SBDC Staff

Maria D. Juárez, Program Director
Maria D. Juárez serves as the SBDC Program Director since April 2005. She oversees the program and staff and coordinates events and provides training. She joined the Small Business Development Center team as a Business Development Advisor in November 2002. She provided bilingual, one- to-one counseling to prospective and existing entrepreneurs, business planning assistance, bilingual business training, and, on occasion, coordination of seminars. 

Previously, she was a Business Advisor with the Women’s Empowerment Business Center, which provided women with technical and business plan assistance. She also worked with the South Texas Minority Business Opportunity Committee as a Graduate Assistant and Volunteer. 

Ms. Juárez holds a Master of Arts in English Literature (May 2004), Master of Business Administration (May 2000), and a Bachelor of Science, Biology major and Chemistry minor, (May 1996) from The University of Texas-Pan American.  Ms. Juárez can be reached at (956) 292-7538 or via e-mail at mariaj2@utpa.edu.
 

Haitham Alhaddad, Assistant Director
Haitham Alhaddad serves as the SBDC Project Assistant Director since April 2005. He joined the SBDC team in June 2003 as Business Development Advisor. He provides, one-to-one counseling, business planning assistance, and training. Mr. Alhaddad also spearheads the Entrepreneurial Leadership Series.

He joined The University of Texas-Pan American CoSERVE in 2001. He started as a Business Advisor for the Veterans Business Outreach Center (VBOC). Mr. Alhaddad holds a Bachelor of Business Administration with a concentration in Finance and a Master of Business Administration from The University of Texas—Pan American. He can be reached at (956)-292-7536 or via email at haalhaddad@utpa.edu.

Pablo J. Calafiore – Business Development Advisor
In 2004, Pablo J. Calafiore joined the SBDC as Business Development Advisor. He provides bilingual, one-to-one counseling, business planning assistance, and training. He is also on the team that created and coordinates the publication of the SBDC Business Start-up Guide.

Mr. Calafiore had worked for more than 5 years as an Accountant in Argentina, advising small business owners in their financial and managerial concerns, as well as a cost analyst for a hospital. In addition he has been teaching accounting, both in Argentina and the U.S. Mr. Calafiore holds a Bachelor in Business Administration-Accounting and Master of Business Administration (MBA) degrees. He can be reached at 956-207-6842 or via email at calafiore@panam.edu.

Arturo R. Gonzalez – Business Development Advisor
Arturo Gonzalez joined the SBDC in 1996 and serves as a Business Development Advisor. He provides one-to-one, bilingual counseling, business planning assistance, and training. He holds a Bachelor in Business Administration-Finance and is currently working on an MBA with a focus on e-commerce.  In addition, he is pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts. 

As a long-time resident of the Brownsville area, Mr. Gonzalez deals with many international clients; therefore, his bilingual background complements his business counseling services.  His strengths lie in business development, marketing, e-commerce, and website development.  He is also on the team that created and coordinates the publication of the SBDC Business Start-up Guide. Mr. Gonzalez has been recognized by the U.S. Small Business Administration as an SBDC Counselor of the Year.  He can be reached at (956) 544-4667 or via e-mail at arglz007@hotmail.com.

Matt Z. Ruszczak, Business Development Advisor

Matt Z. Ruszczak joined the SBDC as a Business Development Advisor in 2005. He provides bilingual, one-to-one counseling, business planning assistance and training. Starting 2006, Mr. Ruszczak is the primary contact for SBDC clients in the Harlingen/San Benito area.

Mr. Ruszczak has served The University of Texas – Pan American for 6 years in IT-support as well as public opinion research; he has also worked in the local real estate industry. His strengths lie in IT implementation, real estate matters, and human resource management. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) with an emphasis in Management.

Mark Winchester, Business Development Advisor
Mark Winchester joined the SBDC in April 2004 as a Business Development Specialist. He provides business counseling, business plan assistance, and training. He is also on the team that created and coordinates the publication of the SBDC Business Start-up Guide. Mr. Winchester holds an AS, BBS, and MBA from the University of Connecticut at Storrs. His expertise is in Finance and Information Technology.

Before joining UTPA, Mr. Winchester worked as a VISTA volunteer for a local non-profit in the area of housing and economic development. Mr. Winchester has also worked for several insurance companies and was exposed to complex litigation, risk management, and underwriting. Mr. Winchester has also worked for the State of Connecticut Attorney General’s Office as well as U.S. Navy Submarine Force. He can be reached at 956-207-6730 or via email at winchester@utpa.edu.

Esperanza Perez, Special Projects Coordinator
Esperanza Perez joined the SBDC in 2003 as Training Coordinator. She organizes training seminars on business-related topics for start-up and existing companies in the Rio Grande Valley.  Along with managing this educational component for the Center, she also networks with local chambers of commerce, EDCs, banks, and various business-advocate organizations in order to provide a wider array of seminar topics for clients.  In addition to these duties, Esperanza is the editor for the Small Business Monthly, an SBDC newsletter and the lead organizer for the district Small Business Week Awards, an annual event recognizing local business people. 

Ms. Pérez holds a BBA in International Business Management with a specialization in Economics from The University of Texas Pan American (UTPA) in Edinburg. 

Previously, she worked on BusinessLINC, a mentor/protégé project for start-ups that was developed with funding from the U.S. SBA and the Levi Strauss Foundation at UTPA. Before joining the University, Ms. Pérez was employed by the U.S. House of Representatives under Congressman Rubén Hinojosa as a congressional field representative and district systems administrator. For any questions on the business seminars available through the center, she may be contacted through e-mail at eperez2@utpa.edu or by phone at (956) 292-7537.