Chicago Chapter

Chicago, The Windy City, and a great Hispanic and Latino, Latina and LatinX. Come join this vibrant community of Learners, Students, Hackers, and Defenders.

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Meet the Chicago Chapter Leadership Team

Working together to bring the Greater Chicago Area Together

Chapter Director

  • Juan has over ten years of experience in Information Security, Cybersecurity, IT Audit, and IT Risk and Controls. He has served 17 years in the Military, active and reserve. Currently, he serves as an Information Professional Officer in the United States Navy Reserve, specializing as an Information Warfare and Cyber Warfare Officer focusing on offensive and defensive naval cyber operations.

    Juan specializes in Technology Risk & Controls advisory engagements. He has supported various clients in the Financial, Pharmaceutical, Manufacturing, Healthcare, and Insurance industries. Juan has a wealth of knowledge and experience in the private sector, focusing on Fintech, Financial Reporting Systems, Digital Health, Medical Device Technology, and Biotech.

    Juan effectively combines technical and business acumen to execute advisory engagements in litigation and IP consulting, technical vetting and due diligence consulting, system reviews, and technology risk assessments with legal, regulatory, security, development, and operations teams. He has led advisory engagements worldwide in various technologies such as AWS Cloud, Internet of Things (IoT), Medical Device software and hardware, and Manufacturing Operational Technology.

    In addition to Juan’s Military and Civilian concentrations, his passions are entrepreneurial and supporting DE&I initiatives. He is the founder and CEO of RLV Agave Producer, a growing agave business in Jalisco, Mexico. As a veteran, he has a strong passion for helping uplift, guide, and mentor Veterans and minority community members into technology jobs. Juan focuses on supporting DE&I initiatives by volunteering as a Strategy and Cybersecurity Advisor with LatinX Digital Leaders Now. This non-profit organization focuses on disrupting the status quo in the technology industry by empowering and advocating for our LatinX community.

    Juan holds multiple degrees, including a Master of Cyber Forensics and Security from the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT). A Bachelor of Science in information Security and Risk Management, Management of Information Systems, and Finance from Lewis University. In addition to his formal education, he holds multiple certifications, including a Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH), a Certified Information Security Manager (CISM), a Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) certification, and a CompTIA Security +.

    Juan resides in Chicago, IL. He enjoys spending time with his partner Bianca and his son Emiliano and visiting family in Jalisco and Nuevo Leon, Mexico.

Chapter Treasurer

  • Pablo Melchi is an experienced software architect and team leader at CVS Health. He has over 20 years of experience in software development for industries like Telecom, insurance, and pharmacy, where he has built and secured large interconnected applications.

    As a team leader, he works with multidisciplinary teams to integrate development, infrastructure, and security to implement business requirements. As a solution architect, he successfully customized and deployed software solutions for telecom companies in South America, the Netherlands, the USA, and Mexico.

    He holds a master's degree in Information Technology Management, an Advanced Project Management certificate from Standford University, and a bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering - Distributed Systems. He was a founding member of the Mechatronics chapter at his university.

    He enjoys baking sourdough, growing plants, and spending time with his kids and wife in his free time.

Chapter Deputy Director

  • Marisol Astin is a Cybersecurity Vulnerability Specialist working at one of the top major medical health insurance companies in the country.

    Starting off in IT help desk, Marisol has worked her way into the Cyber Security field. She earned her Bachelors of Science in Information Security and Risk Management at Lewis University. She is currently pursuing her Master of Science in Cybersecurity and several IT Certificates. Pivoting from the GRC field, she is turning her focus to DevSecOps.

    In her free time, Marisol enjoys vinyl record collecting and community volunteer work, specifically in the Women’s Health and empowerment realm.

Chapter Event Coordinator

  • Lauren is a Security Awareness and Training Analyst at K2United. She is a career changer, deciding it was time for a change after ten years of teaching and becoming a mom. Craving something more, she set her sights on the exciting world of Cybersecurity Awareness and Training.

    In October 2021, she was awarded a prestigious spot in the WiCyS/SANS Security Training Scholarship Cohort. This incredible opportunity allowed her to earn three industry certifications, GFACT, GSEC, and GCIH. Additionally, Lauren obtained her Security+ certification and has plans to pursue the Certificate of Cloud Security Knowledge in the near future.

    Lauren actively contributes to the cybersecurity community as an engaged member of Women in Cybersecurity (WiCyS) and Latinas in Cyber, where she also serves as a Co-Lead of Operations. Outside of her professional pursuits, she finds joy in quality family time, running, reading, attending spin classes, and strong coffee.

Chapter Secretary

  • George Alvarez is an On Board Security Architect working on the cybersecurity of agriculture and construction vehicles at CNH Industrial. Over 12+ years in product development George has leveraged an Electrical Engineering B.S. and an Information Security M.S. to emerge as a professional that consistently exceeds the expectations of his stakeholders. George always serves people with the values of integrity, humility, and respect in every role including as a husband and father. He holds several leadership roles including school board member of a private grade school, a young professional and student engagement co-chair for the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Chicago section, and the president of CNH Industrial's multicultural employee resource group. With a firm belief that representation matters, George participates in outreach events across the Chicago area to build the resilience of the next generation of professionals.

 

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