Photo credit: Ralph Freso / slide show
Mercedes RangelWhen she's at the computer, she shows off her sharp analytical skills.
One of her professors at Grand Canyon University was Deborah Haralsoncompares a cyberpuzzle-solving genius to having this sense for technology, this amazing, innate, no-one-told-you-definitely-“bloodhound-sense.”
Rangel, who donned her cap and gown more than two hours before departure for Friday's GCU graduation ceremony for traditional students, may have inherited her keen technology instincts from her mother. That's what I think.
She remembers the wonder she felt as a child growing up watching her mother earn a degree in computing at a time when computers were just becoming established in home offices across the country.
“I watched her break computers and put them back together and play around with floppy disks and things like that. It was so cool to see that,” said the woman, who was familiar with computers even before she set foot in a college classroom. Rangel, who knew, said.
An eight-year Navy veteran, she said she tinkered with them endlessly until she graduated from high school. So when she joined the Navy, she understood that that's what she wanted to do, she got a high enough score on the military entrance exam, and for her job she needed IT training. I decided to receive it. It was to establish communications on a naval ship (in her case, her USS). Carl Vinson, a nuclear-powered super aircraft carrier whose home port is San Diego.
“I was always good with computers,” she says simply, and loved life in the Navy.
“What I loved was being able to introduce all the different cultures, and the food, people, and experience were amazing. It was great.”
More importantly, she found a second home in the Navy, a special bond with the people she served with.
“Now that I've been in the military, I have so many great people in my life…so it's just a community and a family affair.”
And it was her family, her Navy friends, and her own family that helped her overcome the biggest challenge of her life.
While she was in the military, doctors diagnosed Rangel with non-Hodgkins-Burkitt lymphoma. Lymphoma is a rare, aggressive cancer that starts in organs such as the abdomen and spleen, progresses rapidly, and can be fatal if not treated immediately.
“This is an exposure cancer, so we don't necessarily know what caused it,” Rangel said.
The Navy sent Rangel to Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, where he underwent six months of intensive chemotherapy in 2019.
She recovered but was unable to return to the Navy.
“I moved here (Arizona) after my family helped me get back on my feet. I was still in San Antonio working at UTSA (University of Texas at San Antonio), and at that time I realized I missed my family and just wanted to be closer to them.”
That's when she decided to go to school instead of going back to work, choosing GCU to major in information technology with an emphasis in cybersecurity.
“I’m 33 years old, so I grew up around the time AOL was introduced…and dial-up and all that stuff,” she said with a smile.
But she hasn't stopped learning.
At GCU, she threw herself into everything she did and excelled while balancing other aspects of her life.
Somehow, in between all her studies, she managed to find time to compete in CrossFit, which she was obsessed with in the Navy.
“Before I got sick, I was doing a lot of exercise in the military, but after I got sick, I couldn’t do much because of all the medical stuff, so I was a little disappointed.
“After that, lifting weights and just moving my body helped me a lot. Even though I'm not as strong as I used to be, I'm in a place where people with disabilities can thrive.”
Haralson, dean of GCU's Bachelor of Science in IT and IT/Cyber programs, said Rangel is “probably the brightest student I've ever met…I'm really jealous of her brain.”
and dwight farrisThe Cyber/IT faculty leader is in awe of her “extraordinary ability to troubleshoot issues.”
“The reason I like this so much is because you know there is nothing To find out about it, all you have to do is use Google or any kind of search engine at your disposal,” Rangel says, almost without stopping or taking a breath, as much as your brain can produce. I said, spitting out my thoughts quickly. they. “You'll learn it quickly just by messing around and getting lost.”
But what she likes most about computers is: “The biggest way for me is I love mysteries and clues and I’m good at board games and figuring things out and that’s what I love about the world of cybersecurity. You could think of that as one thing. But it could be something else entirely, so we need to understand why.”
It's easy to see why when you think about her time at GCU, where she's wearing her graduation dress.
She honed her bloodhound sense of the technology God had given her and was exactly where she was meant to be.
She is considering getting a master's degree, but is looking for a job where she can grow and constantly learn.
“If I can be a valuable resource to someone, I would love to be a part of that.”
Lana Sweeten-Shults, GCU Internal Communications Manager, can be reached at: [email protected] or call 602-639-7901.
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