Dow Leaders Honored for STEM Excellence With 2024 HENAAC and Luminary Awards
MIDLAND, Mich., October 31, 2024 /3BL/ - Dow (NYSE: Dow) announced four leaders have been recognized by the Hispanic Engineers National Achievement Awards Conference (HENAAC) with awards in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) excellence.
Established in 1989 to honor Hispanic engineers, scientists and technology professionals and highlight their world-class contributions to the STEM fields, the HENAAC Awards have become synonymous with excellence. As a true peer-review distinction, a HENAAC Award distinguishes the honoree as among the best and brightest in their field, and the Class of 2024 more than meets the highest standards these prestigious awards. HENAAC award winners recognize STEM professionals who are leaders, innovators, and who represent the best and brightest minds the United States has to offer.
Luminary Award recipients are remarkable engineers, scientists and technology professionals who represent corporate and government agencies from multiple industries and sectors. This distinction honors their achievements leading, collaborating, and initiating key programs and research in their respective fields.
HEENAC Award
Rui Vogt Alves da Cruz
Vice-President of Core R&D
Category: Scientist of the Year
Rui Cruz is the Vice President for Dow Core R&D, leading the global R&D vision for Dow. His team focuses on High Throughput R&D, Computational Modeling, AI, Quantum Computing, Material Science, and more. Previously, Rui was the Senior Regional R&D Director for EMEA and Core R&D Director for Europe. He joined Dow in Brazil in 2001, working across various roles in HR, Customer Services, Technical Services, and R&D.
In 2010, Rui moved to Texas, leading Polyglycols and Surfactants R&D, and later overseeing Epoxy Process Research, Amines and Chelants, Plastics Additives, and Oil and Gas. By 2015, he became the Global R&D Director for Dow Industrial Solutions, supporting diverse technologies in key market segments like Oil and Gas, Life Sciences, and Electronics.
Rui holds a Ph. D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of São Paulo, with studies at Karlsruhe University. He has extensive experience in modeling, process evaluation, product development, and biotechnology.
He received the HENAAC Great Minds of STEM Professional Achievement Award in 2014 and the AIChE Management Division Young Leader Award in 2020.
GMiS Luminary
Juliana Serafim Francisco
Senior Technical Service & Development Leader, Packaging & Specialty Plastics
Juliana Francisco is a Senior Technical Service & Development (TS&D) Leader at Dow Inc., managing a team of scientists in the Packaging & Specialty Plastics division. She holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil, and an MBA in Business Management from Fundação Getulio Vargas.
Juliana began her career at Dow in 2006 as a TS&D Engineer in Brazil and has since held various leadership positions, including roles in Epoxy, Coating Materials, and Global Innovation Portfolio management. In 2017 she participated in Dow CEO International Exchange program (CEOIX), a corporate exchange program designed to stretch high potential individuals and upon her return to Brazil she accepted the role of TS&D Leader for Architectural Coatings in Latin America.
In 2019, Juliana relocated with her husband to Collegeville PA, USA, to work as Global Innovation Portfolio Manager & Strategy Leader for the Acrylics Envelope and two years late added the role of Global TS&D Manager for Coatings Additives, in which she led the technical integration of silicone additives portfolio into Coatings business and highly contributed to reshaping additive business growth strategy.
She actively leads initiatives to recruit Hispanic talent for Dow and empowers female leaders through the Power-up leadership workshops, and thanks to her work was nominated and participated in the 2022 Young Hispanic Corporate Achiever Program through the Hispanic Association of Corporate Responsibility (HACR).
Victor Zapata
Senior Global Business Director, Solution Envelope & Comonomers, Packaging & Specialty Plastics
Victor Zapata is global business director for the Solution Envelope & Comonomers business within the Dow Packaging and Specialty Plastics Division. He is responsible for the development and execution of the earnings growth strategy for the business, including the optimization of the global asset fleet and the successful implementation of major growth projects like the Fort Saskatchewan Path2Zero decarbonization project in Alberta, Canada.
Victor began his long and successful career at Dow 25 years ago when he moved from Madrid, Spain to the Netherlands to become a Technical Service & Development (TS&D) engineer for consumer electronics and packaging.
In 2013, Victor relocated to Houston, Texas, where he currently calls home. Over the next 10 years, Victor served various roles at Dow, including Solution Polyethylene Product Director; P&SP Sales Director; US Regional Cracker Asset Director for Olefins, Aromatics & Alternatives; Recycling Commercial Director; and Global Asset Director for Dow Hydrocarbons. In May 2023, he was appointed to his previous role as North America Commercial Vice President.
Through his career Victor has been actively engaged in multiple external industry organizations and nowadays he is serving as Chair of the Plastics Division’s Membership & Finance Committee and a member of the Plastics Division’s Leadership Group within the American Chemistry Council.
Victor holds a master’s degree in chemistry by the Universidad Complutense of Madrid.
Kyle A. McDonald
Research Scientist and Technology Scout – Core R&D, Corporate Ventures, and Business Development
In his current role, Kyle works closely between R&D and Corporate Ventures and Business Development to develop strategic relationships with startup companies, investors, and accelerators to help accelerate Dow’s external innovation and commercial initiatives. In this role, Kyle leverages his creativity, technical expertise, and business acumen to derisk new potential market and technology areas across the entire Dow enterprise.
Prior to this role, Kyle was a material scientist in Engineered Materials Product Development where he developed new, fully formulated electrically conductive composite materials for automotive assembly and consumer electronic applications that will enable global trends such as autonomous mobility and 5G connectivity. In this role he was intimately involved in portfolio strategy, early prototyping of products for key customers, commercialization of new products, and intellectual property strategy.
Beyond his technical research and leadership, Kyle is passionate about inclusion and diversity. He actively participates in numerous Employee Resource Groups and as a leader in the BEST Symposium Organizing Committee. He also played a key role in establishing the Dow SURE Program, a strong partnership with HBCUs.
Kyle has authored and contributed to 7 filed patent applications, 32 internal research reports, 16 internal invention concept documents, and 8 peer-reviewed publications. Kyle received his B.S. in Chemistry from the University of South Florida, and M.S. and Ph. D. degrees from the University of Michigan, where he focused on synthesis and applications of novel porous hybrid materials.
"Rui, Juliana, Victor and Kyle are truly trailblazers in STEM. Their exceptional talent and dedication to excellence are remarkable," shared A.N. Sreeram, executive sponsor of Dow’s HLN employee resource group and Dow’s senior vice president, research & development, and chief technology officer. "It's a privilege to have Team Dow members recognized once again by the prestigious HENAAC Awards. Congratulations to these four individuals on this well-deserved honor."
All GMiS professional honorees will be honored at the 36th annual GMiS Conference, “Answering the Call,” November 6-9, 2024, in Fort Worth, Texas.
Numerous Dow employees have been honored with HENAAC Awards over the years, including Mauro Gregorio (2014), Rui Cruz (2014), Andre Argenton (2017), Carlos Villa (2019), Izabel Assis (2020), Leonardo Lopez (2020), Lidaris San Miguel Rivera (2021), Lauren Jackson (2021), Fernando Signorini (2022), Diego Cristancho (2022), Juan F. Callejas (2023), Nestor de Mattos (2023), and Varinia Bernales (2023).
Learn more about Great Minds in STEM and the HENAAC Awards at www.greatmindsinstem.org/professionals/henaac-awards.
About Dow
Dow (NYSE: DOW) is one of the world's leading materials science companies, serving customers in high-growth markets such as packaging, infrastructure, mobility and consumer applications. Our global breadth, asset integration and scale, focused innovation, leading business positions and commitment to sustainability enable us to achieve profitable growth and help deliver a sustainable future. We operate manufacturing sites in 31 countries and employ approximately 35,900 people. Dow delivered sales of approximately $45 billion in 2023. References to Dow or the Company mean Dow Inc. and its subsidiaries. Learn more about us and our ambition to be the most innovative, customer-centric, inclusive and sustainable materials science company in the world by visiting www.dow.com.
About Great Minds in STEM (GMiS)
Great Minds in STEM is a national nonprofit organization established in 1989 to inspire, support, and recognize students and professionals, especially those from underserved communities, in order to expand and strengthen America’s talent pool of Science, Technology, Engineering, Math and Medical (STEMM) professionals. For 36 years, GMiS has pioneered programs and initiatives that have helped build a STEMM workforce that fully reflects the rich diversity of our nation, including in-classroom pre-college engagement, college scholarships, academic advocacy, professional partnerships, and national recognition events.
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For further information contact:
Ilse Granados Lerma
igranadoslerma@dow.com
