When Ricardo Vega was 11 years old, his younger brother Francisco was diagnosed with Kawasaki disease, a potentially life-threatening illness that causes inflammation of blood vessels, particularly those that supply the heart. After many misdiagnoses, his parents finally got the answers and treatment they had prayed for from a doctor at Children’s Wisconsin.
“The most memorable thing was the relief my parents had when a cardiologist said he knew exactly what the disease was,” Vega says. “He had only seen it once before and it was amazing to see the level of compassion and care that this doctor had when treating my brother and how he was able to connect with my parents, despite not speaking the same language.”
Now a junior in college, Francisco’s health is thriving.
For Vega, the way the doctor cared for his baby brother and parents was a memory he couldn’t shake.
“It stuck with me that health and resolution of diseases can go beyond cultural, language, religious barriers,” Vega explains. “That humanity was something my parents never really had experienced up until that point. And to me that was a major takeaway — to treat everyone with humanity and dignity.”
In June, Vega, a graduate student in the Opus College of Engineering, will be defending his Ph.D. thesis in biomedical engineering — an achievement inspired by his brother.
Giving back
For the past four years, Vega has found purpose in giving back, working with the Engineering Scholars Program.
As a scholars coordinator, Vega helps first-generation students navigate the college experience, something he struggled with as an undergraduate student. Dr. Mark Federle, associate dean and professor of civil, construction and environmental engineering, hired him in 2021.
“Being a first-generation student himself, Vega understands the challenges and doubts of students,” Federle says. “He helps students visualize themselves succeeding as engineers during their time at Marquette.”
Vega provides a support system for students by collecting campus resources and guiding them in the right direction. But he doesn’t do it alone.
“I work in tandem with Dr. Kris Ropella, Opus Dean of the Opus College of Engineering, and all the academic support services that we offer,” Vega says. “Overcoming imposter syndrome is a big thing, especially for first-generation students. It’s my role to help them understand that they are capable of doing great things.”
This year, Vega will be seeing his first cohort of students graduate from the Engineering Scholars Program.
Another way Vega gives back is through his work as a research assistant in Dr. Brian Schmit’s Integrative Neural Engineering and Rehabilitation Laboratory. Schmit, associate dean for research and the Hammes Family Professor in the Marquette University and Medical College of Wisconsin Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, became Vega’s mentor when Vega was an undergrad in the McNair Scholars program for first-generation college students.
“I think the biggest thing that stands out about Ricardo is that he’s a team player,” Schmit says. “He helps everyone else out and is always one of the first students to volunteer for things in the lab.”
Vega’s research focuses on brain imaging using connectomes in stroke survivors. Connectomes are a way to measure the connections in the brain using magnetic resonance imaging. He looks at how the connections in the brain change after a stroke and how these changes in connections affect recovery. This work informs an understanding of how the brain functions and is important to neurorehabilitation after a stroke.
“We have patients walking on a treadmill system, and we quantify their body movements as they adjust for abrupt disturbances while walking,” Vega explains. “We then correlate measures of connectivity across the brain and see if there is any relationship between the kinematic metrics of balance.”
Vega’s aspiration to help others and Be The Difference directly correlates back to his childhood experience witnessing the care doctors gave his brother and aligns with Marquette’s Jesuit principle of cura personalis, or care for the whole person.
“I want to have a career where I’m able to directly affect or improve the quality of life for people recovering from neurological disorders and diseases,” Vega says. “I think as long as I have an impact on people’s lives, I will really enjoy that.”
