Read biographies of feature guests for the 2017 international Women's Day Celebration being held Wednesday, March 08 at Early Society Chicago.
Moderator
Siera Santos, Sports Broadcaster, CSN Chicago
Siera Santos joined CSN Chicago in October 2015 as the White Sox reporter and anchor of Fast Break. While she primarily hosts the midnight program in the off-season, Santos covered White Sox slugger Jose Abreu’s return to Cuba last year, creating a long-format documentary about his homecoming after defecting.
Prior to joining CSN Chicago, Santos was a sports anchor/reporter for CBS affiliates KCBS/KCAL in Los Angeles, CA, where she hosted KCAL's Sunday night "Sports Central" program and handled social media updates for "Thursday Night Football" and "March Madness" postgame shows. Prior to making the jump to Southern California, Santos was a sports journalist at CBS affiliate KWTV in Oklahoma City, OK where she handled numerous multimedia duties including reporting, shooting, producing, editing, and fill-in anchor. Santos got her start as a news reporter/multimedia journalist at NBC affiliate KOAA-TV in Colorado Springs, CO covering national news stories including the Waldo Canyon Fire and Aurora Theater Shooting.
Santos graduated with honors from Arizona State University as the Outstanding Undergraduate Student. Among her numerous career achievements include earning the distinction of being the first woman to ever win the award for "Best Television Sports Anchor" from the Broadcast Education Association.
Discussion Panelists
Stella Gaytan, Executive VP, Partnership Development, Monterrey Security
Stella serves as Executive Vice-President of Partnership Development with a high level of expertise in business development, account management and customer service. In this role she manages executive-level relationships from initial contact through the client management process. Her success stems from her innate ability to develop strong relationships and establish rapport with clients by demonstrating knowledge of their business and discretely working with them on their issues of concern. Stella believes customer satisfaction is ensured through consistent follow-up regarding any key concerns and priorities. She has authored and delivered effective presentations in person as well as remotely to an executive audience regarding our services, engagement results and recommendations. Under her direction, Monterrey Security has formed strong partnerships with the Chicago Fire Police Training Academy, colleges and social service organizations to support youth and various charities. Stella currently serves on the Board of Advisors for Catholic Charities, including the Latino Advisors’ Subcommittee,18th Street Development Corporation and her local school board.
Having been with the organization since its conceptual phase, Stella has played an integral part of shaping its message and leadership team. Working hand in hand with company president Juan Gaytan, Jr., she has helped the company achieve recognition in Hispanic Business Magazine as one the fastest 100 growing Hispanic businesses in the U.S. and securing partnerships at Lincoln Park Zoo, University of Illinois at Chicago, retailers like Wal-Mart and iconic museums including The Field Museum. As a direct result of her sales and marketing efforts, Monterrey Security has maintained a position in the top 500 of all Hispanic Businesses in the U.S. for the past five years.
The success achieved under Stella’s sales and marketing direction has led Monterrey Security to become the premier security firm serving Midwest clients large and small.
Stefany Jacobo, Miss U.S. Latina, Finance Coordinator, USHLI
History was made on October 1, 2016 as Stefany Jacobo of Crown Point, Indiana took home the first ever Miss U.S. Latina title for her state.
Stefany was born and raised in Acambaro, Gto., Mx. She immigrated to the U.S. with her family at the age of 10 not knowing she would later hold a National Title. The 24-year-old Latina beauty earned her Bachelor’s degree in Science of Public Affairs at Indiana University. She currently works as a Finance Coordinator at the United States Hispanic Leadership Institute. Here, in conjunction with her title, she has been able to fulfill her passion of working with students in underserved communities.
During her national title reign, she will continue the work she was doing statewide as Miss Indiana Latina 2015 of helping to make a life-long impact on students and community members. She is committed to fostering a culture of education across the country as Miss U.S. Latina 2016, thus being "more than a model - a ROLE model."
Maria Pedroza Barnett, Director of Communications, Oak Street Health
Maria is the Director of Communications at Oak Street Health. In her role, she is helping build a growing organization's communication operations functions. Oak Street Health is a Chicago-based company that builds primary care offices in medically-underserved communities, helping to bridge the healthcare access gap where it is needed most. The company currently has 20 clinics in Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan.
Maria manages relationships with media and community and public leaders, as well as internal stakeholders on behalf of the company. Throughout different points in her career, Maria has worked with major companies on initiatives that aim to better represent and serve the growing Latina market.
Maria is a graduate of Harvard University and lives in Chicago with her husband and son.
Carina E. Sánchez, Executive Director, Public Building Commission of Chicago
Carina E. Sánchez is a dedicated, public servant who has over 15 years experience in government working for the citizens of Chicago and Illinois. Carina currently serves as the Executive Director of the Public Building Commission of Chicago. She is the first Latina to serves in this position. In her role, she oversees the agency which serves a full-service, public developer, that plans, designs and constructs municipal buildings such as schools, libraries, parks, firehouses and police stations. Since 2011, the PBC has completed more than $1.9 billion worth of capital construction projects in the City and surrounding areas.
Prior to her current role, Carina was the Deputy City Clerk for the Chicago City Clerk. She was responsible for the coordination and day-to-day processes of the office to ensure uninterrupted and effective operations. She managed about 100 employees and a $10 million operating budget that generated around $150 million in revenue for the City through the vehicle wheel tax compliance of over 1.3 million vehicles. She oversaw and managed the historic transition from seasonal sales of Chicago Vehicle Sticker to a year-round sales program which brought $35 million of new revenue to the City.
Carina previously worked as an Outreach Liaison for the Cook County Board President (2010), Manager of External Affairs for Illinois State Treasurer’s Office (2007-2010), Director of Policy and Community Relations for the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation and liaison for the Office of the Governor (2005-2007), and various other support positions within Illinois state government.
Ms. Sánchez is a graduate of the University of Chicago where earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Latin American Studies. She also holds a Masters in Business Administration from National Louis University. The native Chicagoan is a proud mother and eldest daughter of Mexican immigrants. She lives in Lakeview with her son, husband and dog.
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