Staff

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Leyla Riley
Executive Director

Leyla De Silva Riley is Executive Director of the OC STEM Initiative, which is housed in the Henry Samueli School of Engineering at the University of California, Irvine. In this role she works to foster Orange County’s economic competitiveness and sustainability through promoting STEM competencies across the educational continuum through the creation of public-private partnerships between community stakeholders, including but not limited to K12 schools, higher education, industry, government and philanthropic foundations. Previously, Leyla was Director of Academic Innovation, Partnerships at UCI and Developed multiple programs focused on expanding project based and experiential learning opportunities for K12 and community college students. These programs centered on the growing maker movement and emerging technologies in the areas of fabrication and digital making. She has nearly 20 years of experience working with system wide and intersegmental outreach programs that promote student achievement and academic preparedness in STEM disciplines with a specific emphasis on increasing access for underrepresented student populations. Leyla has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Microbiology and a Master’s of Public Administration both from Arizona State University.