Houston Garcia earned two degrees from Azusa Pacific in 2018 and 2020—a Bachelor of Science in Allied Health and a Master of Science in Biotechnology, respectively. Garcia came to APU ready to learn and apply modern science to health care showing his interest in the sciences from the start. “The field of science is one that is filled with inherent beauty, profound mystery, and incredible opportunity,” said Garcia. “I began my undergraduate studies at APU with a clear intention of leveraging modern science to improve patient care. At the time, I was unsure as to the specific discipline I would pursue, but I was tethered to the idea of having direct impact [on] patients and being at the forefront of real change. I chose allied health because it combined a rigorous science curriculum with other applicable courses that would expand my expertise.”
Today, Garcia works as a process engineer in the Manufacturing Science and Technology department at Kite Pharma. “Throughout my career so far,” said Garcia, “there have been countless times when I’ve leaned on the skills I developed through [APU’s] program to succeed.” Garcia noted that because of APU’s program, he was given “invaluable opportunities” to meet, collaborate, and learn from a diverse group of scholars. “In fact,” Garcia said, “many of these people have become close friends and some have even become colleagues. I believe that APU’s approach to fostering communication and teamwork inside the classroom often translates into the development of valuable professional networks.” Though Garcia was always interested in modern science and health care, it wasn’t until the second year of his master’s program that he felt he had found his professional calling. “During the summer of 2019, I had the opportunity to work as a research intern at Kite Pharma,” noted Garcia. “This was my first introduction into the fast-paced environment of scientific innovation specific to cancer immunotherapy. It was fascinating to understand how revolutionary advances in genetic engineering were being leveraged to treat bloodborne malignancies. Kite was leading the charge in this burgeoning field of medicine, and I knew I wanted to be a part of it.”
It’s tricky to detangle APU from Garcia’s work now, as he credits much of his success to the impactful experiences he had while an undergraduate and graduate student. “It’s difficult to determine which [experience] was the most meaningful,” mused Garcia. “However, some that stand out are the numerous conversations held during office hours with faculty. It was through these discussions that I was able to gain an understanding of industry trends and novel innovation in biotechnology. Even more valuable was the opportunity to identify disciplines within these fields that I was passionate about. That, coupled with my driving vision of wanting to improve patient care, planted seeds for what would eventually become a career at Kite.”
Working with Kite today, Garcia continues to use the skills he learned at APU and applies them directly to his passion for improving patient care. “I lead a variety of tasks related to process improvements, laboratory operations, and regulatory compliance. The mission at Kite is ‘focused on the cure’ and the way we accomplish this is by ensuring an efficient process for delivering life-saving therapies. The experiences gained during my time at APU have been instrumental to my role’s success. Many of my daily requirements as a process engineer require me to lean on the technical expertise and hard skills honed during both undergraduate and graduate courses.” Overall, Garcia’s years at APU not only prepared him for his current work, but also pushed him to remain enamored with science itself and how it displays God’s creativity and wonder. “I believe the Christian-based education I received [at APU] has allowed me to maintain a fascination with the complexities found both in the human body and in nature. It is through our exploration of current and new fields of science that we continue to see how enigmatic, yet beautiful, God’s creation is.