Haley Alvarez-Garcia is a junior from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, majoring in Genetics and Genomics while pursuing a pre-medicine track. She is a member of the Center for Academic Excellence and an All-In Milwaukee scholar recipient. As an undergraduate research scholar, Haley conducted research through the Department of Surgery at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, where she studied sex-based differences in inguinal hernia repairs under the guidance and mentorship of Dr. Victoria Rendell, a minimally invasive surgeon at UW Health. She is committed to make research and clinical care more fair, inclusive and representative of the diverse patient populations served by the U.S healthcare system. Her interest in research originates from her desire to expand the current literature to better reflect all patients, starting off with the fundamental understanding of how differences such as sex can influence treatment approaches, standards to care and outcomes. Through her research experience, Haley has developed a passion for clinical research and has gone on to become the lead undergraduate researcher for the MIS team. She has also served as a summer database manager intern, overseeing many research databases, including foregut, bariatric and inguinal hernia. Outside of research, Haley likes to stay involved in healthcare by working as a night-shift nursing assistant on the mobile unit at UPH-Meriter hospital and volunteering at UW health and babies & beyond. She hopes to pursue a Doctor of Medicine (M.D) degreed in hopes of becoming an emergency medicine physician. In her free time, Haley enjoys exploring new areas of Madison with friends, playing pickleball, golfing and watching horror movies.