On a quiet evening in Las Cruces, New Mexico, a young Girl Scout looked up at the star-studded sky as her troop leader pointed out constellations twinkling above the desert landscape. That moment would spark a journey that would take Sylvia Acevedo from a small town in New Mexico to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and eventually to the helm of the very organization that first showed her the stars.
Some people spend their lives searching for their calling. For Sylvia, it was written in the stars that night when her troop leader encouraged her to earn her Science badge. In that simple act of mentorship, a future rocket scientist was born. But this wasn’t just about earning a badge – it was about breaking barriers in a field where Hispanic women were rarely seen.
As one of the first Hispanic students to earn a graduate engineering degree from Stanford University, Sylvia didn’t just open doors – she burst through them. Her journey from New Mexico State University to Stanford wasn’t just about academic achievement; it was a testament to the power of dreaming big and working relentlessly to turn those dreams into reality.
The desert girl who once gazed at stars through her Girl Scout troop would go on to study them as a rocket scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. But Sylvia wasn’t content with just reaching her own stars. Her career blazed through the technology industry like a comet, illuminating paths at Apple, Dell, Autodesk, and IBM. Each role wasn’t just a job – it was a statement that women, especially Hispanic women, belonged in the highest echelons of STEM fields.
Life has a way of coming full circle, and in 2017, Sylvia’s journey brought her back to where it all began. As CEO of Girl Scouts of the USA, she transformed her childhood organization into a powerhouse of modern skill-building and leadership development. Under her leadership, the organization that once showed her the constellations became a launchpad for countless girls to discover their own paths to becoming go-getters, innovators, risk-takers, and leaders.
Her memoir, “Path to the Stars,” isn’t just a book – it’s a beacon for middle school students, especially young girls, showing them that their dreams, no matter how astronomical they might seem, are within reach. Through her story, she shows that sometimes the most important step in achieving your dreams is having someone – like that Girl Scout troop leader – who believes in you enough to point out the stars.
What makes Sylvia’s story so powerful isn’t just her impressive list of accomplishments – it’s how she’s used each achievement as a platform to help others reach higher. From the halls of NASA to the boardrooms of tech giants, and now back to Girl Scouts, she’s spent her life proving that science and leadership aren’t just for some – they’re for all who dare to dream and work hard.
Today, when Sylvia looks up at the same stars that captivated her as a young Girl Scout, she sees more than just constellations. She sees possibilities – possibilities she’s helping countless young girls discover through innovative STEM programs and leadership initiatives at Girl Scouts. Her journey from earning a Science badge to becoming a rocket scientist to leading a nationwide organization shows that sometimes the biggest dreams start with the smallest moments.
In Sylvia Acevedo’s story, we find a powerful reminder that success isn’t just about reaching for the stars – it’s about helping others discover their own constellations of possibility. Through her life’s work, she’s shown that the path to the stars isn’t just a personal journey – it’s a trail we can blaze for others to follow.
