About Me

My experiences and Skills

Introduction

I have worked in a variety of settings and worked having various roles and I have not stopped working since I was 14 years old. My first job took place in Guatemala working in the area of customer service at a popular Mall (Oakland Mall). I was still very young and my work skills had to be improved and reshaped, this job was the first to teach me about real-world experiences and how important are the values of punctuality and respect.

Later on, when I was 15 I started working as a babysitter in which I was introduced to a new population and the responsibilities were much higher as I took care of kids. After that, I volunteered as a teacher assistant at Camp Invention for Guion Creek Middle School with a larger amount of kids to take care of.

High School

In my Junior year of High School, I interned at the Simon Cancer Center with the Future Scientist Program (https://cancer.iu.edu/education/training/future-scientist-program/index.shtml) working alongside Dr. Turchi in the IU School of Medicine, Biochemistry/Oncology Department to determine drug clearance in human liver microsomes by high-performance liquid and presenting my research. This internship experience gave me more exposure to the professional world and in terms of my career, it opened me up to the option of majoring in science and possibly consider research. I have no history of science majors in my family or professional school, I did not know that I had the potential to study science. This research internship experience opened a wide list of options and possibilities for what could be my future. Not only did I have a good experience academically but my research mentor and his team, welcomed me like I was already part of the group and made me feel like family. While I was an intern for the Future Scientist Program I volunteered for the Ronald McDonald House and CTSI, with their science event at the museum. My experience at the internship program kickstarted my career and gave me the confidence to apply to more prestigious programs as I prepared myself to apply to college and future Internship programs.

My senior year of high school was affected by the pandemic but that did not stop me to apply to the Summer Research Program (https://cancer.iu.edu/education/training/summer-research/) and get accepted. Although I thought I would not create as big of an impact because of the pandemic, fortunately, I was given the opportunity to mentor an intern. As well as, write as co-author a Literacy Chapter on Proteins with OB-fold and their effects on overall health (https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6694/13/13/3346/htm) with the same mentor Dr. Turchi and his team.

University

As I transitioned to college, the coordinator of the CTSI STEM Program internships, with who I had already worked my senior year continued to give me the opportunity to work with him as a STEM ambassador. Helping other interns and sharing my experiences with the hope of inspiring more minorities to pursue STEM. This work experience really taught me how important communication is and setting priorities in different areas of my life as college got busier. I did not have the chance to volunteer as much, I did volunteer at Teacher Treasurers and online with different organizations such as Chicago Wildlife Watch (https://www.zooniverse.org/projects/zooniverse/chicago-wildlife-watch/classify) beanbeanbean (an organization that provides food to food banks, https://beanbeanbean.com/what-is-this.html).

After my first year, my previous supervisor recommended me to apply to Eli Lilly and Company. I had never considered a career in the corporate area and being a Summer Experience Student at the Pediatric Capabilities focusing on Type 2 Diabetes, opened my eyes to that possibility. A company with a unique perspective and approach and with a global reach and impact. I completed a Final Project and updated the official Pediatric Hub website page, giving it a more organized and aesthetic look.