Sirus Baca

Sirus Baca was born and raised in Arizona, a citizen of the White Mountain Apache Tribe and Navajo Nation. He attended Blue Ridge High School and graduated at the top of his class with a capstone research diploma.

Sirus first became involved in the field of STEM at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Sirus sought to apply his knowledge in design and engineering to solve real-world problems. He was able to work with Banner Hospital in collaboration with the University of Arizona’s College of Medicine to apply his knowledge of design and 3D printing to create a solution to the ventilator shortage due to COVID-19. He was instrumental in the design of a cheap, functional, and easily producible investigational ventilation system that was utilized to manage seriously ill patients in intensive care units.

Sirus became increasingly involved in the field of STEM, which has not only allowed him to acquire an extensive amount of knowledge relating to this field but has also allowed him to expand his technical abilities in areas such as 3D printing, computer-aided design, mechanical design, CNC machining, casting metal, computer maintenance, and even boat building. His dedication led to a series of certifications, including the CompTIA IT Fundamentals (ITF+) certification, SolidWorks Additive Manufacturing certification, and he became the first and only student in his school to pass the rigorous exam to become professionally certified in Solidworks mechanical design.

In 2021, he was accepted for an internship at Swaback, an architectural firm, where he delved into the collaborative world of structural engineering, construction, and architecture. Furthermore, during his senior year of high school, he embarked on a five-month apprenticeship, serving as an IT technician assistant.

Sirus served in a leadership role on his school’s NASA Rover Team as the team's coordinator and co-team lead. He helped lead different aspects of the project, such as team safety, mechanics, and logistics. His team's goal was to build a rover with certain design specifications to compete in NASA's Human Exploration Rover Challenge (a worldwide competition). Sirus’ team placed fourth in the high school division among teams from around the globe.

In his senior year of high school, he undertook an extensive independent research project aimed at analyzing the intricate correlation between the Western Apache language and its associated cultural knowledge. He worked with cultural experts within the White Mountain Apache Tribe to develop a survey that answered the research question, “What effect does decreased fluency of the Western Apache language have on the White Mountain Apache Tribe’s members’ awareness of traditional cultural knowledge?”

Along with his academic pursuits, Sirus has worked at “The Greenhouse on Woodland,” a wedding and event venue, for all four years of high school, where he has developed a passion for gardening that has transferred to a pursuit of sustainable engineering practices.

Sirus' diverse array of experiences and opportunities has solidified his unwavering passion for engineering, recognizing its transformative potential across society. His accomplishments have not gone unnoticed, as he received the National Indigenous Recognition Award, numerous scholarships, and emerged as a finalist for the prestigious UC Berkeley Regent's and Chancellor's Scholarship, an honor reserved for the top 1% of accepted students. Today, Sirus resides in New York City, where he is enrolled at Columbia University School of Engineering and Applied Science. His aspirations lie in pursuing a major in Mechanical Engineering, with the ultimate aim of earning an MS in Aerospace Engineering.