11
December
2018
|
08:32 AM
America/Chicago

Family illness inspires choice into medical field for STC DEMSA student Angela Guerrero

Student of the Week: Angela Guerrero

Coming from a family of modest means, Angela Guerrero said she often took it upon herself to take care of sick family members when she was younger.

Now as a high school student graduating with a degree from South Texas College, Angela says that experience inspired her to take the next step into a medical career.

Angela Guerrero is a high school senior from Mission Collegiate High School and is currently in the Dual Enrollment Medical Science Academy (DEMSA) program pursuing an Associate of Science in Biology at South Texas College.

DEMSA is a two year-round dual enrollment program developed for high school juniors and seniors of the Starr County, Pecan and Mid-Valley Campus area who are seriously interested in pursuing a career in health care. The purpose of the program is to increase the number of rural area students committed to careers and service in Medicine, Pharmacy Dentistry, Nursing, Allied Health, and others.

Angela said she is driven to enter the medical field by having previously taken care of her mother who suffers from bronchitis, and wanting to contribute to the community.

“My mom was sick for a couple of months and it's because she couldn't afford to go to the doctor, she would rather put me through school than to go to the doctor herself. That inspired me to become a doctor because I feel like, yeah, maybe they're overpriced, but I want to be able to put it at a price point where it doesn't break the bank.

“I can really say every minute has been worth it. I've seen how much money I'm going to save, and I see how proud my mom is of me. I'd be the first to graduate of my entire family.”
Student of the week Angela Guerrero

“And I think that's what I was set on, but after I started becoming very involved with my community I saw that a lot of individuals were very sick and very lacking of medical care because they just couldn't afford it. That really broke my heart.”

Since her junior year in high school, she has divided her busy schedule. Monday through Thursday, she takes her high school classes in the morning. During the afternoons, she is a full-time student taking the college classes she needs to graduate. Aside from being a high school and college student, she takes part in events such as the new academies student orientation.

After STC, she plans to attend Texas State and later attend medical school. Angela’s career goal is to become an OBGYN because of her love for babies and wanting to help out the mothers.

“It's something so beautiful to me, because children are being brought into the world every day and I'm going to be able to help, like I'm going to be the person to help them facilitate their way into the world.”

Angela says the DEMSA program at STC has definitely helped her. Although it is a lot of coursework, she feels the effort and time put in is entirely worth it.

“I can really say every minute has been worth it. I've seen how much money I'm going to save, and I see how proud my mom is of me. I'd be the first to graduate of my entire family.”