Helios Scholars at TGen empowers future scientists and researchers
Alum shares program’s impact in launching his STEM career
The moment is etched in Mario Mosqueda's memory forever.
It was two years ago, while Mosqueda was working in a tissue culture room at the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), the prestigious medical research institute in downtown Phoenix.
“I kind of saw myself in third person, and I had to put my tools down and just sit in it,” said the 28-year-old biomedical engineer and now-TGen research associate. “Because, if you would have told me when I was a sophomore in high school what I would be doing now, I don’t think I would have believed it.”
Mosqueda was referring to the moment he was offered a full-time research position at TGen while interning there thanks to an innovative STEM program called Helios Scholars at TGen.
While going from intern one day to “colleague” the next was certainly unexpected, Mosqueda said that equally surprising was getting accepted to the program in the first place. Mosqueda said he believed he would be ineligible due to his undocumented status as a DACA recipient (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals).
But he was exactly the type of individual Helios had in mind when it awarded a $6.5 million endowment to TGen to officially establish the Helios Scholars at TGen Program in 2008, following several years of its successful pilot phase.
The 8-week paid internship program empowers the next generation of scientists, exposing them to biomedical research for undergraduate, graduate and medical school students from diverse backgrounds. The students gain hands-on experience and develop essential skills under the mentorship of seasoned TGen researchers. They also engage in a myriad of research and administrative projects with faculty and staff and learn to enhance professional skills.
Since its launch 18 years ago, more than 800 students have come through the flagship program, and many have pursued careers in Arizona’s biomedical research, healthcare and life sciences sectors.
The scholars’ achievements include acceptance into prestigious graduate and medical schools, unique career advancements, national awards and scholarships, and authorship on numerous scientific publications.
Dr. Jeffrey M. Trent, TGen’s president and research director, unexpectedly met a former Helios Scholar during a recent orthopedic surgery consultation.
“A physician from Mayo Clinic walked in, and looked at me, and said, ‘I was a Helios intern,’” Dr. Trent recounted.
Bringing STEM to all Arizona students
Nationally, only 13% of students from underrepresented communities choose STEM careers, said Kristen Kaus, TGen’s manager of education and outreach. With Helios Scholars, it’s 22%.
“The partnership with Helios Education Foundation is a driving force of what we do, continuing to service students from underrepresented minorities and students who otherwise wouldn’t have had opportunities in an internship space such as TGen,” said Kaus, a former AP biology high school teacher.
The students experience in-depth, real-life work, becoming part of a team in a lab, and assigned to early-phase projects that eventually could be funded, she said. The interns explore their passion for biomedicine and gain the necessary skills to pursue successful careers in research, medicine and academia.
A strong talent pipeline in the biosciences is critical for the future of Arizona’s economy and the health of its residents, said Helios President and CEO Paul J. Luna.
“For nearly 20 years, Helios has been proud to partner with TGen and invest in the next generation of leaders that will fill innovative roles paramount to the economic prosperity of Arizona,” Luna added.
The program’s success — with 93% of former Helios Scholars working today in STEM — is due to the vision and continuing support of Luna and Vince Roig, Helios founding board chairman, Dr. Trent said.
“They took a major leap to put funding in this area,” he said. “They believed we could deliver a program that was educational and also encouraging to these students to stay in this area of science and medicine.”
Some, like Mosqueda, are building careers at TGen, part of City of Hope. A Helios Scholar in 2018, he graduated from Arizona State University in 2021 with a bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering. He now works full-time in a neuroscience lab focusing on Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders.
- Paul J. Luna, Helios Education Foundation President and CEO
A defining moment in the TGen lab
Mosqueda was 6 years old when he moved to the U.S. He pushed himself through high school, taking biotechnology classes and working in science labs, and wanted to be the first person in his family to graduate from college.
“I had a really dark few months at the end of my high school experience, because I was leaving this protected area of opportunity where everything is provided for you in one place,” Mosqueda explained. “But I couldn’t find any scholarships to go to a university because I was undocumented."
At the time, a voter-approved ballot measure prevented undocumented students like Mosqueda from qualifying for state financial aid and required him to pay out-of-state tuition at Arizona’s public colleges and universities. His older sister persuaded him to consider community college.
“Looking back, it was probably one of the best decisions I’ve ever made because that’s how I met Shannon Ruth,” Mosqueda added, referring to a Gateway Community College math professor. “I opened up to her that I was an undocumented person and had certain restrictions, and she took it upon herself to find things for me.
Ruth told Mosqueda about the Helios Scholars at TGen Program. His first glimpse of a professional lab was inspirational.
“‘This is really fun, really cool,’” he remembered. “The people were so interesting – they were doing some really cool work. And I couldn’t believe I was allowed to be there."
Mosqueda was paired with TGen researchers studying synonymous mutations in children with cancer. He learned to pivot when findings weren’t achieved, made friends, and learned valuable lessons.
“I was surrounded by a lot of people at TGen who wanted me to succeed and were willing to answer my questions or talk to me,” he said. “I learned I’m a person who likes to do experiments, and so that summer was very pivotal in terms of me learning what I truly wanted to pursue.”
Mosqueda is passionate about the need for diversity in science, technology, engineering and math careers. And mentoring those needing it.
“I had a student who came to my lab to shadow me for about an hour, and I was really busy. I felt so bad because I wasn't able to talk to him for very long,” Mosqueda recalled. “At his graduation, he said to me, ‘I didn't want to say this when I was in your lab, but just seeing you meant a lot to me.’ And I said, ‘What do you mean?’ He said, ‘Well, because you're like me, you're another Latino man who’s doing it. I felt like we're doing it.’ That meant a lot to me.”