My name is Jose Robledo from San Benito, Texas located in the Valley of Texas. I am currently attending the University of North Texas (UNT) in Denton pursuing my PhD in Biology (Genetics). My parents, both migrant farm workers, raised me in a hardworking loving home where we would harvest vegetables every summer as a family. Thankfully, my strong family values and the support of many programs (e.g. TRIO, UpwardBound Math and Science, C.A.M.P., McNair Scholars) led me to pursue a career in Academia. Attending West Texas A&M University for my B.S. in Biology fueled my passion for scientific research, teaching, and mentoring. I have high hopes in inspiring young minds into pursuing careers in the STEM fields and to hopefully mentor future scientist. At UNT, I found a great mentor in Dr. Pamela Padilla who studies various stress responses using Caenorhabditis elegans as a model system. My research in my PhD involves in understanding the genetic changes that result because of a hyperglycemic diet using Caenorhabditis elegans as a model system. Fortunately, with guidance from my mentor, I have been able to take a variety of approaches in my research (e.g. genetics, biochemistry, bioinformatics, R stats, and physiology). I hope to continue learning various molecular techniques to help me continue working on identifying Diet related gene expression and metabolic changes. I look forward to meeting everyone at the conference to feel inspired into looking for a postdoc as I enter my final year of my PhD.