First-generation pharmacy student makes the most of her opportunities

by Chuck Gordon

One of Cesilia "Cece" Baltazar's most impactful moments as a Wingate student came in a small village in Central America. As part of an international brigade that regularly makes trips to Guachipilincinto, Honduras, Baltazar and a group of healthcare volunteers made the trek a mile out of town to care for a woman who had been having severe gastrointestinal problems.

"When we got to her house, she was preparing tortillas from scratch," Baltazar says. "She had corn that she had been soaking, and she was using that to create this mixture to make tortillas."

Baltazar jumped in to relieve the woman of tortilla making while the more experienced providers examined her. That's when Baltazar noticed how moldy the corn was.

"She said she had been soaking corn and preparing it in advance, weeks ahead," she says. "She was practically giving herself food poisoning."

Had Baltazar not lent a hand, the mystery might have gone unsolved. The episode was a strong reminder of why she's getting into the medical field in the first place: to give everyone the opportunity to live a healthy life.

Baltazar will take the lessons she learned on that brigade, in her Wingate classrooms, and on her clinical rotations with her as she moves on to a residency program in Charlotte next year. First, however, comes the walk across the stage to receive her pharmacy (Pharm.D.) and master of business administration (MBA) degrees. Graduate commencement is Friday at 9 a.m. on the Academic Quad.

Baltazar had many real-world learning experiences in her P4, or fourth, year in the pharmacy program. In addition to learning medicine in an all-hands-on-deck scenario in Honduras, she also put her MBA to good use at High Point Medical Center during her clinical rotations in the Wake Forest Baptist Scholars Program.

On her administration rotation, she was charged with helping High Point Medical to fill a gap in cardiology care by persuading executives to fund an extra pharmacist who could provide care to cardiology patients.

Baltazar did a lot of the legwork, putting her Wingate MBA degree to good use as the "boots on the ground," as Leigh Fritz, director of pharmacy at High Point Medical, put it. Baltazar then presented the proposal to the hospital's director of cardiology and a few other hospital leaders.

"She presented to executives as if she was in a leadership position, and she was excellent," Fritz says. "I said, 'We have to be concise. What is our 'why'? And get it out quickly.' And she did. … She was done in three to five minutes, like I asked."

Her pitch was compelling, and High Point is now interviewing candidates for the newly created position.

"She caught up really quickly," Fritz says. "For instance, because I live more in the inpatient world, we had to confirm with a fellow leader what was the rate we were allowed to financially return, and she did the number-crunching. I just double-checked her."

Baltazar has always been highly motivated.

"My mom would work three jobs to make ends meet," Baltazar says. "I always wondered why she was never home and why she was working all the time. That's when I understood the gaps and the opportunities she wasn't given."

As a first-generation college student, Baltazar has made the most of her opportunities. In the Scholars Program, she served as the pharmacy director of DEAC (Delivering Equal Access to Care), a free student-run clinic that provides specialized healthcare to vulnerable populations. One reason she chose Wingate was because, as a native of Hendersonville, she had learned about the Honduras brigade, spearheaded by Dr. Shawn Taylor, associate professor of pharmacy.

Once enrolled as a pharmacy student, Baltazar jumped at the chance to join.

"It was amazing," she says. "It was really fulfilling to me to bring access to care to patients who I never would have thought I would have been able to, making an impact on a larger scale."

After her first year of residency, Baltazar hopes to do a second year and specialize in oncology pharmacy. Ultimately, bet on her holding some type of leadership position, wherever she winds up.

"I knew I wanted to do big things when I was 6 years old, because of my background," she says. "I think of those who wish they were in my position but don't have that opportunity. It's a privilege to get that higher education. It's a privilege to have these opportunities given to you."

Learn more about commencement and about studying pharmacy at Wingate.

May 15, 2025