Karen Lozano Ph. D.: associate professor, Mechanical Engineering Department: University of Texas Pan American: recently, Karen Lozano, the only female associate professor in the engineering department at the University of Texas—Pan American, had a very serious conversation with a young admirer about what career path the little girl should take

Latino Leaders: The National Magazine of the Successful American Latino, April, 2008 by Graeme Stewart

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The youngster confided that she many ideas and saw her future a creative environment. For Karen, 36, this was a great opportunity and she wasted no time recommending mechanical engineering. "It would be ideal for her because you not only do design, but you also get to see your ideas at work," she beams.

That enthusiasm for her chosen career is typical of Karen, but she knows that making mechanical engineering into a life's work takes a lot of grit. She knows all too well that it is very difficult to succeed in what is still predominantly a man's world.

Karen readily admits that while she was enthusiastic about a career in mechanical engineering as a teenager, it was a pep talk from her mother at their home in Monterrey, Mexico that gave her the determination to go ahead. "I was having many doubts about launching myself into what was an overwhelmingly man's domain," she says. "I spoke to my mother, who was always supportive about it and she told me that it was not written [anywhere] that a woman could not become a mechanical engineer. She told me to go for it, and I never looked back."

Taking time off from being with her two young sons--"It's Easter and all the children have taken their pets to school and it's like a zoo!" she laughs--Karen looks back on her days in Monterrey, when she found the inner workings of mechanical objects a source of profound interest.

"I was always undoing the vacuum cleaner to have a look inside to see what made it work. I was just naturally curious about what made things tick, and that got me started. I was always good at math and physics and got high grades in mechanical engineering, architecture and industrial design. Engineering was very conducive to me" she explains.

At the age of 21 she won a Fellowship to Rice University in Houston, Texas, to study her chosen subject. That was when she got her first taste of competition in a masculine world, as all of her fellow students were male. As a matter of fact, when Karen completed her studies, she became only the fifth woman to graduate from the mechanical engineering program in 25 years. With that feat accomplished, she went on to become only the fifth Hispanic woman to gain a Masters Degree in engineering at Rice University.

"My expectations were realized, and more," she says. "I feel my career is very special because I get to create, see how things work and get to use them when they're created. You get to be creative, make things better, stronger and faster.

"I find that amazing, but there is no doubt it is difficult for a woman to make it in the man's world of engineering. When you are a man, it seems to be a given that engineering is a natural career for you, but not so for a woman. A woman has to constantly prove herself.

"For example, it sometimes seems a bit of an effort for some of my colleagues to refer to me as 'Dr. Lozano'. Even when lecturing, my students call me Miss, yet they address my male colleagues as 'Doctor'."

And being a Latina, I have to fit in my family dudes and show that I can cook and am a good mother. That is made easy for me by my wonderful husband, Jorge, who shares all the household dudes. We have been together since we started dating in High School and he is a constant source of support. We share everything as a family. We pray to God to help us, and sometimes I am surprised by how good God has been to me. I often think that if it wasn't for God's help I would go crazy!" she laughs.

Karen readily admits that she has learned several important lessons on her climb to the top of her profession. "One of the most important lessons I have learned is that the more mistakes you make, the more you learn. If you make mistakes, you have to stand up and be counted and carry on until you succeed. I always take positives from any situation ...

"And I have also learned that you have to work really, really hard, nothing comes easily and nothing is for free, but if you work hard you will get your reward."

As for what lies in the future, Karen wants to make sure that engineering is a sector open to women and dreams of one day having a specialist engineering centre at the University of Texas--Pan American.

"There is absolutely no reason why engineering should not be open to more women," she says. "And I would love to see my students succeed in becoming leaders in their field. To that end, I would one day like to see a center for undergraduate research work in engineering at my university."

No doubt Karen also hopes that perhaps someday her young admirer might find herself studying at her dream center.

Interviewed at her offices in UT Pan Am on March, 2008 by Graeme Stewart