Omar Vargas, a graduate of American University’s Washington College of Law and the School of International Service, serves as Vice President and Head of Global Public Policy at GM. Previous to this position, he was Chief Government Affairs Officer at 3M Company and held senior government relations roles with Praxair and PepsiCo handling a range of international and U.S. federal and state policy, regulatory and economic development issues. In the early 2000s, Omar was as an appointee of President George W. Bush to the U.S. Department of Justice where he served in a variety of capacities and his portfolio included a broad range of law enforcement, civil rights, national security and immigration policy matters.

In 1991, Seton Hall University awarded Omar with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Scholarship, a full academic scholarship intended to honor and promote the memory of the slain national leader. Omar graduated from Seton Hall University in 1995 with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a minor in Spanish Literature and Language. At the time of graduation, Omar was awarded the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Medal of Honor, in recognition of his academic achievements and community leadership.

Outside of his professional work, Omar is committed to aiding non-profit, community serving organizations to the greatest degree possible. He is currently The Economic Club of Washington, DC Officer and a member of the Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute Board of Directors. In 2008, he co-founded The HNBA Legal Education Fund and remained on its Board of Directors until 2018. He served as a member of The Ford’s Theater Board of Trustees and has held Board positions with the Deauville Building Relief Fund and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, both in Washington, DC. Omar’s volunteerism with community-based organizations and advocacy on behalf of asylum seekers has earned him recognition by the New Jersey State Assembly and the Washington College of Law, among others. Omar’s professional and academic achievements have earned him recognition from the University of New Mexico School of Law U.S.-Mexico Law Institute, the Hispanic Bar Association of the District of Columbia, the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility and Latino Justice/PRLDEF.