Gladys E.
López-Soto
Patent and Trademark Center Librarian
University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez Campus
Mayagüez, Puerto Rico
At the University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez’s Patent and Trademark Resource Center, librarian Gladys López-Soto helps students, inventors, and entrepreneurs turn ideas into reality.
Her knowledge of intellectual property—recognized across Puerto Rico and beyond—and the dedication she brings to educating her community have made her a “pillar of the innovation and entrepreneur ecosystem.” López-Soto has brought an array of educational opportunities covering intellectual property to the university community and the public, including organizing the annual Innovation and Entrepreneurship Cycle—a virtual conference attended by hundreds of participants—as well as creating a robust website designed to help Spanish-language speakers understand intellectual property rights and how to protect them in a language they’re familiar with.
Beyond her work in intellectual property, López-Soto helps bring global cultural experiences and education to K-12 students through her involvement with the Mi Museo, Nuestros Museos (My Museum, Our Museums) program. A collaboration between the university’s art museum and the International Education Resource Network, the program connects students from different cultures in a collective virtual learning experience by encouraging students in one country to visit a museum or other cultural heritage site and describe its exhibits and their experiences with students in another country, aiming to reinforce their sense of identity and promote respect for other cultures.
“Gladys represents the soul, warmth, and hard work of all Puerto Rican librarians,” one of her nominators wrote. “She’s a true inspiration and a shining beacon in our community.”
López-Soto was selected from nearly 1,400 nominations from library users nationwide for the 2024 award. As part of her award, she will receive a $5,000 cash prize as well as complimentary registration and a travel stipend to attend ALA's LibLearnX event in Baltimore.
The I Love My Librarian Award is sponsored by the Carnegie Corporation of New York, with additional support from the New York Public Library, and is administered by the American Library Association. Since 2008, library users have shared more than 24,000 nominations detailing how librarians have gone above and beyond to promote literacy, expand access to technology, and support diversity and inclusion in their communities.