Isabella Casillas Guzman (born January 8, 1970) is an American government official who served as the

administrator of the Small Business Administration The administrator of the Small Business Administration is the head of the Small Business Administration of the United States. The administrator is responsible for managing and the day-to-day operations of the agency. The administrator is nominat ...

in the

Biden administration Joe Biden's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 46th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Joe Biden, his inauguration on January 20, 2021, and ended on January 20, 2025. Biden, a member of the Democr ...

from 2021 to 2025. She assumed office on March 17, 2021. She is the fifth Latina woman to ever have served in the

Cabinet of the United States The Cabinet of the United States is the principal official advisory body to the president of the United States. The Cabinet generally meets with the president in Cabinet Room (White House), a room adjacent to the Oval Office in the West Wing of ...

Early life and education

Guzman was born in

Burbank, California Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank had a Census-estimated population of 102,755 as of 2023. The city was ...

. Guzman is of Mexican ancestry. She hails from four generations of Texans who originally fled the

Mexican Revolution The Mexican Revolution () was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from 20 November 1910 to 1 December 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It saw the destruction of the Federal Army, its ...

from the states of

Aguascalientes Aguascalientes, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Aguascalientes, is one of the 32 states which comprise the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. At 22°N and with an average altitude of above sea level it is pre ...

and

Jalisco Jalisco, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in western Mexico and is bordered by s ...

. In the 1960s, Guzman's father moved from Texas to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. According to a Larta Institute profile, Guzman claims her

heritage Heritage may refer to: History and society * A heritage asset A heritage asset is an item which has value because of its contribution to a nation's society, knowledge and/or culture. Such items are usually physical assets, but some countries also ...

also includes

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

and possibly Chinese ancestry. Her parents owned a small business. Guzman received a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

from the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business.

Career

Guzman was studio manager and managing partner at Miauhaus Studios from 1998 to 2002, continuing as managing partner through 2010. She served as a deputy appointments secretary for California Governor

Gray Davis Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis Jr. (born December 26, 1942) is an American attorney and former politician who served as the 37th governor of California from 1999 until he was recalled and removed from office in 2003. He is the second state governor ...

from 2002 to 2003. She was manager and advisor to founder at Illulian from 2003 to 2005, taking a sabbatical in 2004 to consult during the launch of Fortius Holdings. She was director of strategic initiatives and advisor to founding chair at ProAmerica Bank from 2009 to 2014, then joined the

Small Business Administration The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent agency of the United States government that provides support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The mission of the Small Business Administration is "to maintain and str ...

in 2014 as deputy chief of staff. From 2017 to 2019, she worked as an independent consultant with clients such as the Larta Institute, before co-founding and directing GovContractPros in 2018. Beginning April 2019, Guzman served as the director of California's Office of the Small Business Advocate, a department within the California Governor's Office of Economic Development. On January 7, 2021, it was announced that Guzman would be President-elect

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

's nominee for administrator of the Small Business Administration. Guzman was reported out of the Senate Small Business Committee by a 15–5 vote, and confirmed on March 16, 2021, in an 81–17 vote of the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

References

External links

Biography
at the

United States Small Business Administration The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent agency of the United States government that provides support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The mission of the Small Business Administration is "to maintain and stre ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Guzman, Isabel 1970s births 21st-century American women civil servants American people of Mexican descent American people of German descent American people of Jewish descent Administrators of the Small Business Administration Biden administration cabinet members Hispanic and Latino American members of the Cabinet of the United States Hispanic and Latino American women in politics Living people People from Burbank, California University of Pennsylvania alumni Wharton School alumni Women members of the Cabinet of the United States