Jose's Bio

  My name is Jose Luis Munguia Felix. I'm six foot four, I'm twenty three years old, this is my third year at Phoenix College, and I live with my parents. I am the middle child of three. First there was my sister, then me and finally my brother; all of us being four years apart from each other. My biggest priority is to be successful in my career and help my family have a better life; in order to attain this goal I've chosen to become a surgeon. I do not know with exactitude what kind of surgeon I'll become, but I do know I want to use medicine to help those in need.

Now let me take a step back. I was born in the state of Sonora, Mexico; about 8 hours away from Phoenix if you are driving. I lived in Sonora until the age of 12 before I came to the United States of America to be with my family. I never imagined I would come to the US and make a new life here, but it happened. My dad was the first to come to Phoenix. Here my dad worked hard to send money to my mom back in Mexico but the solitude got the best of him. He came back for us and said that he needed his family and we, being a dedicated family, decided to follow. I attended Pueblo del Sol middle school where, during my first three months, I was put in ESL classes on the second floor of the school. There the school would ease me into the fluent speakers’ classes, which were on the first floor. Although the transition only took three months, it still took me the rest of the year to get a grip on the English language. After that, I went to Alhambra High School where I immersed myself even more in the new culture I had entered. During my last year, I spent a semester in the nursing program at Metro Tech High School, a vocational high school, where I was able to take a tour of a hospital. During that semester I witnessed a C-section, and for the first time I felt like medicine was a big part of my future.

After graduating, I took a two year break from studies to help my family financially. In 2010 I was able to acquire residency in the state of Arizona, and thus I was able to fully invest myself in my education and my future. I registered for classes at Phoenix College where I quickly found a program called REACH/TRIO, which made my future easier to envision. Reach and Phoenix College gave me the information and tools to increase both my desire and chances for success. Now, thanks to the S-STEM scholarship, I sustain my education, and my dreams for another year.