Lorenzo Juarez, who is pursuing a bachelor's degree in biology with an emphasis in pre-medicine and a minor in chemistry, aims to go to medical school after he graduates from Eastern New Mexico University this spring.
"I am hoping that through medical school I will gain more knowledge about each specialty I can go into," says Lorenzo, who has won multiple awards as a track and field and cross country athlete at ENMU. "This will help me decide in the future what career path I want to take. As of right now, I am interested in being a general surgeon, hospitalist or family physician."
Lorenzo, a member of ENMU's Caduceus Health Society, hopes to help or impact as many people as he can while also trying to become a better doctor and person. "I hope to inspire other individual students that come from small towns or schools to work hard and to achieve whatever it is they want to do in life," he explains.
Lorenzo credits the following professors as mentors during his time at Eastern: Dr. Matthew Barlow, associate professor of biology, Dr. Manuel Varela, professor of biology, and Robin May, lead specialist for the STEM grant.
"I enjoyed all my classes at ENMU," says Lorenzo, who was part of the STEM Undergraduate Research Program with Dr. Barlow. "But my favorite would have to be my 'Anatomy' classes, especially the lab where we were able to work on a cadaver. Anything dealing with the human body and why certain things happen in it has always been an interest of mine."
Interested in becoming a biology major? Lorenzo, who has been on the Dean's List for six semesters, has some advice: "Shadow early to see if you will enjoy what you are going to essentially spend the next 8-12 years of your life working for. Once you confirm that this field is right for you, continue to work hard and it will all pay off in the end."
The senior, who participated in the ENMU Student Research and Creativity Conference in 2018, enjoys being a Greyhound because the professors know him by name. "I feel comfortable asking them for guidance," he adds.
His favorite place on-campus is Greyhound Stadium because that is where his team meets for practices. "I like being around my teammates and relieving stress," explains the athlete, who was named a Cross Country Lone Star Conference All-Academic runner for the fall of 2016 and 2017, Cross-country Academic Athlete of the Year in fall 2017 and Track and Field Lone Star Conference All-Academic for the 2018 indoor season.
The main reason Lorenzo chose to attend ENMU is that he received a running scholarship. He also liked that ENMU was "close to home and the classroom sizes are small compared to other universities, which is something that has benefited me in many ways."
Lorenzo was born and raised in Lovington, New Mexico, with his two older brothers, Sergio and Ceasar. Sergio is an accountant at Moss Adams in Albuquerque, and Ceasar is a police officer for Lovington. Their mother, Anna, works for the city of Lovington as a city clerk. Their father, David, works in the oilfield industry.
When not in school or studying, Lorenzo can be found with his friends, playing various sports or relaxing with movies and video games.
