Earlier this week, thousands of people attended the 43rd National Convention of Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers in Phoenix. This year, Hispanic engineers drew inspiration from the early-career engineers discussing their challenges and successes in their industry. The convention-goers also paid tribute to exemplary Latinas in Phoenix.

The five-day event highlighted the latest technology, education, and career opportunities in different industries. In a report from KJZZ, the panelists are coming from the different industries like aerospace, banking, food and transportation, and many more. It was participated mostly by college students and Hispanic engineers who are seeking to find inspiration and guidance from the panelists.

Lizette Saenz is a Latina engineer who was one of the panelists. During the event, Saenz inspired Hispanic engineers by recounting her struggles. According to Saenz, she pushes herself to work twice as hard in order to show her value and worth, and to show that she belongs in the group. Saenz added that she feels like she needs to give everything that she has because she wants to see more Hispanic engineers in her industry coming from Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM)

According to the National Science Foundation (NSF) in 2015, around 2 percent of the working scientists and engineers are Hispanic women. The National Science Foundation breaks down the data according to women  and under-represented minorities grouped together rather than breaking it down according to race and gender. On the other hand, based on the 2017 data, 15.1 percent of scientists and engineers were women and 20.4 percent were underrepresented minorities. 

The theme of the convention was PODEROSA which translate to "powerful." The panelists were asked to explain as to what this word means to them. Elise Rivas, one of the panelists, explained that power does not necessarily come from title but rather it is about how a person becomes an influencer, a connector, a problem solver, and someone who can do anything.

Here are more celebrated Latinas in the STEM industry

1. Sabrina González Pasterski is a Cubana from Chicago and is dubbed as the world's next Albert Einstein. At the present, she studies black holes and spacetime particularly trying to explain gravity within the context of quantum mechanics. She also received job offerings from NASA, Blue Origin, and Amazon.

2. Laura I. Gomez is one of the leading Latinas in technology. She is the only Latina who worked in Google and Youtube before she became the founding member of the Twitter's International Team where she led Twitter en Espanol. In 2015, she became the acting CEO of the Atipica, a recruiting software that helps companies avoid bias in hiring employees using artificial and human intelligence.

3. Nicole Hernandez Hammer is a sea-level researcher and environmental justice activist who educates the Hispanics on how and why climate change impacts the community negatively. At the present, she is the field manager in Florida for Moms Clean Air Force and also a science and community advocate at Union of Concerned Scientists.

Meanwhile, Syliva Acevedo received Ruben Hinojosa STEM Champion Award from the Society of Hispanic Engineers. The award was named after the former Texas Congressman Ruben Hinojosa who recognizes leaders who have a proven legacy for passionately supporting Hispanics in STEM. 

Read more: Hispanic Engineers Celebrate Latinas In Phoenix and 10 Latinas Making Their Mark in the STEM World