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Ms. Denise Rodriguez-Lopez, Director, OSDBU

Denise Rodriguez-Lopez Director Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU)

As the Director of the OSDBU Denise Rodriguez-Lopez works to ensure that small businesses (including veteran-owned, service-disabled veteran-owned, minority, HUBZone, disadvantaged and women-owned businesses) have an equitable opportunity to participate in DOT’s procurement programs, as well as to encourage, promote and assist small disadvantaged businesses in obtaining transportation-related contracts and subcontracts.

Ms. Rodriguez-Lopez is an attorney and a native of New York City. Prior to the Department of Transportation, she served as the Deputy Director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans. The Initiative provides support to the President’s Advisory Commission, serves as a resource for information relating to the closing of the educational achievement gap of Hispanic Americans, and conducts considerable outreach in Hispanic communities bringing awareness about the educational opportunities available under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.

Before being appointed by President George W, Bush as the Initiative’s Director of Policy Development, Ms. Rodriguez-Lopez served as the Director of Government Affairs and Legislative Policy in the Washington, DC office of the Cuban American National Council. This non-profit organization based out of Miami Florida operates programs in employment training, affordable senior citizen housing, and early childhood, as well as two high schools for at-risk youth. She has also acted as Regional Offices Director for the Office of the Governor of Puerto Rico at the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration in Washington, DC. There she represented the Governor of Puerto Rico and directed the work of nine regional offices located in eight states throughout the nation. Lastly, she worked as Administrative Counsel for the Puerto Rico Electric and Power Authority.

Denise holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, and obtained her Juris Doctor at the University of Puerto Rico Law School. She is currently working on her Masters of Law degree in Government Contracts at the George Washington University Law School.