
After graduating high school at the age of 16, I left my native Venezuela and moved to Miami, Florida, with the goal of becoming an electrical engineer. The following year, I started my undergraduate studies at Florida International University (FIU) and was scheduled to graduate as an electrical engineer in December 1998.
Unfortunately, on October 6, 1998, two months shy of graduation, I had a car accident in front of the university. A car ran a red light and hit the car that I was in, flipping us over three times and eventually landing us upside down. I was airlifted to the hospital where I was diagnosed with a spinal cord injury at the C5 - C7 level, which left me paralyzed from the neck down (quadriplegic). I was in the intensive care unit for two weeks connected to machines that helped me breathe. Then, I had a neck fusion surgery and was transferred to the rehabilitation department.
I had no choice but to withdraw from the semester and was unable to graduate in December as planned. Suddenly I could not move, walk, write, drive, eat by myself or play sports. All the things that I had taken for granted were gone. I had to regroup and assimilate what had just happened. I now depended on others for the simplest things, and I no longer had privacy. Daily activities tested my patience, and I realized that the way I chose to react to this unexpected new reality would affect the rest of my life. I could either give up or confront these challenges directly and continue achieving my goals.
I knew I had to keep going and finish what I started. With the unconditional love and support of my family and close friends, I persevered. For the first few days of January 1999, I attended school from the hospital before finally being discharged. I completed my last semester at FIU and attended the graduation ceremony in April.
I immediately continued with my graduate studies, and in 2002 I completed my master's degree in electrical engineering. During graduate school, I was a founding member and manager of FIU's VLSI (Very Large Scale Integrated Circuits) Laboratory where I helped bring in donations for the study and development of complex integrated circuits. After completing my master's, I continued my graduate studies to obtain a Ph.D. in electrical engineering at FIU. I based my doctoral dissertation on creating an electronic system capable of segmentally calculating the human body composition. This allowed me to not only meet the requirements for graduation, but also provided an opportunity for me to help people with physical disabilities like mine get better assessments of their physical conditions.
Since receiving my Ph.D. in electrical engineering in December 2007, I have taught electrical engineering classes at FIU and Miami Dade College, worked as an electrical engineer and have participated in projects like flight control electronics and autonomous vehicle system.
In April 2020, I was offered a position at L3Harris. I mentioned that I was very interested, but at the same time it was very difficult for me to relocate because I had already modified my house to be more accessible. I have ramps for my wheelchair, a roll-in shower, wider doors, etc. The recruiter called me back a few days later and told me they would offer me a remote position. Now, I have been working at L3Harris over three years.
I am proud to be surrounded by so many intelligent and caring people that have helped me grow, both personally and professionally. It could have been very easy to quit and not achieve my goal of becoming an electrical engineer, but I realized that there are always far worse positions to be in. I share this story to encourage everyone to continue pursuing their dreams. Feeling sorry for yourself will not help you get past your hardships and could hold you back instead. Overcoming challenges is by no means easy, but staying focused on your ultimate goal can turn dreams into reality.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
09/10/2026
September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026
New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
22/09/2026
From Malaysia to Mexico and from DR Congo to Ukraine, this year's 12 finalists for the 2026 Thomson Foundation Young Journalist of the Year award tell extra...
22/09/2026
The annual preseason content-gathering event brought 36 NHL players to Las Vegas, where ESPN used 2.5 kilowatts of laser power and a motion-control camera syste...
22/09/2026
Neumann has introduced the KK 104 A (cardioid) and KK 105 A (supercardioid) wireless capsule heads, succeeding the KK 204 and KK 205. The new capsules are compa...
22/09/2026
The NFL and TMRW Sports have announced a new annual Pro Flag Showcase to be held during Super Bowl LXI week in Los Angeles. The event will feature top flag foot...
22/09/2026
Washington State University has unveiled a new end zone video display and audio ...
22/09/2026
Disney's SVP of Live Operations and Engineering details the technology behin...
22/09/2026
Cosm has announced two senior promotions. Mazen Alawar has been promoted to SVP,...
22/09/2026
Mississippi State University's University Television Center has purchased four KOKUSAI DENKI SK-UHD7000-S2 cameras since 2024, with plans to add two more, a...
22/09/2026
Net Insight has announced that Christine Kjellvard will assume the role of interim Chief Financial Officer on November 1, 2026. Kjellvard has previously held in...
22/09/2026
Net Insight has announced Zyntai TimeNode Access, a compact PTP Grandmaster designed for distributed edge sites. The product carries secure, precise time across...
22/09/2026
Sam Hazeldine, Austin Amelio, Padraic McKinley, Julia Jones, and Ethan Hawke attend the premiere of The Weight at The Ray Theatre on January 26, 2026, in Park...
22/09/2026
Second high-gain tone plug-in released
Following on from their debut release, Chainsaw Suite, Avalanche Tones have announced the launch of their second plug...
22/09/2026
Uncompressed audio with below 6ms of latency
Lewitt's have just introduced their first pair of headphones which, despite being aimed primarily at studio...
22/09/2026
Two new capsule heads for Sennheiser wireless systems
Neumann have announced the upcoming launch of the KK 104 A and KK 105 A, a pair of new premium condens...
22/09/2026
Apogee Plugins Are Moving to Plugin Alliance We're excited to share an important update about the future of Apogee plugins.
Apogee plugins are moving to Pl...
22/09/2026
Parkland, Florida, US, September 22, 2026: SipRadius, widely recognized for making content processing and connectivity secure and seamless, has been honored wit...
22/09/2026
VanityFilter 3.1.5 adds project files and adjustable protection around lips, bro...
22/09/2026
Chile's TV Modernizes Broadcast Operations with Blackmagic Design
Brie Clayton September 22, 2026
0 Comments
URSA Broadcast G2 brings versatility...
22/09/2026
OWC Shares Sneak Peek at Amazon Prime Big Deal Days Pricing
Brie Clayton September 22, 2026
0 Comments
Image courtesy of Deposit Photos
Business and ...
22/09/2026
Berklee's First Homecoming Block Party Brings Alumni Home for Global Music F...
22/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/09/2026
From Academy Award-winning Passion Pictures and BAFTA-winning director Marian Mo...
22/09/2026
Tuesday 22 September 2026
Portrait Artist of the Year returns to Sky Arts with ...
22/09/2026
Whether it be from the sun or from our phones and other devices, we are all exposed to electromagnetic radiation in some shape or form. With the dramatic growth...
22/09/2026
Comscore's latest AI Intelligence Report Shows Competition Intensifying as C...
22/09/2026
The Factory-X Project Sets Standards for Data Sovereignty in Industry
Arvato Systems Brings Digital Sovereignty to Industrial Practice
Factory-X Successfully...
22/09/2026
LONDON Apple today announced the opening of Apple Music Hall, a brand-new state-...
22/09/2026
RT , Creative Ireland and Shared Island Initiative ask young artists
to respon...
22/09/2026
To build and deploy sophisticated robotics applications that can perceive, reason and act in dynamic environments, developers need new physical AI models and to...
21/09/2026
Manifold Technologies, developer of software-defined, FPGA-accelerated infrastructure for live production, has named Ryhaan Williams as Chief Commercial Officer...
21/09/2026
Studio Network Solutions (SNS) has won Best Journal Article at the 2026 IAMT Impact Awards for What Video Editors Need When Everything Is Changing Around Them,...
21/09/2026
Major League Wrestling (MLW) has announced a streaming distribution agreement with Tubi for its weekly series MLW FUSION. Beginning September 17, new episodes w...
21/09/2026
Disney Entertainment has announced that Adam Smith has been named Chairman, Direct-to-Consumer, with responsibility for Disney and Hulu including product, engi...
21/09/2026
United Airlines and DISH have announced an agreement to bring live professional ...
21/09/2026
SES and JioStar have announced a multi-year agreement under which SES will provide satellite distribution services for JioStar's television channel portfoli...
21/09/2026
The Detroit Red Wings have announced details for their inaugural season on Detro...
21/09/2026
Manifold Technologies has appointed Ryhaan Williams as Chief Commercial Officer for North America, effective October 1, 2026. Based in Jacksonville, Florida, Wi...
21/09/2026
Angels Broadcast Television (ABTV), the local television home of the Los Angeles...