Bryan Castaneda has his sights on becoming a surgeon. A heart surgeon to be more precise. A thoracic heart surgeon to be exact.

“I’ve always been interested in the health care field. I like helping people, and to experience empathy,” said the high school sophomore. “Medicine is never bland. It’s always innovative and exciting.”

Innovation is the cornerstone of Aurora Science & Tech (AST), where Bryan is one of nearly 800 students in grades 6 through 10 where STEM, short for science, technology, engineering and math, takes center stage.

Bryan’s school at 2450 N. Scranton St. is part of a consortium of DSST public schools where STEM is a focal point, and the students at AST focus on health sciences since the school is located on the Anschutz Medical Campus.

AST is one of six schools in the nation to share space with an academic medical center. Because of its special partnership with UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital, students enjoy frequent field trips to the medical facilities there, shadow health professionals, learn more about career opportunities and gauge whether they want a future in health care.

What makes the school even more unique is that it has an open enrollment and doesn’t require interviews, qualifying tests or a complicated application to enroll. Ninth graders study biomedical sciences, while 10^th graders focus on body systems. Starting next year, high school juniors will be doing internships with experts on campus.

“You just need to want to be here,” said Katie Boye, AST’s director of STEM and Partnerships. “The whole goal is to integrate real world applications and career options into what they’re learning.’’

Bryan wants to be there. That he and his classmates are determined and diligent about reaching their goals is a testament to not just the support of family, teachers, and UCHealth, but an implicit understanding that the students’ success means a lot to their community.

AST is located in a high-need area of Aurora, and most of the students come from low-income families and qualify for free and reduced lunch. About 73% of its students are Hispanic, while approximately 17% are Asian, 7% are Black, 10% are white and others are multi-racial or Native Hawaiian.

For Bryan, a first-generation student whose parents are from Mexico, his dream of becoming a heart surgeon is a way to give back to his parents who have always encouraged him.

“They push me to do my best,” he said.

A window into the brain: jelly beans and mirrors

On a recent Friday morning at his school, Bryan was one of dozens of 9^th – and 10^th-grade students attending a panel convened by four University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus PhD neuroscientists whose message was:

• Appreciate the amazing complexity of the brain, which is changed and shaped by every experience you have.
• Embrace your “inner nerd” and pursue a career in science if that is your passion.

During an assembly, the experts encouraged students to ask about anything related to neurology, including how video games, drugs, alcohol and vaping affect the teenage brain.

While not a lecture on “just say no,” the researchers’ message was very clear: lifestyle choices involving drinking, drugs and tobacco not only lead to poor decision making in the moment but cause permanent changes to their developing brains.

Following the question and answer session, a smaller group of about 20 sophomores participated in two neurology experiments: one involving jellybeans and the other related to mirrors in a shoebox.

Post-doctoral fellow Courtney Wilson, who is studying how taste buds work, first passed out the jellybeans, (and then doled out a second round of the candy to the hungry students who ate the experiment). She had them hold their nose and swallowed and asked what they tasted. When the answer came back a uniform “nothing,” she discussed how important the sense of smell is to our brain and how the brain works with our taste buds to give us the flavors of sweet, sour, savory and bitter.

In the second experiment, students put their hands inside a small box with a mirror inside and while only looking at the mirror, did their best to trace shapes with a pen as they were timed. During each attempt, they managed to shave off a few seconds off their times and draw more accurate pictures, as Wilson discussed the adaptability of the brain to learn quickly and take shortcuts.

Seeing success in others who look like me

The students appreciated not just the message but those who delivered it.

For instance, mingling among the teenagers was PhD student Christian Como, a first-generation student who understands the significance of her impact on younger students, who see themselves succeeding in science as she has.

“It’s important they see someone who looks like them. In the five years that I have been a PhD student, I have seen more women, more people of color and more respect of diversity.

“People have an idea that a scientist is a white man with crazy hair. But when they see people like us, they realize it can be people like you. It is obtainable,” Como said.

That message resonates with Bryan, who is as comfortable chatting about the neuroplasticity of the brain as he is about his lunch plans.

“Seeing diverse professionals from Anschutz means a lot to me, because that representation — that someone from a similar background like me can do it — means that I am capable of doing it as well.”

Bryan and his classmate, Jose Guzman, were AST’s first students to be selected to join this summer’s CU Pre-Health Scholars Program, a summer internship where they will explore different health career options up close and personal.

Jose, whose parents are from El Salvador, hopes to become a pharmacist. He’s excited about the health scholars program and the chance to gain experience through the “wisdom and mentorship” of others.

“I love the idea of making people happy and making people better with medicine. As humans, we live to help each other,” said the sophomore, who is inspired by the writings of Marcus Aurelius, an emperor from ancient Rome known for his Meditations on Stoic philosophy.

Dye, dissections and determination

While the other students might not be as up on ancient history, they are well versed on neurology already.

Freshman Saneida Esnault wants a career in neuroscience because she “really likes working with the brain and understanding the brain.”

Reign Manzanares, a sophomore, loves the marriage of forensics and science. Field trips to Anschutz have helped hone her interest in how science can be used in so many career fields such as criminal justice.

Gina Gutierrez, also a sophomore, likes dissections. Yes, dissections: “They don’t gross me out at all,” she said, adding that she sees herself as an ultrasound tech.

Tenth grader Isis Casareno wants to be a cell biologist and learn more about cancer research. She has not forgotten a previous field trip to the Anschutz where various dyes were injected into human cells in petri dishes.

“It was fascinating. It looked like beautiful art.”

Her friend, 10^th grader Kelly Nava, wants to be a surgeon. Field trips where she got to hold a human heart and brain are a standout for her.

“I loved it,” she said. “It’s a long way to go for me to reach my dream, and I’m going to need help to get there, but I’m willing to do it.

“My parents come from low-income backgrounds, they immigrated from Mexico. I see this as a way to improve myself. It’s the gift I can give to them, by making a difference and giving back and helping people.”