Gabriela Ledesma

I'm originally from Panama, where I won a scholarship from the President to study in the U.S. after participating in a huge public speaking competition. I studied international business and data analytics at Illinois State University, and the support and opportunities that the institution offered me were incredible. A lot of the professors literally shaped and motivated me to be where I am today, especially as an international student where at first everything was really unfamiliar for me. My leadership skills and opportunities have allowed me to be in spaces like government affairs for multinational corporations. I have worked in the communication, government, public affairs, and marketing industries. I worked for the newsletter at Illinois State University writing stories and gathering information. Then I worked at a multinational corporation called Liberty Latin America, which has a presence in the Caribbean, Latin America, and North America, where I was reviewing policies, taking notes, and going to meetings with ministers. Currently, I work at the Organization of American States as a communication and public affairs intern in the Human Resources Employment and Education Department. I do a lot of data analytics, working with the 33 member states that need reports on data. I also do a lot of writing, creating reports, analyzing data, negotiations with universities, and going to meetings.