MILPITAS, Calif. — January 25, 2021 — The  SEMI Foundation has appointed Debbie Gustafson, CEO of Energetiq Technology, a maker of advanced light sources used in semiconductor equipment, and Tony J. Blevins, vice president of Procurement at Apple, to the SEMI Foundation Board of Trustees.

“Debbie’s long career and experience in the semiconductor industry has formed her passion for and support of diversity and inclusion,” said Shari Liss, Executive Director of the SEMI Foundation. “Having Tony on board brings Apple’s vast expertise in diversity, equity and inclusion to the SEMI Foundation. Their passion will help the Foundation fulfill its vision to spur growth of the industry talent pipeline while promoting greater diversity and inclusion and advancing women in positions of leadership.”

Gustafson quickly understood the challenges of female engineers shortly after arriving at the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth. As one of three female engineering students in a class of 35 with all male professors, she was expecting equitable treatment in school and, after graduation, in the microelectronics industry – an expectation that was unfulfilled. Today, Gustafson works to educate people in the industry about unconscious bias while promoting diversity and inclusion at Energetiq. She has also stressed the importance of mentoring in promoting women in leadership and of creating a strong support network as a speaker at SEMI events.

“I am passionate about promoting diversity in STEM and know that a diverse workforce is essential to company innovation and growth,” Gustafson said. “I look forward to working with the SEMI Foundation team to support its mission and advocate for diversity and inclusion to help underrepresented populations thrive in the high-tech industry.”

Since 2000, Blevins has supervised a large international and multi-disciplined staff at Apple. Before joining Apple, Blevins held positions at IBM in engineering, finance, production control and procurement. His many international assignments led to his role as program director at IBM’s development lab in Greenock, Scotland. Blevins is also a board member of Next Gen Cyber Talent, whose mission is to provide diverse talent to educate the underprivileged and underserved, as well as career assistance in cybersecurity, privacy, compliance and data science.

”My longstanding belief is that not only is it right for any business to practice inclusion, but that a diversity of ideas and perspectives produces the best business results,” Blevins said. “It’s also been proven that education is the great equalizer when it comes to equality, inclusion and diversity.”

See the  complete listing of SEMI Foundation Board members.

About the SEMI Foundation

The SEMI Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable organization founded in 2001 to support economic opportunity for workers and the sustained growth of the microelectronics industry. The Foundation works to attract, develop, and retain a well-trained and innovative workforce through educational programs, diversity initiatives to support women, veterans, and people of color, and member engagement. The Foundation’s longest-running program, SEMI High Tech U, inspires high-school students to pursue STEM college educations and careers, Since 2002, High Tech U programs in Austria, France, Japan, Korea, Netherlands, Singapore, Taiwan and the United States have directly influenced and inspired more than 8,200 students and teachers.

About SEMI

SEMI® connects more than 2,400 member companies and 1.3 million professionals worldwide to advance the technology and business of electronics design and manufacturing. SEMI members are responsible for the innovations in materials, design, equipment, software, devices, and services that enable smarter, faster, more powerful, and more affordable electronic products. Electronic System Design Alliance (ESD Alliance), FlexTech, the Fab Owners Alliance (FOA) and the MEMS & Sensors Industry Group (MSIG) are SEMI Strategic Association Partners, defined communities within SEMI focused on specific technologies. Visit  www.semi.org to learn more, contact one of our worldwide offices, and connect with SEMI on  LinkedIn and  Twitter.

Association Contact
Michael Hall/SEMI
Phone: 1.408.943.7988
Email:  mhall@semi.org