The Emerging Face

On Saturday night at the Spring Commencement, the doctoral hoods worn by Chance Garcia and Jesus Flores as they walk to the stage will reflect much more than the shining light of personal excellence but also the emergence of a powerful national research university that defies the traditional choice between Access and Excellence. We hold a deep compassion for merging opportunities with excellence. Chance will start his aerospace research career with the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center in June, and Jesus has already joined a coveted engineering team at a pioneering commercial space exploration company, Blue Origin. 

Engineering doctoral graduates such as Chance and Jesus carry a strong message from UTEP, i.e., it’s clear intention to change the face of the engineering workforce. Although Hispanics are still a tiny fraction of the aerospace research workforce, the academic success of Chance and Jesus is the symbol of a Sputnik-like generation of engineers who are inspired, excited, and trained to exert the US technological superiority and leadership to take the challenge of humanity’s last frontier….Space.

Chance and Jesus are products of UTEP’s Energy Science and Engineering Doctoral Track (within the Environmental Science and Engineering PhD Program) that creates a new generation of doctoral graduates trained to thrive in a complex engineering systems paradigm and new modes of knowledge and innovation-based technology industries.  For his dissertation research, Chance worked on a NASA-funded project to generate liquid methane heat transfer data for next-generation nontoxic propulsion engines. More importantly, he led a team of graduate and undergraduate students for three years to develop a highly complex heat transfer test rig that generates design-ready experimental data for rocket engine development. He worked seamlessly with NASA engineers to develop test hardware that will immensely benefit emerging designs to keep the US a global leader in space propulsion technologies. During a recent technical review meeting, a NASA Branch Chief commented, “We consider UTEP student teams as our peers, not students,” which is a great complement indeed.

Jesus received very similar research training as he and his team developed an ignition system for LOX/Methane rocket engines. Also funded by NASA,  Jesus’ technical prowess for designing, developing, and testing complex space systems is so extensive that he started his professional career before he even defended his dissertation.

Both Chance and Jesus were trained at the Center for Space Exploration Technology Research, which stands as a mark for UTEP’s vision of creating a revolutionary research training facility where the seeds of inspiration coexist with technological complexities.  We are training future technology leaders to spur the much-needed innovation ecosystem for our region and nation.  At UTEP, we not only provide students with outstanding learning opportunities but also stand as a catalyst to aspire… for an American dream, economic prosperity, and the advancement of human technologies and knowledge.