Yvette T. Collazo

Background

About Yvette T. Collazo

Yvette T. Collazo was appointed District Director of the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA’s) Puerto Rico & Virgin Islands District Office in 2013. As District Director, Ms. Collazo was responsible for the delivery of the agency’s financial assistance, business counseling, entrepreneurial training, and federal contracting programs throughout the District by assisting and protecting the interests of small businesses and by helping businesses and families recover from disasters. Before joining the SBA, Ms. Collazo served as Senior Advisor and Director for the Office of Technology Innovation & Development at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management (DOE’s EM) in Washington, DC. In this capacity, she led in the identification and advancement of technologies, processes, and technical practices that improved the performance of waste processing, groundwater and soil, Decontamination and Decommissioning, and nuclear materials projects over their lifecycle, from planning to disposal. In 2006, Ms. Collazo entered the Senior Executive Service ranks and was appointed Assistant Manager for Closure Project at the DOE Savannah River Operations Office. In this position she led on activities related to interagency agreements, federal compliance agreements, and federal contracting of over $250 million related to the clean-up of radiological, industrial and groundwater hazards resulting from more than 40 years of nuclear materials production at the 310-square mile Savannah River Site Federal facility. Prior to this position she held several management positions at the DOE Chicago Office where she worked with EPA regulations such as RCRA, CERCLA, CWA, CAA, NEPA, NHPA, and TSCA. Ms. Collazo has written several technical papers on environmental management and is the recipient of various awards such as the: SBA’s 2018 Ike Award for Most Valuable Player, Federal Energy Management Program award, Transformational Energy Action Management Effectiveness Award, the National Association of Hispanic Federal Executives Distinguished Public Service Award, and a Secretary of Energy Award for Achievement in Education and Career Development. Ms. Collazo holds a Master of Science in Environmental Management from the Illinois Institute of Technology; and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering, from the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez Campus. Ms. Collazo is a native of Puerto Rico.