Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month

This year, the IEEE Computer Society is proud to celebrate the intersections of the Hispanic and Latino computing communities. Starting September 15 through October 15, we will be highlighting the achievements and contributions of these communities in computer science and engineering.

The Hispanic community is vibrant and diverse. It consists of not only experiences in the United States, but also the many nations in North, Central, and South America. The Latino community refers to those who are from or have a cultural background from a country in Latin America.

To celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, the IEEE Computer Society’s Diversity and Inclusion Task Force has organized an Excellence in STEM interview series highlighting professional experiences and career advice from computing professionals across the Americas. These interviews include insights into the professional experiences of first-generation immigrants, studying abroad, relocating to pursue an education and career in computer science, and offer career advice for students and early career professionals considering such paths.

Be sure to bookmark this page, as we will publish new interviews every Tuesday and Thursday. There are nuggets of insight and advice for everyone!

Excellence in STEM Interviews

• Dr. Grace Lewis, Principal Researcher at the Carnegie Mellon Software Engineering Institute (SEI)
• Sebastian Echeverria, Senior Software Engineer at Carnegie Mellon University
• Juan Machado, IT Associate Director of Infrastructure and Security at the University of Georgia
• Brianna Posadas, Assistant Professor in the School of Plant and Environmental Sciences at Virginia Tech
• Nery Antonio Chapetón-Lamas, Instructional faculty in Computer Science at MiraCosta Community College
• Dr. Patricia Ordóñez Franco, Associate Professor, Department of Information Systems at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County
• Dr. Dan Garcia, Teaching Professor in EECS at UC Berkeley
• Dr. Nelly Bencomo, Associate Professor at Durham University
• Dr. Manuel A. Pérez Quiñones, Professor of Software and Information Systems at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and an NSF Expert for the CISE division

IEEE Diversity and Inclusion Fund

We are committed to investing in our communities and their efforts to advance computer science and engineering. Learn more about the Society’s efforts by visiting our Diversity & Inclusion homepage, making a donation, and letting us know if you’d like to share your unique experiences at inclusion@computer.org!

We’ve expanded our efforts this year to bring awareness of best practices in inclusivity and equity to our conferences.

Podcasts Featuring Advice from the Latino Community

• Ricardo Baeza-Yates Interview (Chile)
• Thamar Solorio Interview (Mexico)
• Punch Cards (feat. Rico Malvar, Distinguished Engineer, Microsoft. Former Director of Microsoft Research)
• Alternate Realities feat. Thamar Solorio (Mexico), University of Houston; and Ricardo Baeza-Yates (Chile), Northeastern University
• Pregnancy and Career feat. Thamar Solorio (Mexico), University of Houston
• Random Ways to Start Research feat. Thamar Solorio (Mexico), University of Houston
• Imposter Syndrome feat. Thamar Solorio (Mexico), University of Houston; and Ricardo Baeza-Yates (Chile), Northeastern University
• Industry vs. Academia feat. Rico Malvar, Dilma Da Silva, and Rodrigo Fonseca

SHPE Out Loud: Leading Hispanics in STEM - from the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers

SHPE Out Loud is a leadership podcast that guides young professional Hispanics working in STEM by creating a community that provides support and a sense of belonging.