Ricky Herrera

“Overall, this program was great. It was epic.”

Senn high school senior Riky Herrera found out about the summer ETHOS program during his junior year in biology class when Dr. Rochlin presented about the after-school workshops. Herrera said the workshops gave him his first impression of neuroscience in general and the ETHOS experience continued to introduce him to research and the field of neuroscience in a more professional setting.

“I’ve never been too focused on research in my life,” Herrera said. “Seeing all of this introduced me to a whole different career path I never really thought about.”

Working in Dr. Steidl’s lab with his partner Madeleine Martinez, Herrera studied dopamine interactions and the reward system of the brain during the 6 week summer program. They tested, handled and weighed rats and mice during the labs and observed surgeries as well. Herrera said they did three main types of tests — food, behavioral and drug tests. He said he appreciated meeting and working alongside the Loyola undergraduates throughout the process as well.