Merarys Ríos-Vargas is chief of the Population Division’s Ethnicity and Ancestry Branch at the U.S. Census Bureau. In this role, she serves as a subject matter expert while leading, guiding, and advising research on the reporting patterns and demographic characteristics of the Hispanic Origin population and ancestry groups in the United States, Puerto Rico and the Island Areas.

Throughout her career, Ríos-Vargas has conducted extensive outreach, presentations, and workshops to various stakeholder groups. She has represented the Census Bureau in numerous interviews as a commentator and subject matter expert on Voice of America, CNN, Telemundo, Univision and other international media outlets. Ríos-Vargas has authored and co-authored numerous publications, including Race Reporting Among Hispanics: 2010, and The Hispanic Population: 2010.

Ros-Vargas began her career at the Census Bureau in 2006 as a survey statistician in the American Community Survey Office’s Education, Communication and Outreach Branch. She received a master’s degree in Demography (2008) and a bachelor’s degree in Sociology (2004) from the University of Puerto Rico. In 2009, she completed a master’s certificate in project management from George Washington University. She has received three U.S. Census Bureau Bronze Medal Awards for her contributions to the 2010 and the 2020 decennial census.

Page Last Revised - May 2, 2023

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