Outstanding, committed, accomplished and devoted, Zinetta Burney embodies these great qualities. But none more dear to her than the love of her people and her community. A bril-liant laawyer and a seasoned community servant, she is the very definition of tenacious. Born in 1941 in Houston, Texas, Zinetta is the second child of John and Thelma Arceneaux. At the age of sixteen she dropped out of high school to give birth to her only child, Sharon Maria. A few years later, she became a Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN) and completed her high school
education by earning her G.E.D. In 1968, Zinetta graduated from Texas Southern University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics. She is an alumnus of Thurgood Marshall School of Law at Texas Southern University.
Attorney Zinetta A. Burney is the Senior Partner in the law firm of Burney & Foreman. Burney & Foreman is listed in the Bond Buyers Book and is one of very few African-American law firms in the State of Texas to attain such qualifications. She is a member of the State Bar of Texas, United States District Court, United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, Houston Lawyers Association, Houston Bar Association, Gulf Coast Black Women Lawyers Association, and National Bar Association. Ms. Burney serves on the University of Houston System Board of Regents having been appointed by Governor Ann Richards. She is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Third Ward Redevelopment Counsel, past Chairperson of the Board of Commissions for Housing Authority of the City of Houston, Board Member of the United Way of Texas Gulf Coast, Board of the South Main Center Association, and Board of the Greater Houston Women’s Foundation.
Her civic participation includes the Houston Independent School District’s Commission on District Decentralization, Houston Area Ur-ban League, the NAACP, and TSU/Third Ward Redevelopment. She is a supporter of Shape Community Center. It therefore stands to reason that because of her honorable mission and her tenacious life, Zinetta Burney has been singled out for numerous honors, awards, and accolades from her peers and community. She has been recognized by the City of Houston, the City of Houston Housing Authority, NAACP, United Negro College Fund, Thur-good Marshall School of Law, United Cerebral Palsy Association, Riverside General Hospital, YMCA, the Houston Sun, the Houston Defend-er, the Prestige Wood Women’s Legal Society and the Missouri City Chapter of Links, Inc. To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Judge Zinetta Arceneaux Burney please visit our Sympathy Store.
