In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, SWE will be highlighting Latinx/Hispanic women engineers and entrepreneurs in a series of blog posts.
Meet and learn about three SWEesters in SWE’s Latinos Affinity Group: Eileen Velez-Vega, Chelina Ortiz Montanez and Louvere Walker-Hannon.
Eileen Velez-Vega
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Degrees/Certifications: B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez (UPRM) Mayagüez, M.S. Civil Engineering from Mississippi State University
Current Job/Title: Vice-President and Aviation Project Manager @ Kimley-Horn Puerto Rico, LLC
Hobbies: Traveling with my husband and daughter, Crafts and STEM experiments with my daughter and her friends, Yoga and Pilates, Reading and Volunteering
Connection to Latinos AG: SWE member, BOD SPONSOR for the AG
Current SWE Positions: FY21 SWE BOD Director, UPRM SWE Section Counselor.
What does being Latina/Hispanic/an ally mean to you?
“Extremely proud of my Puerto Rican heritage and I enjoy empowering local students into STEM! I also promote the island’s and our Latino diverse talents especially when representation is so important! Being a Latina has never been an obstacle for my successful career and life and I believe we’re all smart, capable and determined and we can contribute so much to STEM, our communities and everywhere we go!”
Chelina Ortiz Montanez
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Degrees/Certifications: BS in Computer Science from University of Kentucky
Current Job/Title: Software Engineer at Target
Hobbies: Video games, embroidering and SWE!
Connection to Latinos AG: Member, and Co-Lead of SWE Latinos AG
What does being Latina/Hispanic/an ally mean to you?
“It means responsibility. I think our heritage brings lots of responsibility to honor our ancestors and to pave our path in this world with pride. We come in all shapes, colors and backgrounds, so we have a great responsibility to show the world all we are and can be.”
Louvere Walker-Hannon
Pronouns: She/her/hers
Degrees/Certifications: Bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Engineering and a Master’s degree in Geographic Information Technology.
Current Job/Title: Senior Application Engineer
Hobbies: Spending time with family and friends, Dancing, Listening to Music
Connection to the Latinos AG: I am one of the Co-Leads of the SWE Latinos AG for 2021.
What does being a Latina/Hispanic/an ally mean to you?
Being both of Afro-Latino descent and an ally means honoring my heritage by embracing cultural traditions from my Panamanian grandparents and advocating for the representation of many types of Latinas in STEM (plus in other fields).
Related Content:
- Hispanic Heritage Month Member Spotlight #1
- Fixing the Leaky Pipeline: Hispanic Heritage Month
- Podcast: Celebrating Hispanic Heritage with Latina Leader, Eileen Vélez-Vega
