Banks is Senior Vice President and National Director of Employee Relations for a major bank. Banks earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from Oral Roberts University in 1980 and a master's degree in management from Houston Baptist University in 1983. She earned her S.P.H.R. certification from the Human Resources Certification Institute in 1994. In March 2000, Gov. George W. Bush appointed Mary to a six-year term on the Texas Commission on Human Rights, and she currently serves as Chairman of the Commission.