Congratulations to Aleysa Garcia Rivas, 2025–26 APHA Kaiser Permanente Community Health Fellow

We are proud to congratulate Aleysa Garcia Rivas, MPH (Health Management & Policy, ’25), on being selected as a 2025–26 APHA Kaiser Permanente Community Health Fellow. Aleysa is one of only five fellows nationwide who will be placed at Kaiser Permanente this year, where she will contribute to high-level projects addressing upstream determinants of health. Her selection reflects not only her academic excellence and professional experience, but also her deep commitment to advancing health equity and access for historically marginalized communities.

Aleysa’s work is grounded in her lived experience as a first-generation immigrant and farmworker. Born in Michoacán, México, she immigrated to Oregon’s Willamette Valley at the age of seven to reunite with her family. Growing up, she witnessed firsthand the systemic barriers, such as language access and discrimination, that prevent marginalized communities from receiving quality healthcare.

She has experience across community health, health education, and policy roles—supporting SNAP-Ed nutrition programming with Native communities, improving language access at a Coordinated Care Organization, and most recently serving as a graduate intern for the Oregon Legislative Policy and Research Office. She has also volunteered with refugee resettlement efforts, developing accessible health literacy materials to ease the transition into U.S. healthcare systems.

As a fellow at IHP, Aleysa will collaborate on projects within the Institute and across teams at Kaiser Permanente, conduct research, write briefs and articles for policy audiences, and will have the opportunity to present products and policy analysis to peers, subject matter experts, and leaders across Kaiser Permanente.