Jessica completed her Bachelor of Science Degree in Biomedical Engineering at the University of California, Irvine in 2020. Jessica then started her Ph.D. in the UC Berkeley-UCSF Joint Graduate Program in Bioengineering. She joined the Chang Laboratory for Liver Tissue Engineering on the summer of 2021. Jessica is interested in tissue engineering and mechanobiology, and her work focuses on investigating the effects of extracellular matrix rigidity on hepatocellular dysfunction and liver fibrosis.

Jessica grew up in Mexicali, Baja CA, Mexico, and moved to the US with her family when she was 9 years old. She then lived in Calexico, CA, a small border town located in the Imperial Valley, until she graduated high school in 2016. Outside of lab, Jessica loves watching movies and shows, going to museums, trying new foods, and spending time with her family. She also enjoys doing outreach activities to encourage other students from underprivileged communities to pursue higher education.