•santiago rodriguez diversity award•

EDUCATION:  Masters of Public Administration, San Jose State University; Bachelor of Arts, The National Hispanic University (California)

While Maria C. Lopez is a champion for the Hispanic community at the NASA Ames Research Center, her real strength lies in her commitment to diversity, equality, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) for all, within Ames’ orbit and beyond. 

She served on the Hispanic Advisory Committee for Employees’ (HACE) leadership board and previously volunteered on collateral duty as the Special Emphasis Program Manager (SEPM) for Hispanics with the Ames Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity.

 As the SEPM for Hispanics, Maria conceived of and led the publication Somos NASA (We are NASA) for three years starting in 2019, which highlighted the Hispanic contribution to the NASA mission, awards received, and shone a spotlight on Hispanic careers and community involvement.  

She has also nominated 65 (and counting) individuals in the Ames Hispanic workforce for internal and national awards to feature Ames' Hispanic and other underrepresented STEM talent to students and global communities. 

These diverse award recipients have been recognized by HENAAC Great Minds in STEM, Women of Color in STEM, Association for Women Geoscientists, Careers and the disABLED Magazine, Women in Aerospace, San Francisco Federal Executive Board, and NASA Ames Research Center.

As part of the HACE leadership, Maria has taken the lead on Hispanic Heritage Month special events, and organized sessions for the Ames community with special guests astronauts Ellen Ochoa (the first Latina to go to space), Franklin Chang Diaz (the first Latin American immigrant NASA Astronaut selected to go into space), George Zamka, and Joe Acaba (the first person of Puerto Rican origin to have flown in space). 

Maria's enthusiasm for DEIA benefits the Ames community at large.  After serving as the SEPM for Hispanics, she took on her current volunteer role as a SEPM for Individuals with Disabilities, and in 2021 developed and implemented a self- identification campaign focusing on disability status and including Race and National Origin, which resulted in the Center’s 50 percent increase for those who identify as individuals with disability in two years.

To accomplish this, she underscored in public presentations the benefits afforded by supervisors of the self-identification process, and that it is Privacy Act protected, while an equal opportunity specialist confirmed the reasonable accommodation process for individuals with disabilities. 

In 2022, Maria proudly accepted an invitation from the Diversity Office to take on an additional volunteer role as SEPM for military veterans, where she works to ensure equal opportunity in employment and recruitment of veterans is present in all aspects of the workforce.

She is also a shining star to the community external to NASA as the NASA liaison to the San Jose State University Mathematics Engineering Science Achievement (MESA) College Prep Program Industry Advisory Board, which propels student diversity and achievement in science, technology, engineering, and math.  In this role, Maria shares the NASA mission with underrepresented STEM students. 

She is a mentor with the university’s Alumni and Community Engagement Department and a sought-after speaker for middle school, high school, and college activities as part of her commitment to assisting organizations whose mission is to advance underrepresented STEM communities. 

All the while, Maria continues to make a significant impact at Ames Research Center, and serves as a de facto DEIA spokeswoman at various Ames employee resource groups, including the Women's Influence Network and the Asian American and Pacific Islander Advisory Group.  An inspiration to all, Maria reminds the NASA community and others of the myriad treasures inherent in workforce diversity.