Each month President Tim Foster is given nominations for exemplary students and chooses who he thinks has been an outstanding leader. For March, the award went to Mario Bravo, a junior Computer Science major and first generation student. Foster stated that he made this choice because of Bravo’s hard work to start a new club, the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), and his leadership qualities.
“I was kind of surprised when I got the award, I didn’t think anyone was watching the work I was doing. Hard work doesn’t go unnoticed, it was recognized by the President and I think that is really awesome to have,” Bravo said.
Bravo stated that SHPE diversifies the STEM field. According to Bravo, 18% of the population in the United States are Hispanic and only 7% of them end up in a STEM related job. He created the club to help minorities, specifically Hispanic students, get a foot in the door to the professional world. SHPE gives those students exposure they otherwise would not have.
Bravo stated that he wanted to expand SHPE to smaller towns because of his beneficial experience with the organization. Colorado Mesa University (CMU) did not have a chapter before now and Bravo is now working towards the club being nationally recognized. He stated that being listed as a SHPE chapter would not only benefit the school, but benefit hispanic students.
“I chose CMU because being a first-gen, it is hard to be away from your parents, especially hispanic parents. So it was a good choice to bond with family as I got older and be a part of the community as well. What’s great about it is that if you live in the dorms, it doesn’t even feel like you’re in Grand Junction,” Bravo said.
From a young age, Bravo was interested in computers. He wanted to know how they worked and stated that video chatting with his uncle in Mexico was one of the first times he was able to work with technology. Even in high school, he knew that studying computers was what he wanted to do in the future.
“My parents are the ones who helped me get to the point where I am. [Jerome Gonzalez], the CEO of an engineering company here in town that is also hispanic, he has helped me a lot in terms of professional development and with being in the STEM field. He is also a first-gen hispanic and seeing him as the CEO of his own company and being able to impact the community has made me want to do the same,” Bravo said.
Meetings for SHPE occur on Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m. in Confluence Hall, room 305. SHPE is a national organization that helps hispanic students get internships and learn about the field they want to be in so they can be one step ahead.
