Gloria Bañuelos

Director

Gloria Bañuelos

Gloria R. Bañuelos, Ph.D. is part of the Government Affairs team at Qualcomm Incorporated, where she applies her background in science, education, and research to advance public policies and diversity initiatives in patents and intellectual property. Most recently, she was the head of Qualcomm® Thinkabit Lab™, a homegrown STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) engagement program for students of all cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds. She oversaw all aspects of the program including content development, instructor onboarding, program implementation and data collection to inform best practices for replicating and expanding the national network of Thinkabit Lab sites. As first-generation Latina with two degrees in Biochemistry, Gloria gained first-hand knowledge of how difficult it can be to enter a STEM field. She has spent her professional career creating opportunities for students of diverse backgrounds to see themselves as scientists and engineers. Her commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion extends to contributing her expertise to the advancement of Black, Indigenous, People of Color and women. She holds leadership positions on various boards, including the Society for Hispanic Engineers, the LatinQ Inclusion Employee Resource Group at Qualcomm, and the American Association for University Women. Her endeavor is to be curious and learn from others.