Fellow Grade

Jill Almaguer, P.E., is a licensed professional engineer in the state of Texas and a certified project management professional. These well-earned credentials are a result of her determination to work as an engineer despite doubts from some college professors and others who wondered out loud whether a woman could be successful in a STEM field.

Almaguer began attending meetings of the Society of Women Engineers while an undergraduate at Texas A&M University (TAMU) to connect with a supportive group of professional women engineers and learn what it takes to succeed in a male-centric profession. She became active in other engineering groups on campus, including the Biomedical Engineering Society and Tau Beta Pi, the engineering honor society.

After earning a B.S. in bioengineering, Almaguer began her career as a customer engineer at Hewlett-Packard (HP) in Houston, becoming the first TAMU bioengineering graduate hired by HP and only the second woman engineer in the Houston office. HP provided excellent trainings and presented a work culture that assisted young engineers’ growth and development, including additional education. During this time, she earned an MBA from Houston Baptist University. The experience and technical skills she acquired at HP qualified her to advance in the company and consider opportunities in other industries.

She managed nationwide cross-functional teams of engineers and project managers at HP and later Agilent Technologies in health care, IT, semiconductors, and telecommunications. In each of her managerial roles, she provided opportunities for other talented women and diverse engineers on her team.

Currently, Almaguer is a senior project manager for Memorial Hermann Health System, overseeing projects for software applications implementation and upgrades to clinical equipment. She also works as a visiting associate professor of the practice in the biomedical engineering department at her alma mater and is a member of the department’s industry advisory board.

After attending her first SWE meeting as a university student, Almaguer continued her involvement by joining the SWE Houston Area (SWE-HA) Section. She has served SWE in many volunteer, organizational, and leadership roles for more than 25 years. She has served as vice president of career guidance and president of SWE-HA and as Region C leadership coach. At the Society level, she served as a co-chair of the 1998 SWE annual convention and student conference committee. She created a named scholarship for the section in honor of her mother. A SWE life member as of 2003, Almaguer has also supported other sections in strategic planning, facilitating retreats, and regional conference planning.

In 2020, the Sugar Land, Texas, resident was the first SWE member to serve as president of the Federation of Houston Professional Women, an umbrella organization of 30 local professional women’s groups, and received its Women of Excellence Award.

Almaguer and her husband of 38 years founded a non-profit to provide educational opportunities to interest children in STEM and public service careers. She also founded the Healing Handbell Music Therapy program. Almaguer sings with her church choir and has performed at Carnegie Hall and cathedrals in London.