Dr. Tartar is originally from St. Louis, Missouri. She completed her MD and PhD at the University of Missouri, where her research focused on CD4+ T cells in autoimmune disease. She then completed her intern year at the University of Chicago before moving to Sacramento to complete her dermatology residency at the University of California, Davis, where she served as Chief Resident in 2016-17. During residency, Dr. Tartar stayed active in research, studying the immunology of wound healing.

Her background in immunology has led her to cultivate an interest in complex medical dermatology and rheumatology-dermatology, and she is currently on faculty as both the Co-Director of Inpatient Dermatology and Co-Director of the Autoimmune Connective Tissue Disease Clinic. Dr. Tartar is also very involved in resident education at UC Davis, where she serves as the Associate Program Director. In her free time, she spends time with her two Siberian Huskies, Thor and Loki.