Contractors Association.

He and his wife Mary Lynn, 41, have been married since Valentine's Day 1994. They share four children. Angela, 27; Jack, 11; Cole, 10; and Austin, 7.

The councilman was born in Corsicana and raised in Powell and Navarro County. He graduated from Kerens High School in 1970 and from North Texas State University in 1974 with a bachelor of business administration/administrative management degree.

He and his family moved to the Burleson area in 1977.

McClendon is a current member of Saint Matthew Cumberland Presbyterian Church. He sings with the church choir. The councilmember and his sons are also martial arts students with advanced belts in American Karate.

McClendon has been a member pilot and contributor of Angel Flight since 2001. He averages eight missions each year.

“In all the towns and cities I have visited, I have never found quite the same mixture of tradition, progressive thinking, integrity, common sense, and good family values that we have here,” McClendon said. “I hope that my children will find this to be as true as I have so that our future generations will treasure our city too. To keep Burleson this way as it grows and develops is my only goal as a councilman.”