About Patrick

Patrick McGuinness is a longtime Austin resident, an engineer at Freescale with a doctorate in Computer Science, a husband to his wife Celeste, a father of four, and an active conservative.

Education - PhD in Computer Science

A High School honor student and Eagle Scout, Patrick graduated Summa Cum Laude from Johns Hopkins University with a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and Master’s degree in Computer Science in 1985, when he was 21. After working for a few years, Patrick entered graduate studies and in 1991 earned a doctorate in Computer Science from the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana.

Work & Career - High-tech Engineer

Patrick has worked in the private sector since he was 12 years old, when he became a paperboy. He worked through High School and College to help pay for his education. Since 1991, Patrick has worked in Austin as an engineer in the semiconductor industry at Motorola and Freescale. He has worked in electronic design automation (EDA) tool and flow development to support IC design, and he has lead global teams and co-authored several patents and technical papers. He is also a successful investor.

Family - Husband & Father

Patrick is the fourth of six children, and that has imbued in him both a measure of self-reliance and an appreciation of the importance of family. In September 1991, he married Celeste Insil Lee, whom he met at the University of Illinois. Patrick and Celeste have made Austin their home for two decades and are raising their four children here – Sarah, Jack, Peter and Mark – aged 14, 12, 6 and 2. He and his family are active members at Saint Thomas More Catholic church; Patrick has served as a lector minister. His son Jack is currently active in Boy Scouts.

Politics - Local Republican leader

Patrick is a conservative ‘Reagan Republican’ who has been active for many years in the local GOP: A precinct chair since 2004, he founded the Austin Tech Republicans group and recently led the TCRP candidate formation committee.