“And all work is empty save when there is love; Work is love made visible.” — Kahlil Gibran, author of The Prophet, 1923 Gloria Salinas is an economic development executive with 15+ years of experience and a proven track-record of success in Texas cities and the nonprofit sector. She is passionate about developing sustainable cities and creating access to thriving opportunities for the people who live in them. Throughout her career across four Texas cities, Gloria has helped close more than 100 relocation and expansion projects resulting in more than $5 billion in tax base improvements and creating more than 30,000 new jobs associated with companies such as 7-Eleven, Inc., Envoy Air, Uber Technologies, Inc., PwC, Smoothie King Franchises, Inc., TIAA, Boingo, Ruiz Foods, McAfee, Toshiba, Extenet, Plug and Play Tech Center and more.Gloria solves long-standing community challenges by crafting and executing winning economic development strategy and policy in alignment with organizational budget and incentive tools. Gloria's holistic approach to economic growth ranges from public-private partnerships to full-stack marketing, including research and analysis, strategy and incentive policy formation and implementation, business recruitment and redevelopment strategy, strategic messaging and brand management. A Dallas native, Gloria holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) with a specialization in strategy and entrepreneurship from Southern Methodist University (SMU) Cox School of Business in Dallas, Texas, and a Bachelor of Arts in journalism with double minors in American politics, law and administration and Spanish from SMU. In 2024, she was recognized as a Dallas Busines Journal 40 Under 40 Honoree and Frisco Style Magazine Women in Business Honoree. She believes in lifelong learning, deeply values education and enjoys giving back to her alma mater. She currently serves as a Council Member of the Meadows 2050 Council, an Advisory Board Member for the Corporate Communications and Public Affairs Division, and a Meadows Mentor for SMU’s Meadows School of the Arts, where she earned her bachelor’s degree. She also serves on the Industry Advisory Council for the development of SMU’s new master degree program—Master of Public Policy.